Orange is the favorite fruit of several people. This beneficial fruit is among one of the most commonly consumed fruits in the winter season.
So, are oranges keto friendly? No oranges are not keto approved fruit because they are high in carbs. It is best to avoid oranges on the keto diet.
Why Are Oranges Not Keto Friendly?
Oranges are not keto friendly as a single piece of small sized orange provides more than 9 grams of net carbs which can break the ketosis level.
There are three sized oranges available i.e small, medium, and large. The standard weight of each one is 96 grams,131 grams, and 184 grams respectively.
The small sized orange provides the lowest amount of carbs among these three. You will get 11.52 grams of carbs and 2.3 grams of carbs from this.
After omitting the fiber component, net carbs of orange become 9.2 grams. Adding this high amount of net carbs with your existing keto meal can easily overrun your daily carbs limit.
Because of this consumption of carb-rich oranges may kick you out of ketosis.
What Are The Benefits of Orange?
Oranges are a rich source of nutrients. These macro and micronutrients of oranges have several health benefits.
The major health benefits of oranges are:
High in fiber
Orange is a great source of dietary fiber. Dietary fiber reduces constipation risk by increasing stool bulk.
Moreover, dietary fiber helps in controlling weight and reducing gut transit time. Also, dietary fiber intake has benefits over (1)
- Type 2 diabetes prevention
- Reduction of fasting blood sugar and HBA1C for type 2 diabetics
Furthermore, dietary fiber can aid in cancer prevention. Studies have shown that dietary fiber consumption has a protective effect against colon cancer(2).
A high intake of dietary fiber has numerous health benefits. Adequate dietary fiber consumption can reduce the risk of gastrointestinal disorders like gastroesophageal reflux disease, duodenal ulcer, diverticulitis, constipation, hemorrhoids and also lowers the risk of (3)
- Coronary heart disease
- Stroke
- Hypertension
- Obesity
- High serum cholesterol levels
Moreover, oranges are a good source of soluble fiber. Both non-diabetic and diabetic individuals can improve glycemia and insulin sensitivity by consuming high soluble fiber.
Rich source of calcium
The high calcium components of orange provide several health benefits. Calcium is essential for the growth and maintenance of bone and teeth.
Also, intake of calcium has benefits over pregnancy. According to studies calcium consumption can reduce hypertension in pregnancy (4).
Not only that, regular consumption of calcium-rich foods by pregnant women have benefits for their offsprings also.
Studies have shown that children whose mothers were on a high intake of calcium showed a 27% reduction in the risk of developing dental caries (5).
Another experiment has shown that calcium intake during pregnancy and blood pressure in the offspring are interlinked. According to this, if pregnant women take a high calcium diet, their offsprings have a tendency for low blood pressure (6).
Furthermore, calcium is able to maintain heart health for controlling cholesterol levels. Calcium supplementation can reduce bad LDL cholesterol and increase good cholesterol or HDL (7).
Consumption of calcium with vitamin D reduces the risk of bone fracture. Studies have shown that calcium and vitamin D supplementation is able to reduce the risk of total fractures for both osteoporosis and subsequent fractures by 15 % between middle-aged to older adults. (7).
Good source of magnesium
The magnesium components of oranges can reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, and type 2 diabetes. Studies have shown that a higher intake of magnesium is able to reduce the risk of (8)
- Insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes
- Stroke
- Hypertension
- Hyperglycemia
- Dyslipidemia
- Total CVDs(cardiovascular diseases)
Aside from this regular consumption of magnesium is able to provide numerous health benefits. Magnesium aids in body functions like muscle contraction, blood pressure, neuromuscular conduction, glycemic control, and myocardial contraction (9).
Moreover, magnesium plays an important role in energy production, synthesis of nuclear materials, active transmembrane transport for other ions, and bone development (10).
Vitamin C benefits of orange
Orange contains a high amount of vitamin C. This antioxidant is able to provide multiple health benefits.
The major benefits reaped from vitamin C are (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
- Protection against free radical damage
- Scurvy prevention
- Boosting of both innate and adaptive immune system
- Skin protection against environmental oxidative stress
- Wrinkle and dark spot reduction
- Skin healing and hydration
- Toxin removal from skin
- Reduction of breast cancer cells
Orange Side Effects
Oranges are full of healthy nutrients like vitamin C, calcium, and carbs. Excess consumption of oranges can cause a nutrient imbalance in our body which causes some health problems.
The most common health disorders arise from surplus orange consumption are:
- High amounts of vitamin C can increase the risk of kidney stones and elevate uric acid and oxalate by acidifying the urine (16).
- Vitamin C has very high acidity. Consumption of vitamin C rich foods on empty stomach may cause gastrointestinal disorders, such as gastritis, ulcers, and heartburn (17).
- Excess intake of vitamin c rich foods causes headaches, flushing, nausea or vomiting, and dizziness.
- A high intake of foods with calcium may cause kidney stones. It’s because high calcium consumption is directly related to hypercalcemia which is a common factor of kidney stones (18).
- Studies have shown that consumption of high carb foods promotes chronic kidney disease in nondiabetic individuals (19).
How to Store Orange
Oranges can be used for 2-3 days at normal room temperature. However, freezing can increase the lifespan of an orange to 4-6 days.
To store oranges either keep them in the vegetable crisper or place them in a bowl of water and insert them in the freezer.
Remember oranges require humidity so don’t wrap them with paper.
Orange Nutrition
Orange is a highly nutritious fruit. This citric fruit contains a lot of nutrients, minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants.
Let’s check the nutrient value of 100 gram sized orange (3)
- Calorie: 52
- Fiber: 2 g
- Fat: 0.15 g
- Protein: 0.91 g
- Carbs: 11.8 g
How to Eat Orange
Oranges are consumed raw. It is majorly used in non-baked dishes. Oranges are eaten after removing the peels.
All of the orange dishes are full of nutrients and provide several health benefits. To achieve these benefits you should add oranges to your non keto diet plan.
Some popular orange dishes are:
- Orange, avocado, strawberry fruit mix
- Orange juice with black pepper salt
- Cucumber soup with topped orange
- Orange ice cream
- Orange cake
