Watermelons are tasty and flavored fruits that keep our bodies hydrated and refreshed. They contain 90 percent water. In ancient Egypt they were used to welcome tired and thirsty travelers. They traditionally offered the visitors big slices of watermelons on trays in order to help them quench their thirst in a most natural and pure way. The high content of water makes watermelons very beneficial in weight loss programs since they have a reduced number of calories. Besides water, melons are rich in vitamin A and C, beta-carotene, iron, zinc, potassium and other nutritive minerals. These help in weight loss and fitness. Also, due to the amount of water contained, they are frequently used for body detoxification processes. Water from melons purifies the body of all waste and also helps in cleaning our kidneys. Besides tomatoes, watermelons are one of the richest sources of lycopene a naturally occurring red pigment in plants that is a very potent antioxidant and anticancer agent. Lycopene is the most active carotenoid and works as an antioxidant against free radicals. Besides antioxidant properties, lycopene also helps to improve short and long term memory, protects and prevents heart disorders. Some types of cancer like skin, cervical, breast and prostate cancer are prevented by lycopene. Being a detoxifier of the waste in the body, it inhibits cholesterol formation. Vitamin A and beta-carotene are also abundant in watermelons and improve the accuracy of our vision, hence preventing eye related diseases such as cataracts and macular degeneration. The author is an intern doctor at King Faisal hospitaljosephmunich06@yahoo.co.uk
