Everything about the Grapefruit totally explained
The
grapefruit is a
subtropical citrus tree grown for its
fruit which was originally named the "forbidden fruit" of
Barbados.
These evergreen trees are usually found at around 5-6
m tall, although they can reach 13-15 m. The leaves are dark green, long (up to 150 mm) and thin. It produces 5 cm white four-petalled
flowers. The fruit is yellow-orange skinned, largely
oblate and ranges in diameter from 10-15 cm . The flesh is segmented and
acidic, varying in color depending on the
cultivars, which include white, pink and red pulps of varying sweetness. The 1929 US Ruby Red (of the Redblush variety) has the first grapefruit
patent.
The fruit has only become popular from the late 19th century; before that it was only grown as an ornamental plant. The US quickly became a major producer of the fruit, with
orchards in
Florida,
Texas,
Arizona, and
California. In Spanish, the fruit is known as
toronja or
pomelo.
History
The fruit was first documented in
1750 by the Rev. Griffith Hughes describing specimens from
Barbados. Currently, the grapefruit is said to be one of the "Seven Wonders of Barbados." It had developed as a
hybrid of the
pomelo (
Citrus maxima) with the sweet
orange (
Citrus sinensis), though it's closer to the former. It was brought to Florida by Odette Philippe in
1823. Further crosses have produced the
tangelo (1905), the
minneola (1931), and the
sweetie (1984). The sweetie has very small genetic and other differences from
pomelo.
The grapefruit was known as the
shaddock or
shattuck until the
1800s. Its current name alludes to clusters of the fruit on the tree, which often appear similar to
grapes. Botanically, it wasn't distinguished from the pomelo until the
1830s, when it was given the name
Citrus paradisi. Its true origins were not determined until the
1940s. This led to the official name being altered to
Citrus × paradisi. Grapefruit peel oil is used in
aromatherapy and it's historically known for its
aromatic scent.
The 1929 Ruby Red patent was associated with real commercial success, which came after the discovery of a red grapefruit growing on a pink variety. Only with Ruby Red the grapefruit transformed into a real agricultural fruit. The Red grapefruit, starting from the Ruby Red, has even become a symbol fruit of
Texas, where white "inferior" grapefruit were eliminated and only red grapefruit were grown for decades. Using radiation to trigger mutations, new varieties were developed to retain the red tones which typically faded to pink, with Rio Red is the current (2007) Texas grapefruit with registered trademarks Rio Star and Ruby-Sweet, also sometimes promoted as "Reddest" and "Texas Choice".
Production
The United States of America is the top producer of grapefruit and
pomelo followed by China and Mexico.
| Top Ten Grapefruit and Pomelo Milk Producers — 2005 |
| Country |
Production (Int $1000) |
Footnote |
Production (MT) |
Footnote |
| |
155,940 |
C |
914,440 |
|
| |
57,128 |
C |
443,000 |
F |
| |
43,947 |
C |
257,711 |
F |
| |
42,632 |
C |
250,000 |
F |
| |
38,540 |
C |
226,000 |
F |
| |
36,212 |
C |
212,348 |
|
| |
28,990 |
C |
170,000 |
F |
| |
25,580 |
C |
150,000 |
|
| |
24,215 |
C |
142,000 |
F |
| |
12,278 |
C |
72,000 |
F |
No symbol = official figure,F = FAO estimate, * = Unofficial figure, C = Calculated figure;
Production in Int $1000 have been calculated based on 1999-2001 international prices
Source: Food And Agricultural Organization of United Nations: Economic And Social Department: The Statistical Devision
|
Colors and flavors
Grapefruit comes in many varieties, determinable by color, which is caused by the pigmentation of the fruit in respect of both its state of ripeness and genetic bent.
Drug interactions
Grapefruit can have a
number of interactions with
drugs, often increasing the effective potency of compounds. Grapefruit contains
naringin,
bergamottin and
dihydroxybergamottin, which inhibit the
protein isoform CYP3A4 in the intestine. It is via inhibition of this enzyme that grapefruit increases the effects of a
variety of drugs. The effect of grapefruit juice with regard to drug absorption was originally discovered in 1989. However, the effect became well-publicized after being responsible for a number of deaths due to overdosing on medication.
Nutritional properties
Grapefruit is an excellent source of many
nutrients and
phytochemicals, able to contribute to a
healthy diet. Grapefruit is a good source of
vitamin C,
pectin fiber, and the pink and red hues contain the beneficial antioxidant
lycopene. Studies have shown grapefruit helps lower
cholesterol and there's evidence that the seeds have high levels of
antioxidant properties. Grapefruit forms a core part of the "
grapefruit diet", the theory being that the fruit's low
glycemic index is able to help the body's
metabolism burn
fat.
Grapefruit seed extract has been claimed to be a strong
antimicrobial with proven activity against
bacteria and
fungi. However, studies have shown the efficacy of grapefruit seed extract as an antimicrobial isn't demonstrated. Although GSE is promoted as a highly effective plant-based preservative by some natural personal care manufacturers, studies indicate the universal antimicrobial activity associated with GSE preparations is merely due to
contamination with synthetic
preservatives.
A 2007 study found a correlation between eating a quarter of grapefruit daily and a 30% increase in risk for
breast cancer in
post-menopausal women. The study points to the inhibition of
CYP3A4 enzyme by grapefruit, which metabolizes
estrogen.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Grapefruit'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://grapefruit.totallyexplained.com">Grapefruit Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
