When it comes to refreshing summer fruits, pears are a top choice. These fiber-rich fruits consistently delight us with their delicious taste and cooling effects. Not only are they a tasty treat, but pears also bring essential nutrients that contribute to overall health and boost immunity. Additionally, they play a role in maintaining healthy and vibrant skin and hair. Whether you prefer crisp or soft pears, you can enjoy their advantages all year round. Continue reading to discover more about the benefits of pears for your skin and hair.
What are Pears?
Let us know a bit more about the fruity delight. Pears, known as ‘nashpati,’ are bell-shaped fruits with sweet flesh. The mild fruit with a fibrous center keeps changing its skin color and texture as it ripens from the inside out. Native to China, Europe, and the United States, pears are recognized as the ‘fifth most widely produced fruit in the world.’ They come from the plant belonging to the Pyrus species in the Rosaceae family. Though there are many varieties of pears, they are usually classified into Asian Pears (Pyrus pyrifolia) and European Pears (Pyrus communis) (1). Common pears include anjou, bartlett, bosc, concorde, comice, forelle, starkrimson, seckel, etc.
Nutrition Value of Pears
Pears are rich in nutrition, which makes them highly beneficial for our health, skin, and hair. They are filled with carbohydrates, dietary fibers (71% insoluble and 29% soluble) (2), antioxidants, fructose, and sorbitol. They also contain lots of essential vitamins (A, C, D, E, K, folate, niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, pyridoxine, pantothenic acid) and minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium, manganese, copper, iron, zinc, phosphorus). The skin of pears also comprises tons of ascorbic acid and phenolic phytonutrients (crypto-xanthin-ß, lutein-zeaxanthin, hydroxybenzoic acid, hydroxycinnamic acid, hydroxyquinones, flavonols, anthocyanins, carotenoids). Most importantly, pears are free of fat and cholesterol and have a very high water content.
Also Read – Expert Speaks – Cecilia Wong on Nutrient-Rich Diet For A Flawless Skin
Health Benefits of Pears
Before delving into how we can look beautiful with pears from the outside, we will talk about how the fruit makes us healthy. Here we go:
- Being an excellent source of antioxidants, pears protect our body from oxidative damage by effectively combating free radicals and boosting immunity.
- Pears improve digestion and keep the gut healthy with their dietary solid fiber content. The low-calorie, water-filled fruit may also help keep our body weight in check.
- The abundance of dietary fibers in the fruit can also significantly reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels, lowering the risks of stroke and other heart diseases by up to 50%.
- Fibers and anthocyanins in pears can potentially prevent and control type-2 diabetes by regulating blood sugar levels.
- High flavonoid, vitamin, and mineral contents make the fruit a potent anti-inflammatory agent that keeps issues like arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis away.
- The anti-cancer properties of pears, which are contributed by dietary fibers and flavonoids, may help avert lung, breast, stomach, ovarian, bladder, and colon cancers.
Benefits of Pears for Skin
Our skin reflects our health. And as pears are great for our overall health, they are also beneficial for maintaining skin health. Check out below how amazingly the fruit can beautify our skin:
1. Keeps Skin Moisturized
As mentioned earlier, pears are very high in water, which hydrates the skin naturally from the inside out. They are also full of natural humectants that help retain the skin’s natural moisture by balancing its average water content. So, pears are an excellent remedy for keeping dry and flaky skin moisturized throughout the day. You can eat the juice of one fruit daily or apply a moisturizing lotion containing pear extract to make your skin soft, supple, and smooth.
2. Exfoliate it Thoroughly
If your skin develops a layer of dead cells, pears can work as a beautiful natural scrub. The fruit contains plenty of natural enzymes that help exfoliate the skin thoroughly by eliminating dead cells from its superficial layers. All you need to do is add some pear extract to your regular face pack and scrub your face gently with the mixture. You can even use pear extract as a gentle natural peel for exfoliating skin and accelerating cell turnover.
3. Controls Oil Secretion
When the sebaceous glands in your skin become overactive, consider including pears in your beauty routine. The fruit can treat oily skin effectively by controlling the excess secretion of sebum. You must blend pear extract well with fresh cream and honey. Use the mixture as a face mask thrice weekly to make your skin look matte and fresh.
4. Combats Acne and Pimples
As pears regulate the oiliness of your skin, the chances of developing acne and pimples also decrease. The high levels of vital vitamins and essential minerals in the fruit can also boost your immunity and heal your skin infections from the inside. This results in clean and healthy skin free of acne and pimples.
5. Prevents Collagen Damage
The collagen protein in our skin gets damaged with age due to the frequent discharge of sugar into the bloodstream. This reduces the skin’s elasticity and steals its life by making it dull and uneven. Being loaded with dietary fibers, pears stop these repeated sugar spikes in the blood, effectively averting collagen damage. It helps in making the skin look soft, smooth, and plump.
6. Slows Down Premature Aging
Munching on pears with peels helps slow down the appearance of aging. The antioxidant properties of the fruit, attributed to vitamin C, vitamin K, and copper, make it exceptionally capable of preventing cellular damage. Consequently, the signs of aging, like fine lines, wrinkles, age spots, etc., do not appear early.
Benefits of Pears for Hair
Just like skin, pears are highly beneficial for our hair, too. Following are the hair benefits of the fruit that you would love to explore:
1. Improves Hair Health
The nutrient-dense fruit imparts lots of nutrition to our locks. In addition, Sorbitol or glucitol (natural sugar alcohol) present in pears offers food and hydration to the hair roots. This nourishes the scalp and keeps the hair healthy.
2. Softens Dry Hair
When it comes to reducing hair dryness, pears work the best—the moisturizing and conditioning properties of the fruit help maintain the health of hair cells. As a result, the strands become softer and smoother.
3. Tames Frizzy Hair
While reducing the dryness of hair, pears also tame its frizziness. This eliminates ugly tangles and makes the locks manageable.
4. Brings Back Lost Shine
Pears help in restoring the natural shine of hair. You can prepare a natural mask by blending pear extract with diluted apple cider vinegar. Then, apply it all over your dull and lifeless hair to revitalize and make it look shiny.
Note:
Make sure that you do not consume too many pears in a day as it may cause digestive issues by obstructing nutrient absorption. Some other adverse effects of overconsumption of pears that you should be aware of are poor appetite, heartburn, diarrhea, bloating, nausea, headache, etc.
References:
- “Can People with Diabetes Eat Pears?“, Healthline.com
- “Systematic Review of Pears and Health,” NCBI.nlm.nih.gov
