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Lychee is a wonderful fruit with plenty of health benefits, including its ability to aid in weight loss, protect the skin, boost the immune system, prevent cancer, improve digestion, build strong bones, lower blood pressure, defend the body against viruses, improve circulation, and optimize metabolic activities.

What is Lychee?

Lychee, which has the scientific name Litchi chinensis is in the soapberry family, but is the only member of its genus, meaning that it is quite unique in the world. It is a fruit tree that can grow in tropical and subtropical climates and is native to China. It smells very much like a flower and is often used to flavor cocktails and dishes because of its unique scent, which is lost if not consumed fresh. The fruit is primarily eaten as a dessert in Asian nations and is growing popular in other parts of the world too.

The fruit has been cultivated for more than 4,000 years in China and was once considered a great delicacy of the Imperial Court. It is now cultivated in many nations around the world, but the main production still resides in Southeast Asia, China, India, and Southern Africa.

Lychee is soft and pulpy, white or pink in color, and the size is usually about 2 inches in height and width. They are highly eminent in countries around the world because of their health and medicinal benefits, which are due to the wealth of nutrients and organic compounds present in them. However, far more nutrients are present in dried lychee than in fresh lychee, so if you want to consume this for your overall health, forgo the sweet smell and allow the fruit to dry.

Nutritional Value of Lychee or Litchi

According to USDA lychee is packed with many nutrients including vitamin C, vitamin B6, niacin, riboflavin, folate, copper, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, and manganese. Furthermore, lychee is a great source of dietary fiber, protein, and a good source of proanthocyanidins and polyphenolic compounds.

Health Benefits of Lychee

Along with helping you enhance your appearance, lychee also helps in treating digestive issues, increasing blood circulation, cancer prevention, and much more. Let’s explore its benefits in detail.

Aids in Digestion

The significant amount of dietary fiber in lychee, as in most fruits and vegetables, helps add bulk to your stool and increases your digestive health. This helps bowel movements move through the digestive tract smoothly, and fiber also stimulates peristaltic motion of the smooth small intestine muscles, increasing the speed of food passing. It also stimulates gastric and digestive juices, so the absorption of nutrients is efficient. This can reduce constipation and other gastrointestinal disorders. It also helps reduce abdominal obesity, according to a study cited in the Journal ofFunctional Foods. Furthermore, the anti-inflammatory properties of flavanol-rich lychee also possess hepatoprotective effects, as per the PLOS One journal. 

Boosts Immunity

Perhaps the most significant nutrient in lychee is vitamin C, and this fruit has more than 100% of the daily requirement of ascorbic acid in a single serving. This means that your immune system gets a major boost, as vitamin C is a major antioxidant compound and is known to stimulate the activity of white blood cells, which are the main defensive line of your body’s immune system.

May Help Prevent Cancer

Research by the Division of Experimental Oncology, National Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, China shows that lychee fruit pericarp contains polyphenolic compounds that show antioxidant activity.  These compounds show an impressive anticancer potential against human liver cancer cells.

Lychee is a rich source of organic compounds, so it can be consumed as an effective preventative measure of various cancers.

A 2006 study shows that lychee fruit pericarp extract has the ability to induce apoptosis as well as inhibit cell proliferation of breast cancercells.

Research revealed that lychee seed extracts can be an alternative therapy for prostate cancer treatment.  Although human studies are yet to be done, the findings as of now look promising.

The latest research published in the Nutrients journal suggests that lychee has some therapeutic effects that can help in the treatment of colon cancer.

Improves Cognition

Researchers from the Southwest Medical University have published a study in the Nutrients journal which highlights the neuroprotectiveeffect of lychee seeds. The study demonstrates significant improvement in cognitive function and prevention of neuronal injury in the rat model affected by Alzheimer’s disease.

Antiviral

The proanthocyanidins in lychee have been studied extensively, and they have also demonstrated antiviral capabilities by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Litchitannin A2, a compound found in lychee, has been closely connected to preventing the spread or outbreak of viruses, including herpes simplex virus and coxsackievirus.

Controls Blood Pressure

Lychee has a wealth of potassium, meaning that it can help your body maintain a fluid balance; it is also low in sodium, which helps too. Fluid balance is an integral part not only of metabolic functions but also in hypertension. Potassium is considered to be a vasodilator, meaning that it reduces the constriction of blood vessels and arteries, thereby lowering the stress on the cardiovascular system. Potassium levels are almost three times higher in dried lychee rather than in fresh lychee! Furthermore, Dr. Mahesh Thirunavukkarasu et al., University of Connecticut Health Center, USA, in a study has revealed that oligonol derived from lychee fruit too is a vasodilator.

Anti-influenza

This powerful phenolic compound found in lychee has been connected to a number of important health benefits, including anti-influenza activity, an improvement in blood circulation, reduction in weight, and the protection of your skin from harmful UV rays when exposed to the sun. It also demonstrates considerable antioxidant capabilities, just like ascorbic acid, and other proanthocyanidins in lychee.

Improves Blood Circulation

Copper is another essential mineral found in considerable quantities in lychee, and although iron is most commonly associated with red blood cells, copper is also an integral part of RBC formation. Therefore, the copper content in lychee can boost blood circulation and increase oxygenation of the organs and cells.