Health

Just how healthy are pomegranates?

Pomegranates can be a little intimidating. Cutting one open requires some precision. And are they even worth the work to free all those little ruby red buds inside? Nutritionists think so.

Medical research

Pomegranate compound with anti-aging effects passes human trial

Urolithin A, a metabolite of biomolecules found in pomegranates and other fruits, could help slow certain aging processes. EPFL spin-off Amazentis, in conjunction with EPFL and the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, has published ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

What is hepatitis A and how can you get it from eating frozen fruit?

Seven people in New South Wales have been diagnosed with hepatitis A after eating imported frozen pomegranate seeds from Coles. Although still under investigation, the company responsible for production recalled the implicated ...

Health

How pomegranate extract alters breast cancer stem cell properties

A University at Albany research team has found evidence suggesting that the same antioxidant that gives pomegranate fruit their vibrant red color can alter the characteristics of breast cancer stem cells, showing the superfood's ...

Alzheimer's disease & dementia

Can pomegranates protect the brain from dementia?

A diet rich in pomegranates had significant positive impacts for the brain health of mice with Alzheimer's disease, an international research team led by the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) at UNSW found.

Medical research

Pomegranate finally reveals its powerful anti-aging secret

Are pomegranates really the superfood we've been led to believe will counteract the aging process? Up to now, scientific proof has been fairly weak. And some controversial marketing tactics have led to skepticism as well. ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Lemon juice and human norovirus

Noroviruses are the predominant cause of gastroenteritis outbreaks in community settings such as hospitals, cruise ships, and schools. The virus is extremely contagious and is mostly transmitted via "fecal-oral-route", i.e., ...

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Pomegranate

The pomegranate  /ˈpɒmɨɡrænɨt/, Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between five and eight meters tall.

Native to the area of modern day Iran, the pomegranate has been cultivated in the Caucasus since ancient times. From there it spread to Asian areas such as the Caucasus as well as the Himalayas in Northern India. Today, it is widely cultivated throughout Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, China, Burma, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, the drier parts of southeast Asia, the Mediterranean region of Southern Europe, and tropical Africa. Introduced into Latin America and California by Spanish settlers in 1769, pomegranate is also cultivated in parts of California and Arizona for juice production.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the fruit is typically in season from September to February. In the Southern Hemisphere, the pomegranate is in season from March to May.

The pomegranate has been mentioned in many ancient texts, notably the Homeric Hymns and the Book of Exodus, and is valued by many cultures for its beauty. It has, in recent years, reached mainstream prominence in the commercial markets of North America and the Western Hemisphere.

This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA