Whether to eat fruit with skin or without skin, your common sense and general knowledge are usually enough to come up with an answer. The confusion usually arises when you have to decide on eating fruit like a peach. Can you eat peach skin? Is it even healthy?
Our love for fruit and not wasting any of it, makes us eat a lot of fruits with their skin on. There fruits like apple and guava that actually taste good with their skin on. Then there are fruits like watermelon, taking a bite of the skin will make your teeth fall. In situations like these, your senses and common sense is enough to make a wise decision.
But peach skin can be deceiving in this regard. It is quite soft giving off the idea that it should be consumed. But then its fuzzy texture repels people away. Now, giving a final verdict can you eat peach skin? Most definitely yes.
Peach skin if treated well not only provides health benefits but tastes good too. It provides vitamins, antioxidants, fibers, and extra flavor.
Whether you like it or not your mother is going to make you eat your peach with its skin on. Might as well learn about all its benefits and eat it happily. Your grandmother’s idea to never waste food, even fruit peels might actually be good for your health too.
Table of Content
Benefits Of Peach
There is no debate about whether peaches are good for you or not. Despite packing a punch of essential nutrients peaches provide great flavor. Peaches are loaded with nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, Vitamin K, and fiber.
Nutrient | Quantity |
| Calories | 63 |
| Protein | 1 gram |
| Carbs | 15.2 grams |
| Fat | less than 1 gram |
| Fiber | 2.25 grams |
| Vitamin C | 17% of the Daily Value |
| Vitamin A | 10% of the DV |
| Vitamin E | 5% of the DV |
| Vitamin K | 5% of the DV |
| Potassium: | 8% of the DV |
Sourced from USDA database
Can You Eat Peach Skin?
Yes, you can and you should. But the decision will always be yours. I am here to state facts and help you in making a wise decision, considering the health benefits and potential risks of eating peaches with skin.
Health Benefits
Eating peaches with skin provides the following health benefits
1. Provides Fiber
A peach with skin provides more than double the amount of fiber than a peeled peach. Fiber helps in maintaining a healthy gut. Fibers are essential to prevent constipation and other gastric issues. Moreover, fiber is also important in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels. It also helps in the elimination of toxic wastes from the body.
2. Rich in Vitamin A
Vitamin A; a nutrient famous to improve eyesight, is packed in peach skin. A lesser-known benefit of Vitamin A is, it helps improve overall immunity. Provitamin A carotenoids like lutein and zeaxanthin are also found in abundance in unpeeled peach. These reduce the risk of cataracts.
3. Rich in antioxidants
Peach skin is loaded with antioxidants. These antioxidants fight the free radicals, which may cause oxidative damage, disease, and inflammation. A study conducted on rats showed that peach peel showed significant protective effects against oxidative damage in the kidney liver and brain.
Peach skin is rich in antioxidants called polyphenols like chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid. The amount of these polyphenols in peach skin is far more than in peach flesh. Peach skin contains double the amount of polyphenols than peach flesh.
Potential Risks
Although eating peach with skin is perfectly fine. There are a few precautions you might need to take
1. The Skin Has Pesticides On It
Today, fruits available in the market are grown inorganically. They are sprayed with preservatives, artificial coloring, pesticides, and insecticides. Peels forming the protective layer have to face the brunt of it all.
Properly washing and treating peach before eating can help in getting rid of these harmful chemicals. If ingested as it is, these can cause various allergies and other disorders. Some researches link the long-term ingestion of pesticides to Parkinson’s and other cognitive disorders.
2. Might Disturb The Bowel
Peaches with their peel on, are loaded with fibers. Fibers are usually associated with healthy gut motility but sometimes these can disturb the bowel too. If you suffer from an already upset bowel system or issues like diarrhea, you might want to avoid eating peaches with the skin.
The Right Way
If you have decided, not to remove the peel the next time you eat a peach, you need to a few precautionary measures. Thoroughly wash the skin under running water and pat dry it with a paper towel. This will help in removing the waxy player from the fruit as well.
The Final Verdict
Peach skin is safe to eat and provides certain health benefits. But if not washed properly the same skin can render all the benefits of peach useless. So it is important to thoroughly wash your fruit before eating it.
If you decide on a recipe that might be affected by the presence of peach skin, you can remove it and save it for other recipes like a peach and lemon drink.
FAQs
1. Can you eat peach skin while pregnant?
Yes, in fact, this will help you in keeping your gut function normal. Make sure that you wash your fruit thoroughly.
2. Can you eat nectarine skin?
Yes, you can eat a nectarine with skin. This will provide fibers and other essential nutrients.
3. What are the health benefits of eating peach skin?
It provides fiber, vitamin A and vitamin C. It is also rich in antioxidants which prevent the body cells from oxidative damage.
4. What are the disadvantages of eating peach skin?
If not washed properly peach skin can lead to allergies and other diseases, due to the presence of chemicals on it.
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