Health Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds
Article Sources
- 1. 'Pumpkin Seeds Pack a Healthy Punch.' heart.org, www.heart.org/en/news/2018/10/25/pumpkin-seeds-pack-a-healthy-punch.
- 2. 'Fluorescence screening of antioxidant capacity in pumpkin seed oils and other natural oils.' European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ejlt.200390055.
- 3. 'Antioxidants, Inflammation and Cardiovascular Disease.' World Journal of Cardiology, Baishideng Publishing Group Inc, 26 June 2014, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4072837.
- 4. 'Effect of Pumpkin-Seed Oil on the Level of Free Radical Scavengers Induced during Adjuvant-Arthritis in Rats.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7784309.
- 5. 'Antioxidant and lipoxygenase inhibitory activities of pumpkin seed extracts.' Europe PMC, europepmc.org/article/agr/ind44207266.
- 6. 'The Association between Dietary Lignans, Phytoestrogen-Rich Foods, and Fiber Intake and Postmenopausal Breast Cancer Risk: a German Case-Control Study.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22591208.
- 7. 'Effects of Phytoestrogen Extracts Isolated from Pumpkin Seeds on Estradiol Production and ER/PR Expression in Breast Cancer and Trophoblast Tumor Cells.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23859042.
- 8. 'Seeds and Oil of the Styrian Oil Pumpkin: Components and Biological Activities.' European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ejlt.200700105.
- 9. 'Effects of Pumpkin Seed Oil and Saw Palmetto Oil in Korean Men with Symptomatic Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia.' Nutrition Research and Practice, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2809240.
- 10. 'What We Eat in America.' U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/80400530/pdf/0506/usual/nutrient/intake/vitD/ca/phos/mg/2005-06.pdf
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- 12. 'Efficacy of Simvastatin and Pumpkin-Seed Oil in the Management of Dietary-Induced Hypercholesterolemia.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9299202.
- 13. 'Improvement in HDL Cholesterol in Postmenopausal Women Supplemented with Pumpkin Seed Oil: Pilot Study.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21545273.
- 14. 'Antihypertensive and Cardioprotective Effects of Pumpkin Seed Oil.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22082068.
- 15. 'Zinc Levels in Seminal Plasma Are Associated with Sperm Quality in Fertile and Infertile Men.' PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19285597/.
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- 17. 'Zinc Is an Essential Element for Male Fertility: A Review of Zn Roles in Men's Health, Germination, Sperm Quality, and Fertilization.' Journal of Reproduction & Infertility, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6010824.
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- 19. 'Sleep in Elite Athletes and Nutritional Interventions to Enhance Sleep.' Sports Medicine, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4008810.
3. They May Reduce the Risk of Certain Cancers
Diets that include pumpkin seeds are linked to a reduced risk of colon, prostate, lung, breast and stomach cancer.5‘Antioxidant and lipoxygenase inhibitory activities of pumpkin seed extracts.’ Europe PMC, europepmc.org/article/agr/ind44207266. Results from one large observational study suggested that eating pumpkin seeds may reduce the risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women.6‘The Association between Dietary Lignans, Phytoestrogen-Rich Foods, and Fiber Intake and Postmenopausal Breast Cancer Risk: a German Case-Control Study.’ PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22591208.
Other studies have shown that the lignans found in pumpkin seeds may help prevent and manage breast cancer.7‘Effects of Phytoestrogen Extracts Isolated from Pumpkin Seeds on Estradiol Production and ER/PR Expression in Breast Cancer and Trophoblast Tumor Cells.’ PubMed, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23859042. However, more research is needed to confirm the anti-cancer qualities of pumpkin seeds. Adding these seeds to a healthy diet can reap many health benefits.
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