Longan vs lychee: Which is better?

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Eating better longan or eating lychee is always a question that many people wonder, because these are two delicious and sweet-tasting fruits, even longan and litchi also bring certain benefits to human health. health if you know how to eat in moderation and in moderation.

1. How do longan and lychee provide nutrition?

In terms of nutrition, both fruits provide equal value, are fat-free, low in carbs and calories, specifically:
18 grams of fresh longan provides 17 calories and 4 grams of carbs. 18 grams of fresh lychee provides 18 calories and 5 grams of carbs. Compared with fresh fruit, dried longan and lychee are higher in calories and carbs, specifically:
18 grams of dried longan provides 80 calories and 21 carbs. 18 grams of dried lychee provides 78 calories and 20 carbs.

2. How good are longan and litchi fruits for health?

2.1 Longan and litchi are good for tissue cells Fresh longan and litchi contain vitamin C. Compared to the recommended daily value of vitamin C, when consuming 18 grams of lychee and longan can provide between 33% - 40%. In the body, vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, plays a very important role, helping to heal wounds on the skin, producing collagen to help the skin be firm, cartilage, muscles, bones are supple. For oral health, vitamin C helps keep teeth and gums strong.
Supplementing vitamin C from nature with fresh fruits, including longan, litchi is very good compared to using synthetic tonics. Some studies show that vitamin C is also an antioxidant that protects heart health. Vitamin C can reduce hardening of the arteries, which is one of the factors that increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
2.2 Longan and litchi support weight loss You may not know, although it is a sweet fruit, litchi helps in weight loss because they help reduce body fat. In 2009, a study published that litchi fruit is rich in polyphenols.
When entering the body, polyphenols are digested and help significantly reduce visceral fat, abdominal fat, thereby reducing waist circumference and weight. Belly fat and visceral fat are considered risk factors for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
Meanwhile, eating longan causes obesity has not been proven by research. With low calories, carbs and fat, longan can replace other processed foods that are high in sugar and cause weight gain. However, one point to note is that lychee and longan should only be eaten in moderate amounts, because this is a small fruit, easy to eat a lot, so it is easy to lead to an increase in carb intake and an increase in body weight. blood sugar.

2.3 Eating longan and litchi helps control blood pressure In terms of minerals, longan and litchi contain a small amount of potassium just enough for the diet. Potassium helps control blood pressure. However, in the daily supply of minerals, potassium is often added below the recommended level. Instead, the amount of sodium consumed increased, coming from fast foods.
The difference in sodium and potassium intake leads to an imbalance and causes high blood pressure, which is a risk factor for stroke. So, getting enough potassium in the diet will help reduce the risk of stroke.
2.4 Longans and litchi are good sources of fiber Both fresh and dried longans and lychees provide good fiber. Fiber plays an important role in helping to maintain and keep bowel movements normal, thereby improving the health and microbiome of the intestinal tract.
Especially, for diabetics, consuming a lot of fiber will help lower blood cholesterol as well as control blood sugar. However, fiber supplements from fruits and vegetables, such as longan, provided more health benefits than other placebo products.
2.5 Longan and litchi contain a lot of antioxidants Both longan and lychee are rich in antioxidants, which work to fight free radicals that damage cells and cause disease. In particular, polyphenols, a substance extracted from lychee fruit, are antioxidants, which protect and strengthen the liver and pancreas (according to traditional Chinese medicine). In addition, some compounds extracted from litchi fruit are known to increase the ability to restore damaged liver cells, treat fatty liver and liver scarring.
2.6 Some other benefits of litchi Compared with fresh longan, fresh lychee contains more minerals such as magnesium, copper, manganese, phosphorus. In addition, fresh lychees also provide a number of other essential vitamins such as folate, vitamin B6 and niacin.
In the body, niacin can help improve levels of HDL cholesterol (which is good cholesterol), while vitamin B6 helps support the metabolism of proteins, fats, carbs and the nervous system. In particular, folate in lychee fruit is essential for women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant, because this is a substance that works to prevent neural tube defects in the fetus.
However, as with many other fruits, consuming too much lychee can lead to blood sugar spikes. Therefore, women with gestational diabetes or people with diabetes need to pay attention to eat only a moderate amount of lychee and longan to avoid increasing blood sugar.

3. How to use longan and lychee fruit

Longan and litchi are both known to be very healthy as mentioned above, but there are still not many studies proving the true benefits of these two fruits.
However, longan is still commonly used because of its outstanding effects, comparable to general tonics such as providing energy and helping to strengthen the immune system, reduce fatigue and stress. , depression, while enhancing and improving memory. The lychee fruit is used as a natural remedy to improve blood circulation and the immune system, lower blood pressure, lower blood sugar and treat asthma.
Both longan and lychee have a number of health benefits. However, it should be noted that these two fruits should only be eaten in moderation and in moderation to avoid a sudden increase in blood sugar.
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Reference source: healthline.com - webmd.com