Pomegranate Pleasure…A God Among Fruits

Even though August is coming to a close, it is still summer until September 22 this year when Virgo gives way to Libra, trees shed their leaves, and Halloween candy starts accumulating on store shelves. Have a smoothie, a glass of juice, or a refreshing margarita but forget about mango, papaya or blueberry, those are fruit trends of the past. Now, it's all about the pomegranate. The dark, sweet nutrient-rich syrup has made its way to restaurant menus, juice bars, and happy hour specials all across the country.

The pomegranate has a rich history dating back almost to the beginning of time. Pomegranates were known as divine fruits and some even believe that it could have been the fruit of the Garden of Eden because of its many references throughout the Bible. There is a Jewish fairytale involving the beloved orange-red fruit bringing a magical touch and it was often used as a decoration in early Christian households. Shakespeare described the fruit in Romeo & Juliet and a Greek myth has Persephone kidnapped by Hades in the underworld and he feeds her four pomegranate seeds ensuring that for four months a year she would be confined to sit with him below the earth and each year that she goes, her mother Demeter would grieve the loss of her daughter by stopping the fertility of the earth, which made a good argument for the season of winter.

New evidence on the pomegranate suggests you should drink up! Forget green tea or red wine, pomegranate juice has three times the antioxidants needed for good health. Pomegranates are chock full of antioxidants and are more popular than ever, being cited in newspapers and magazines recently (Time, Reuters, and Vogue) touting its spectacular effects. Simon Robinson of Time exclaims, "[the pomegranate is] the fruit that's better than any drug you could ever try."

Now the pomegranate is widely known in the food industry as a "superfruit," along with the blueberry, the cranberry and the emerging açaí berry. Besides the antioxidant power which supplies bodies with defense against free radicals which can cause degenerative illness and advanced aging, pomegranate juice has been linked to lowering bad cholesterol as well as a variety of heart-healthy benefits. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a study linking lower levels of oxidation in men with the benefits of drinking pomegranate juice daily. Along with protecting the state of your arteries, pomegranates can also help fight Alzheimer's disease by increasing brain function and some studies say it may prevent skin cancer as well as destroy prostate and breast cancer cells.

Pomegranates bring back memories of childhood when my best friend and I would pick them off of her tree and throw them at her brothers spilling slimy seeds and ripe juice all over their driveway, but I never thought to eat them, until now. With the inception of the media going crazy over these blushing fruits, I've seen everything from pomegranate mojitos and martinis, to a deep red gelato to pomegranate lip balm. So while you still have an extra hour of daylight, enjoy the summer and grab a pomegranate drink to cool down and boost up before school carpools, soccer tournaments, and longer office hours start again. If they are good enough for Shakespeare, pomegranates are good enough for me.