Tips for Healthy Living

We’ve partnered with Dr. Doug Husbands of Holistic Health Bay Area to bring you a new set of Tips for Healthy Living. Dr. Husbands is a functional medicine doctor, clinical nutritionist, anti-aging health practitioner and doctor of chiropractic. I appreciate that he encourages visiting the doctor to focus on staying healthy instead of only visiting when you’re sick.– Carmelo Sigona

“Orange ‘Ya Gonna’ Ask About Oranges?”

By Dr. Douglas Husbands

…Well technically speaking, Satsuma Mandarins are not an orange.  But they have many characteristics of an orange.

Satsuma Mandarins are also known as Honey Citrus.  This is because of their high level of sweetness.  The scientific name for the fruit is Citrus unshiu.

An average sized Satsuma Mandarin contains 2 grams of fiber.  They contain between 110 and up to 200 mg potassium, which is about twice as much as the average banana.  The vitamin C content is between about 31 mg, and up to 70 mg.

They contain some interesting phytochemicals.  According to an article in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry  (J. Agric. Food Chem., 2008;56: 8874–8878) Satsuma Mandarin juice can contain between  73.3 to 158.1 mg per liter of synephrine.   Synephrine is a plant-based nutrient (phytonutrient) similar in chemical structure to ephedrine.  Now both these phytonutrients, when isolated and concentrated separate from the other nutrients in their natural amounts in foods, could be a problem in certain cases.  Some people may remember that ephedrine was made unavailable as a supplement used to burn bodyfat a few years ago after it was abused by a pro-baseball player.  However, in the amounts that naturally occur in the fruit, and the safe and beneficial interactions with the other nutrients in the fruit, there should be no concern.

In fact, there are many benefits to Satsuma Mandarins, particularly the antioxidant activity.  In a 2006 article in Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin (Biol Pharm Bull, 2006;29:588-591), Satsuma Mandarins  decreased the liver damage of mice from drug-induced liver damage.  The benefit was attributed to the strong antioxidant activity of Satsuma Mandarins.

So, enjoy your sweet, juicy Satsuma Mandarins, and get the beneficial phytonutrients from them!

About Dr. Doug:
Dr. Douglas Husbands is a Functional Medicine Doctor, Clinical Nutritionist, Anti-Aging Health Practitioner, and Doctor of Chiropractic.  As a health advocate and coach, he is dedicated to achieving optimal health through resolving the underlying disease processes through diet, nutrition and lifestyle modification.   To contact Dr. Doug, call 650-394-7470 or visit http://www.HolisticHealthBayArea.com

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