Watermelon: preventing prostate cancer

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Extract from the article: Watermelon contains over 90% water. It is an excellent anti-inflammatory agent. Watermelon has the ability to reduce chronic inflammation that can lead to illnesses such as asthma, diabetes, arthritis, coronary heart disease and certain cancers. Thi

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Watermelon contains over 90% water.  It is an excellent anti-inflammatory agent. Watermelon has the ability to reduce chronic inflammation that can lead to illnesses such as asthma, diabetes, arthritis, coronary heart disease and certain cancers. This protective effect is due to its high antioxidant content, the main property of which is that it travels through the body in search of free radicals in order to neutralise them. These free radicals wreak havoc when they clump around the walls of blood vessels, blocking them or attacking the nuclei of cells and damaging them. This leads to the development of various cancers and damages our genetic code.

Watermelon contains antioxidants and vitamins A and C. Two slices of watermelon provide 25% of our daily vitamin C requirements and 12% of our vitamin A requirements. Vitamin A protects the walls of the blood vessels against the deposition of cholesterol in the arteries, a task it performs in tandem with vitamin C. Carotenoids are other powerful antioxidants. Lycopene is one such agent that protects both the heart and the prostate.

Reducing the risk of prostate cancer

A recent study published in the « New England Journal of Medicine » found that consuming lycopene-rich foods such as watermelon can reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer by 84%.   The same study highlights the protective effect of lycopene against colon, lung and endometrial cancer.It also significantly reduces high blood pressure and the risk of developing coronary heart disease.As Sandrine Zerbo, Nutritionist-Dietician and Consultant in Nutrition and Dietetics, points out: "Studies associate watermelon with a low incidence of cancers such as prostate cancer, because it contains lycopene and beta-carotene, two powerful antioxidants that combat the free radicals responsible for premature ageing and the onset of certain chronic diseases".

A study, also published in « Nutrients » on 4 February 2023, shows that drinking watermelon juice for 2 weeks helps to protect vascular function.

William O.