Watermelon has viagra-like properties as well as lowers blood pressure by nitric oxide process

According to a July 1, 2009 article in Science Daily, "Watermelon May Have Viagra-effect," watermelons contain phytonutrients such as lycopene, beta carotene and citrulline. The ability to relax blood vessels, much like Viagra does, is found in fruits and vegetables containing specific amounts of citrulline.

How do the phytonutrients from watermelon work in your body to both lower your blood pressure by relaxing blood vessels and at the same time also have Viagra-like effects? Citrulline is converted to arginine through certain enzymes. Arginine is an amino acid also helps the body create more nitric oxide. It's the nitric oxide that helps your blood vessels to relax so that you blood pressure might be lowered.

Argenine helps maintain a better immune system. But don't take too much argenine, and always ask your doctor whether you should take it or not. There have been reported in medical articles six deaths among older heart attack patients that took arginine.

On the other hand, citrulline and arginine work in a relationship. When found in watermelon, getting your citrulline and argenine from whole foods rather than from pills may also be helpful for those who suffer from obesity and type 2 diabetes because arginine boosts nitric oxide.

Interestingly, boosting nitic oxide to relax blood vessels is similar to the effect that Viagra has, when used to treat or possibly prevent erectile dysfunction. Eating watermelon is not organ-specific, but it does relax blood vessels without the worry of taking a prescription drug.

Other benefits from eating watermelon include finding a food that helps the body increase its nitric oxide production. By using food as medicine, fruits and vegetables able to help you produce more nitric oxide naturally might be of help to individuals that need increased blood flow. For example, persons with angina, high blood pressure, and other cardiovascular problems might be helped by eating watermelon and foods that have a similar effect on the circulatory system.

There's only one problem. Citrulline, the precursor to arginine, is found in higher concentrations in the rind of watermelons than the flesh. Not many people eat watermelon rind. It's full of pesticides, dirt, and even salmonella from laying in the ground, in some instances. But some people do eat pickled watermelon rind.

According to the Science Daily article, Doctors Steve King and Hae Jeen Bang, of Texas A&M University are working to breed new varieties of watermelon with higher concentrations in the flesh. Information would be coming out of Texas A&M, University where watermelon’s phyto-nutrients are being studied. Watermelon's nutrients also are being researched by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service in Lane, Oklahoma. In the meantime, look at other foods that have high concentations of citrulline.

Your next best is to look at tomatoes and red grapefruit. If you start eating the deep-red variety of watermelon alone, you'll soon realize that 92 percent of the fruit is water. It's the 8 percent of fruit that contains the lycopene, which protects skin, prostate, and heart with its anti-oxidant properties.

Eat red grapefruit or tomatoes also to get some lycopene. But realize that lycopene is found in higher concentrations in the deep-red variety of watermelon. In winter, you'll have a difficult time finding watermelon unless you're in an area with warm climate where watermelons grow in the winter. For example, in the Southern hemisphere during the northen hemisphere's winter season.

What you need to know about lycopene is that it is fat-soluble. That means your body won't absorb the lycopene unless you take it with some oil, such as fish oil or olive oil. You need specific types of fats in your blood to better absorb lycopene from foods or supplements.

For example, if you're getting your lycopene from tomatoes, you need to mix it with oily vegetables such as avocado. Spinach also helps. Make a salad of watermelon, tomatoes, spinach, avocados, and mango chunks with some cherries and strawberries or raspberries. Mix them all together cut up in pieces and serve over a bed of baby spinach with olive oil and apple cider vinegar or lemon juice salad dressing.

What needs to be done is a study of oily vegetables to see what time of day to eat them is best for proper absorption. If you start eating watermelon, don't refrigerate it. Keep in at room temperature before you cut it up. Then consume it after you cut it up. If there are leftovers, then refrigerate the watermelon and any salad or other vegetables once they are cut.

The reason you want to keep the watermelon or tomatoes at room temperature until they are cut up and eaten is to maintain the levels of lycopene in the food. Never leave cut up fruit or vegetables at room temperature without refrigeration for more than two hours.

According to the site of Dr. Louis Ignarro, (Ph.D) Professor of Molecular Biology at UCLA, (University of California at Los Angeles, School of Medicine) "Nitric Oxide is a molecule that may prevent and cure many diseases at once." Dr. Ignarro is a 1998 Nobel Prize winner in Medicine/Physiology.

Nitric oxide is the focus of Dr. Ignarro's career. He's dedicated to bringing health and nutrition information to people around the world. As an avid athlete who bikes, swims, or runs almost everyday, he has found great success by boosting his own Nitric Oxide levels.

Regarding the discovery of the biological functions of nitric oxide, According to his site, "The discovery of the biological functions of nitric oxide came as a complete surprise. Nitric oxide was named "Molecule of the Year" in 1992 by the journal Science. The Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1998 was awarded to Ferid Murad, Robert F. Furchgott, and Louis Ignarro for the discovery of the signaling properties of nitric oxide."

Download the PDF file of Dr. Ignarro's article, "Nobel Prize Winner’s Breakthrough – Prevent Heart Attack and Stroke with Nitric Oxide." According to the article, "Nitric oxide protects the blood vessels’ smooth muscle tissue from harmful constriction, and this allows blood to circulate with less force. Some doctors report that
elevating nitric oxide in hypertensive patients can lower blood pressure by 10 to 60 points."

His article notes, "L-citrulline: Supplemental arginine doesn’t enter cells readily unless it is combined with L-citrulline, another amino acid. Melons and cucumbers are rich sources of L-citrulline, but they
don’t provide high enough levels to significantly increase nitric oxide levels."

He recommends in that article (to boost nitric oxide levels individuals may take if their health permits) "an L-citrulline dose of 400 to 600 mg daily as well as other supplements such as vitamin C, L-argenine, and vitamin E." But he also warns readers regarding vitamin E, "Don’t take the high-dose vitamin E supplements. Recent studies suggest that people who take daily doses of 400 IU or higher may be more susceptible to heart disease and other illnesses."

View the videos: Dr. Ignarro Explains Nitric Oxide (1/2), Dr. Ignarro Explains Nitric Oxide (2/2), NO Interview 1

NO Interview 2, NO Interview 3, Dr. Ignarro Receives The Prize, How Dr. Ignarro Heart The News.

For further information, see the videos and links at Dr. Ignarro's site:

Eat more fruits and vegetables that are high in antioxidants and phytonutrients, Eat more foods that are rich in l-arginine and l-citrulline, Eat more fish, Take an NO boosting supplement, Take a fish oil supplement, Exercise more, at least 30 minutes every day, Reduce consumption of fast food and highly refined foods, Stay well rested, Drink plenty of water and drinks high in antioxidants, Dr. Louis Ignarro named American Heart Association Distinguished Scientist for 2008.