Autumn is in full swing once again. It's the time of the year when many are picking out the "perfect" pumpkin to carve into the family's Jack-O-Lantern. This is a family tradition that children look forward to every year. Pumpkins have much to offer us beyond decorations and pie filling. The pumpkin, is a member of the Cucurbita family. This family also includes squash and cucumbers, and got its name from the Greek word "pepon" for large melon. Seeds (pepitas) have been found in Mexico, dating back 7000 years to 5500 B.C.
Native Americans have many uses for pumpkins. The uses of isqoutm, or isquotersquash as they were called, varied from functional to healing. Dry thin strips of pumpkin, were flattened, and then used to make mats. Research shows that many Native American tribes were well aware of the pumpkin's healing properties.
- Yuma tribes created an emulsion from pumpkin seeds and watermelon to help heal wounds. The seed oil was also used to treat burns and wounds.
- Catawabas ate pumpkin seeds either fresh or dry as a medicine for kidney support.
- Menominees mixed powdered squash and water to for urinary support.
- Modern folk healers believe the pumpkin to be beneficial in ridding the body of intestinal worms and also believe the ground stem of the pumpkin brewed into a tea may help ease women during their menstrual cycle.
Pumpkin seeds, are a "Power Food". Not only are pumpkin seeds full of Vitamin K, manganese, magnesium, L-tryptophan, copper, zinc, phosphorous and iron, but they are also a great source of fiber for our diet and protein.
Research has revealed
many health benefits from pumpkin seeds. The green pumpkin seeds you may have seen in your local health food store, are called Pepitas. The Pepitas are covered by a hard off white colored shell and are usually raw when sold. When baking seeds at home, from your pumpkin, the outside is toasted too and eaten. COOKING PUMPKIN
Bake unpeeled in halves or wedges, seeds and pulp removed, flesh side down in a pan with a little water at 350F / 180C, 60-90 minutes.
Steam chunks, covered, in a basket over boiling water, 15-20 minutes.
Boil chunks 8-12 minutes
Roasting Seeds: Wash under strainer and clean off excessive pulp. Put seeds on baking sheet and add about 1 tablespoon per cup of seeds, and sea salt (1⁄2-1 teaspoon per cup of seeds). Bake at 250 degrees F. until done.
Antioxidant Rich
Beta carotene---The rich orange color is a dead give away to the nutrients present in pumpkin. Research shows that people who eat a diet rich in beta-carotene are less likely to develop certain cancers than those who fail to include beta-carotene-rich foods in their diet.
Potassium---Studies show people who have a potassium rich diet lower the risk for hypertension. Potassium rich foods include bananas, broccoli, avocados, pomegranate and many others.
Zinc---Not only is zinc a major boost for your immune system, it also aids in bone density support for people at risk for osteoporosis.
High in Fiber---Diets rich in fiber may prevent cancer, heart disease and other serious ailments.
Health Benefits
Prostate Cancer
There have been many stories linking the pumpkin seed to a healthy prostate. But what is so special about these little green seeds one might ask. The protective compounds present within the seed of the pumpkin, called phytosterols, may be responsible for shrinking the prostate. They also contain chemicals that may prevent some transformation of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT). High levels of DHT are associated with enlarged prostate.
For BPH (Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia or enlarged prostate) prevention, eating a handful (about 1 ounce) of shelled pumpkin seeds three times a week is recommended.
Anti-Inflammatory Benefits in Arthritis
Unlike the widely used anti-inflammatory drug indomethacin, pumpkin seeds do not increase damaged fat levels in the lingus joints, a common side effect associated with indomethacin which contributes to the progression of arthritis.
Great on your skin
Pumpkins contains lots of anti-oxidant vitamins A and C, as well as zinc and alpha-hydroxy-acids which helps to reduce the signs of aging.
Pumpkin Nutrition Facts (1 cup cooked, boiled, drained, without salt)
- Calories 49
- Protein 2 grams
- Carbohydrate 12 grams
- Dietary Fiber 3 grams
- Calcium 37 mg
- Iron 1.4 mg
- Magnesium 22 mg
- Potassium 564 mg
- Zinc 1 mg
- Selenium .50 mg
- Vitamin C 12 mg
- Niacin 1 mg
- Folate 21 mcg
- Vitamin A 2650 IU
- Vitamin E 3 mg
Pumpkins are 90
percent water!!
Curried Pumpkin Soup with Maple Caramelized Onions
The following on Chemical and Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage is from the site: http://www.henriettesherbal.com/eclectic/kings/cucurbita-pepo.html
Storage and handling: Pumpkins can be stored for 1-2 months in a dry, cool, well-ventilated area. Once cut into, pumpkin will keep refrigerated in a loosely sealed plastic bag for about a week. Wash outside of pumpkin before cutting to prevent spoiling more quickly.
Chemical Composition.—Pumpkin seeds are composed of 25 per cent of husks and 75 per cent of kernels, and contain upward of 33 per cent of a reddi sh fixed oil, which, according to Kopylow (Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1877, p. 23), consists of the glycerides of palmitic, myristic, and oleic acids. These als o occur partly in the free state. No alkaloid was found in the seeds, nor the glucosid, cucurbitin, of Dorner and Wolkowitsch (1870). According to Dr. L. Wolff (Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1882, p. 382), the active (taenifuge) principle is a greenish-brown, acrid, bitter resin (Heckel, 1875) not contained in the petroleum-benzin extract of the seeds, but in the extract obtained with ether. It is also soluble in alcohol and chloroform. Its dose, as a taenifuge, is 1 5 grains, in pill form. The fatty oil is soluble in absolute, but not in 95 per cent alcohol (W. E. Miller, ibid., 1891, p. 385). Air-dried pumpkin seeds contain about 3.7 per cent of ash. The juice of pumpkin pulp contains 1.6 per cent of dextrose and 0.9 per cent of cane sugar (Mr. Both, in Dragendorff's Heilpflanzen, 1899, p. 650). The coloring matter of the pumpkin is due to carotin (Jahresb. der Pharm., 1896, p. 84).
Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.—Mucilaginous, taenicide, and diuretic, and of service in strangury and urinary affections, also in gastriti
s, enteritis, and febrile diseases. The infusion may be drank freely. The expressed oil of the pumpkin seeds, in doses of 6 to 12 drops, several
times a day, is said to be a most certain and efficient diuretic, giving quick relief in scalding of urine, spasmodic affections of the urinary passages, and has cured gonorrhoea. Half a fluid ounce of oil of pumpkin seeds, taken upon a fasting stomach, repeated in 2 hours, and in another 2 hours followed by a dose of castor oil containing 1/2 fluid ounce of the pumpkin-seed oil, has been effectual in removing tapeworm. The following mixture has been found efficient in the removal of tapeworm: Take of the ethereal oil of pumpkin seeds, 1 fluid ounce; ethereal extract of male fern, 1 fluid drachm; sugar, 2 drachms; water, 4 fluid ounces
; rub the oil with the sugar, then the extract, and finally add, gradually, the water. One-fourth of this is a dose, to be repeated every hour. An infusion of the seeds has also been found effectual in removing tapeworm. The method now chiefly pursu
ed is to have the patient fast for a day and take a saline cathartic to wash the intestinal mucus, etc., from the worm. Then, the patient being kept in bed to prevent emesis, administer to him 3 doses of 1/3 of a pint each, every 2 hours, of an emulsion prepared from the fresh seeds beaten with pulverized sugar and diluted with milk or water. After a
few hours, a purgative, like castor oil, may be administered to aid in the expulsion of the worm. This is also effectual in removing the roundworm. It was formerly believed that the taenifuge properties resided in the external covering of the seeds, but later investigations do not confirm this view.
