Cucumbers health benefits are quite numerous along with being very delicious. First, is a cucumber a fruit or is it a vegetable? Since the cucumber develops from a flower and has enclosed seeds it is botanically classified as a fruit. They have often been recognized and enjoyed as vegetables just as the squash and tomato.
Before you decide to grow cucumbers in the garden you will need to have plenty of ground room or have something for them to climb up on such as a trellis or tomato cage. The cucumber is a vine plant that likes to spread out for long distances on the ground but it is better for them to climb around on something that is off the ground. Your cucumbers will look more like cucumbers if they have a trellis or fence to wind their vines around. If they are allowed to spread out on the ground they may end up with a flat discolored bottom from being on the ground so long.
Cucumbers can be classified into 3 varieties: pickling, slicing, and burp-less. Pickling cucumbers are fairly small and can grow from about 2.8 inches to 3.9 inches in length and less than an inch wide; their skin is bumpy with small black-or white-dotted spines and never waxed. Slicing cucumbers can get as long as 14 inches long and we eat them in their green form or unripe. When they are ripe they turn yellow and will be too bitter and sour. The burp-less variety is regarded as easily digestible and they have a flavorful taste. They can grow to almost 2 feet long, have very few seeds, mostly grown in greenhouses and found in plastic shrink-wrap at the grocery store.
Since this article is about the health benefits of cucumbers it is time to talk about that. The majority of the health benefits are located in the skin of the cucumber and since the store bought ones will probably have pesticide residue or a waxed coating on them it will be best to purchase the organic version or grow your own. Cucumbers are known as eye pads; they help in the reduction of swelling around the eye and dark circles under them. They also help relax your eyes after a hard day at work. The cucumber contains several useful ingredients that help treat many skin problems. Their cleansing property helps the skin become soft and more relaxed.
Cucumbers are very low in calories; a medium sized cuke has only forty-two calories and since they are high in fiber are quite filling. Due to their high water content they are good at replacing any fluids that get lost when you sweat. During the hot summer months by eating foods that contain high water levels help hydrate the body and prevent heat exhaustion.
Cucumbers also help control blood pressure due to the potassium and magnesium they contain. They are an excellent source of some antioxidant vitamins such as A and C along with folic acid. If a woman is pregnant, the folic acid helps reduce a risk of neural tube defects in her unborn child. It can also reduce a risk of heart disease with the lowering the homocysteine levels. A daily glass of cucumber juice can reduce heartburn, soothe an acid stomach, and could help control grout, arthritis, and eczema.
Cucumbers are best if they are kept cool in the refrigerator and away from direct sunlight. If the skin is too bitter for you just cut the ends off and peel the skin away. The only problem with pickled cucumbers is they have lost most of their vitamins and they contain high levels of sodium. You can still eat the pickling variety of cucumbers just as you would the slicing variety. The best way to take advantage of the health benefits of cucumbers is to organically grow your own.
