The Health Benefits of Consuming Garden Eggs.

Garden egg, known botanically as Solanium melongema, is also commonly called egg plant and aubergine. It is a plant that is mostly grown for the fruits which are used for food. Eggplant has various varieties, resulting in different sizes, shapes and colours. The shape can be round, oval or spherical. Eggplants have a slightly bitter taste and a spongy texture.

Eggplant has a lot of benefits for health because of its nutritional

components. Below are the main important nutritional components of eggplant:

• High dietary fiber.
• Low protein, fat and sodium contents.
• Carbohydrates.
• High in minerals like magnesium, potassium, manganese, copper and iron.
• High in vitamins like vitamins C, K, niacin, folate, thiamin and pantothenic acid.
• High in phytochemicals with antioxidant properties like flavonoids, phenolics, anthocyanin.

You gain a lot from consuming garden eggs and here are some of the health benefits:

1. Garden eggs can aid with weight loss because of the high fiber content.
2. Garden eggs can help to improve digestion and aid in maintaining good colon and digestive health.
3. Garden eggs are beneficial for reducing cholesterol levels.
4. Garden eggs help with lowering blood pressure and protect against cardiovascular issues.
5. They are good for regulating blood sugar levels.
6. They are beneficial for treating glaucoma because of the high magnesium content as they help to lower eye pressure.
7. Because of the high level of antioxidants in garden eggs, it is good for protection against inflammation and many chronic inflammatory diseases, including cancer.

Garden egg is eaten raw alone or included in salads, including African salad. In Nigeria, it is used to

prepare garden egg sauce and added to vegetable soups. It is also used as a healthy snack with groundnut and spices paste.

If you have a garden egg recipe to share or any comment, please do below or send an email to yvonnebosede06@gmail.com. Follow on Twitter @heal2bwell.