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Healthiest Foods: Grapes
Throughout centuries, grapes and products derived from grapes, were used by humanity as a medication in the treatment of many diseases. Hundreds of medical studies have proved that consuming grapes has several health benefits such as helping with anemia, chronic kidney disease, arthritis, disorders of the digestive system, pain in the joints, also contributes to the improvement of metabolism and excretion of uric acid from the body.

Grapes contain more than 150 of biologically active substances.

  • Grapes are rich sources of vitamins A, C, B6 and folate

  • Grapes contain essential minerals like potassium, calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and selenium. Magnesium helps muscle contraction and phosphorus helps form genes, being part of nucleic acids

  • Grapes have important antioxidants such as anthocyanins, flavones, geraniol, linalol, nerol and tannins. These phyto-chemicals have been proved to have an  anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, anti-microbial, and anti-cancer activity.

  • Grapes are a powerhouse of phytonutrients called polyphenols that include flavonoids, phenolic acids, and resveratrol. These are found in the grape skin, stem and seeds. Resveratrol, a naturally occurring substance in wine that stimulates a gene known as SIRT1, may help reverse the signs of aging! The resveratrol found in red grapes helps to lower your blood cholesterol level and  helps to lower your risk of a stroke. Resveratrol is also one of the powerful anti-oxidant, which  plays a protective role against different types of cancers, coronary heart disease, degenerative nerve disease, Alzheimer's disease and viral/ fungal infections. Researchers have  found that consumption of grapes offers dramatic protection, against oxidative damage of the retina and prevent blindness.

  • Grapes also contain acids such as tartaric acids, malic acids, succinic, fumaric, glyceric, p-coumaric and caffeic acids. Caffeic acid is a strong cancer fighting substance.

  • Beta-carotene, lycopene, ellagic acid are also found in grape skins.