It’s the season of organges and the city is painted orange. What you may not not is that this round fruit is packed with goodness.

Oranges are one of the best-known citrus fruits, and have been prized for more than 4,000 years. The first oranges arrived in Persia, Egypt, Spain, and Africa from Asia by way of ancient Arab trade routes. The fruit originated in China.

Ranked No 1 on nutrition among five popular fruits (apples, bananas, grapes and pears), oranges are among the healthiest items in the produce section that provide valuable health benefits.

Juicy and sweet and renowned for its concentration of vitamin C, oranges make the perfect snack and add a special tang to many recipes; it is no wonder that they are one of the most popular fruits in the world. Oranges are generally available in the winter.

In recent studies, the healing properties of oranges have been associated with a wide variety of phytonutrient compounds. These phytonutrients include citrus flavanones (types of flavonoids that include the molecules hesperetin and naringenin), anthocyanins, hydroxycinnamic acids, and a variety of polyphenols. When these phytonutrients are studied in combination with oranges’ vitamin C, the significant antioxidant properties of this fruit are understandable.

But it is yet another flavan-one in oranges, the herperidin molecule, which has been singled out in phytonutrient research on oranges. Arguably, the most important flavanone in oranges, herperidin has been shown to lower high blo-od pressure as well as cholesterol in animal studies, and to have strong anti-inflammatory properties. Importantly, most of this phytonutrient is found in the peel and inner white pulp of the orange, rather than in its liquid orange centre, so this beneficial compound is too often removed by the processing of oranges into juice.

You may know oranges are an excellent source of vitamin C — just one orange supplies 116.2 per cent of the daily value for vitamin C — but do you know just how important vitamin C and oranges are for good health? Vitamin C is the primary water-soluble antioxidant in the body, disarming free radicals and preventing damage in the aqueous environment both inside and

outside cells. Inside cells, a potential result of free radical damage to DNA is cancer. Especially in areas of the body where cellular turnover is especially rapid, such as the digestive system, preventing DNA mutations translates into preventing cancer. This is why a good intake of vitamin C is associated with a reduced risk of colon cancer.

A report, ‘The Health Benefits of Citrus Fruits’, released in December 2003 by Australian research group, CSIRO (The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research), reviews 48 studies that show a diet high in citrus fruit provides a statistically significant protective effect against some types of cancer, plus another 21 studies showing a non-significant trend towards protection. Citrus appears to offer the most significant protection against esophageal, oro-phayngeal/laryngeal (mouth, larynx and pharynx), and stomach cancers. For these cancers, studies showed risk reductions of 40 – 50 percent.

The World Health Organisation’s recent draft report, ‘Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Disease’, concludes that a diet that features citrus fruits also offers protection against cardiovascular disease due to citrus fruits’ folate, which is necessary for lowering levels of the cardiovascular risk factor, homocysteine; their, potassium, which helps lower blood pressure, protecting against stroke and cardiac arrhythmias; and the vitamin C, carotenoids and flavonoids found in citrus fruits, all of which have been identified as having protective cardiovascular effects.

An orange has over 170 different phytochemicals and more than 60 flavonoids, many of which have been shown to have antiinflammatory, anti-tumour and blood clot inhibiting properties, as well as strong antioxidant effects.

Oranges’ health benefits continue with their fibre; a single orange provides 12.5 per cent of the daily value for fibre, which has been shown to reduce high cholesterol levels thus helping to prevent atherosclerosis. Fibre can also help out by keeping blood sugar levels under control, which may help explain why oranges can be a very healthy snack for people with diabetes. In addition, the natural fruit sugar in oranges, fructose, can help to keep blood sugar levels from rising too high after eating. The fibre in oranges can grab cancer-causing chemicals and keep them away from cells of the colon, providing yet another line of protection from colon cancer. And the fibre in oranges may be helpful for reducing the constipation or diarrhoea in those suffering from irritable bowel syndrome. In addition to oranges’ phytonutrients, vitamin C and fibre, they are a good source of thiamin, folate, vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene), potassium and and calcium.

Want to reduce your risk of calcium oxalate kidney stones? Drink orange juice. A study published in British Journal of Nutrition found that when women drank half to one litre of orange, grapefruit or apple juice daily, their urinary pH value and citric acid excretion increased, significantly dropping their risk of forming calcium oxalate stones.

New research published in the August 2005 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition adds to the evidence that enjoying a daily glass of freshly squeezed orange juice can significantly lower your risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis.

Nutritional highlights: -

Calories: 20

Vitamin C: 24 mg

Fibre: 0.9 mg

Folate: 18 mcg

Carbohydrate: 9 g

Starch: 0

Sugars: 9 g

(Per 100g)

Include it in your diet because;

• Oranges supply 80 fat-free calories packed with energising carbohydrates that fuel energy levels

• One orange supplies a healthy dose of Vitamin C, which plays an important role in cancer prevention, healthy blood circulation and wound healing

• Oranges are a good source of the crucial B-vitamin folate, which is essential in preventing birth defects and fighting heart disease

• Oranges provide more than seven per cent of the daily value for potassium, which

is needed for proper fluid balance

• Oranges contain an array of phytochemicals, which help fight age-related diseases

• Oranges are one of mother nature’s best super foods, packed with an unbelievable array of disease-fighting nutrients.

• Oranges, as well as other fruits, contain a water-soluble fiber called pectin. Studies show that pectin helps reduce blood cholesterol levels. This may explain why individuals who eat several servings daily of fruits, such as oranges, and vegetables have a lower risk for heart disease.

• Oranges provide antioxidants, which help protect the

skin from free-radical damage known to cause signs

of aging.

• Oranges are loaded with disease “phyt-ing” phytochemicals. These substances, such as flavonoids, which are found in oranges, act as antioxidants and may protect against heart disease. According to a Finnish study, women with the greatest intake of flavonoids had half the risk of dying from heart disease compared to women in the study with the lowest intake

Leukaemia-free childhood:

Giving infants oranges and bananas regularly may halve their risk of developing childhood leukaemia, suggest the results of a new study.

Children who ate oranges, orange juice or bananas between four to six times a week during their first two years of life had a significantly reduced risk of developing the cancer, revealed the observational study by US researchers.

Previous studies on childhood leukaemias have not examined the effects of the overall diet in this way, focusing more on possible risk foods like cured meats.

“Our study is unique, and we have elucidated a significant protective association with the consumption of oranges, bananas and orange juice,” says Marilyn Kwan, an epidemiologist at the University of California, Berkeley.

However, she cautions that without carrying out a randomised controlled trial, it is difficult to predict exactly how protective eating these fruits may be, or to make firm public health recommendations.

Oranges and bananas may protect against childhood leuk-aemia because they are a rich source of vitamin C, which is an antioxidant. They could act by reducing oxidative DNA damage, and so stop the initiation of cancerous processes.