Soursop Juice: 6 Powerful Benefits The Drink Has To Offer
Soursop juice is a great tasting, nutritious drink made from ripe Soursop fruit. On the inside, a ripe Soursop fruit has a nice creamy pulp.
Soursop juice is made by extracting the juice from the pulp.
Soursop drink has been enjoyed by people living in tropical areas for a long time before the current Soursop craze. They have also been reaping the benefits of Soursop.
But you may be asking, “what is Soursop and what are some of benefits of this fruit” Let’s get some answers here.
What Is Soursop?
The Plant’s Scientific name is Annona muricata and is a member of the Annonaceae family. The Soursop plant is native to the Caribbean, Mexico, Central and South America.
It is also known as graviola Brazilian Paw Paw, or guanabana in some areas.
Soursop fruit is a large green prickly fruit. Unripe Soursop fruit has hard white to cream colored flesh with black seeds inside. The flesh gets softer when the fruit ripens.
Ripe soursop fruits develops a slightly yellow tinge. If you allow mature Soursop fruits to ripen on the tree, they turn into an olive green to brown color.
And the texture of the inside plup turns into a custard like consistency.
Soursop Taste
So what does Soursop taste like? Ripe Soursop taste is typical of many tropcial fruits. It is a combination sweet and sour taste with a citrusy kick.
The unripe fruit will definitely have a sour taste, but as it gets ripe, the sweetness in the fruit begins to emerge.
However, Soursop does not taste as sweet as its relatives-Sweetsop or Custard apple. That may account for the fruit mainly being used to make Soursop juice or drink.
Soursop pulp is what is used to make Soursop juice.
This is in contrast other fruits in the Annonaceae family that are eaten as whole fruits.
But now lets take a closer look and benefits inside a glass of organic Soursop juice. We will also learn how to make Soursop drink from scratch.
And here are some benefits you will get from a glass of Soursop Juice.
| Vitamin C | Boosts Immune system to help your body stay strong. |
| Fiber | Aids your body in getting rid of waste to prevent constipation. |
| Potassium | Flushes sodium from the body to help maintain good blood pressure. |
| Calcium | Contributes to building strength of bones and teeth. |
| Zinc | Helps the body with wound healing. It also contribute to good skin health. |
Health Benefits of Soursop Juice
Although there has been much hype regarding the anti cancer properties of Soursop, this is not backed by any scientific data so far. More studies need to be done.
What has been proven however, is that Soursop is good for a number of things.
What Is Soursop Juice Good For?
Soursop fruit, and by extension soursop juice has many nutrients that will help to keep you healthy.
That is why eating raw Soursop fruit or drinking Soursop juice and Soursop tea has long been a tradition in many Jamaican households.
Some studies have confirmed medicinal benefits of Soursop. They report that the main active compounds in Soursop are: acetogenin, alkaloids, and flavonoids. These compounds contain the properties listed here:
Affiliate Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. Therefore if you buy a product after clicking on a link, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Anti-Inflammatory
Soursop is among natural alternatives being looked at for their anti-inflammatory properties.
Chronic inflammation is the root cause of many diseases.
If chronic inflammation is reduced, less people may get serious diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension.
One animal study sought to confirm pain relieving and anti-inflammatory properties of Soursop. Rodents were administered freeze-dried Soursop fruit extract.
Results confirmed that Soursop has properties which may be useful in treating pain and inflammation.
Anti-Diarrheal
In a number of cultures including West Africa, Soursop fruit is traditionally used to stop diarrhea.
An animal study was done to determined if it is really good for treating diarrhea.
Castor oil was used to induce diarrhea in the animals. Then they received a treatment made from Soursop fruit extract.
Results showed that the Soursop extract was effective against caster oil induced diarrhea.
Hypetensive
High blood pressure can damage your heart and cause other health problems. Lifestyle changes is often recommended to help prevent and lower high blood pressure.
Those changes involve nutrition. As a result a number of plant based solutions are being examined. Healthy Soursop juice is one of them.
A 2007 hunam study used 143 people from a prehypertension population as test subjects. These were devided into two groups – “control group” and “treatment group”
The treatment group was given 100g of soursop juice per day.
Results showed that the “treatment group” showed significantly lower blood pressure after 12 weeks in comparison to the “control group.”
Those findings suggest that soursop juice may be useful to help control high blood pressure.
Anti-tumor
According to a 2021 U.S. Breast Cancer.org 13 percent of women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer in her lifetime.
These sobering statistics drive the need for new anticancer agents.
Many plant-based products are being looked at as part of cancer treatment solutions. Soursop is one of the products that are being intensely studied.
Many early Animal and Lab studies report that Soursop demonstrates potential for inhibiting the growth of human breast cancer cells.
However, none of those reports endorse the consumption of Soursop juice as treatment for breast cancer. A lot more investigation needs to be done.
Hypoglycemic
According to the American Diabetes Assoc. Over the past 25 years research has led to the development of several new classes of medication for diabetes treatment. And the research continues.
One of the major reasons for drinking Soursop juice in Jamaica is to control diabetes. Now the are ongoing studies to determine whether Soursop can control blood glucose levels.
Preliminary reports are promising.
Research indicated that diabetic rats that received Soursop extract treatment had significantly reduced blood glucose levels at the end of a 14 day study.
Antibacterial
Oral diseases such as periodontitis and gingivitis are often caused by unwanted bacteria in the mouth.
Left untreated, oral diseases can lead to other serious medical conditions.
Several investigations have been conducted to determine the antimicrobial activity Soursop extracts has on oral diseases.
The effect of Soursop leaves extract against Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus mitis, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Prevotella intermedia and Candida albicans was tested by researchers.
The results revealed that Soursop leaves extract displayed antibacterial effects on all bacteria except for Prevotella intermedia.
How To Make Soursop Juice
You will need the pulp from a ripe fruit to make your soursop juice.
Cut the fruit in halves and scoop out the pulp. Discard the skin and seeds and follow the instructions below.
teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
5 cups of water
Directions
- Scoop the pulp into a food processor
- Add 3 cups of water and puree
- Scrape puree into a large mixing bowl and add 2 more cups of water
- Add milk, nutmeg, lime juice and vanilla and mix
- Serve immediately over ice or chill in the refrigerator
You can add more sweetener if you like. However, note that the fruit does have a significant amount of natural sugars (30.4g). So you may want to take that into consideration.
You can also replace the evaporated milk with the water for a less creamy soursop drink.
Soursop Juice Calories
In addition to the potential medicinal benefits, Soursop juice offers some nutritional benefits as well.
One cup (225g) of raw soursop contains 148 calories. Additional nutrients are listed in the box below.
Soursop Nutrition: 1 Cup of Raw Soursop
| 2.25 g protein | 0.23 mg zinc |
| 37.89 g carbohydrates | 46.4 mg vitamin C |
| 32 mg calcium | 0.158 mg thiamin |
| 35 mg iron | 2.025 mg niacin |
| 30.5 g sugar | 0.113 mg riboflavin |
| 7.4 g fiber | 0.133 mg vitamin B6 |
| 47 mg magnesium | 32 mcg folate |
| 61 mg phosphorus | 0.18 mg vitamin E |
| 32 mg sodium | 4 mcg vitamin A |
| 626 mg potassium | 0.9 mcg vitamin K |
Soursop Uses
There are other uses for Soursop. The plants leaves, stems, roots and bark are used for other purposes. The fruit can also be used to make smoothies, shakes and ice cream.
- Soursop leaves are used to make tea in Jamaica is used to calm the nerves and help sleep issues. So generally it is taken before bed.
- Soursop pulp can be used to make delicious tasting soursop ice cream.
- Soursop Powder which is made from dried Soursop pulp can be used to make smoothies.
- Soursop Supplements made using various sections of Soursop are commercially availabe for purchase online.
Buy Soursop
Soursop is a delicate fruit so it doesn’t travel well. However depending where you are you can find the frozen pulp in many South American and Asian Markets.
Whole frozen fruits can be ordered from online vendors.
The frozen soursop pulp as well as the actual juice can be bought from Amazon and delivered straight to your door. And dried Soursop leaves and Powered can be purchased on Etsy.Com
Side Effects of Soursop
If you take prescription medication for any of the health issues listed below, you need to exercise caution.
Check with your healthcare provide to determine if drinking soursop juice may interact with your medication.
- Liver Disease
- Kidney Disease
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Some Cancers
Conclusion
Always keep in mind that herbal products are not regulated by the FDA and are not approved for treating medical conditions.
We hope you found the information about the benefits, nutritionand the downside to consuming Soursop and its related products helpful.
You also have the recipe to make your own Soursop juice. If you do let me know how it turned out.
Disclaimer: This website is for informational purposes only. Nothing stated on this site should be viewed as medical advice. Please consult with a professional healthcare provide about matters relating to your medical care.