Can people with diabetes eat mango? Some experts believe it has the potential to elevate blood sugar levels as sugar accounts for almost 90 percent of the calories in mango.
Here, India-based education management institution Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture (CISH) has developed healthier varieties of mangoes that can lower blood glucose levels, protect against cancer and cardiovascular disease, as well as help manage a variety of other disease conditions.
The CISH-developed mangoes are high in bio-active compounds that have high medicinal benefits, including anti-cancerous properties, as per the reports.
Dr. Shailendra Rajan Director – CISH
“Indeed, it is a major breakthrough for us. Mango is the most favored fruit and of the many hybrid varieties of mango, the researchers found CISH-developed ‘Arunika’ was rich in the bio-active compounds including mangiferin and lupeol content. The red-blushed Arunika has great medicinal properties. The bio-active compounds present in this variety lower blood glucose levels by preventing glucose absorption in the intestine, whereas the Mangiferin helps to protect against breast and colon cancer.”
Another variety of medicinal mango, developed by CISH is “Saheb Pasand”, which he claims is the tastiest and highest in lupeol content. The compound is known for a wide range of pharmacological activities against a variety of disease conditions including inflammation, arthritis, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, renal disease, hepatic toxicity, microbial infections, and cancer.
Further, he stated that the institution was prepared with the variety, but that the pulp test was still ongoing in order to compare the medicinal content of these hybrid mangoes to that of other accessible mango types.
According to Dr. Rajan, the production of these particular mango types will provide better income to farmers as well as health benefits to consumers in the near future.
