Despite the countless benefits strawberries bring to our health, surprisingly, not everyone can eat them. If you are completely healthy, you will not have any problems. However, if you have a condition or disease that prevents you from including certain foods in your diet, you should be careful or, even if it hurts, give up enjoying certain foods. Don’t forget that it’s for your own good. Here’s everything you need to know about it.
Chemical composition of strawberries
Before presenting the cases of people who cannot eat this piece of fruit, it is convenient to analyze what it is composed of, so that those who suffer from any disease or intolerance that limits their diet can intuit whether they can consume it or not. Strawberries and strawberries have a low energy content, whose main component (after water, of course) is carbohydrates, with a moderate amount of about 7% of its weight. The carbohydrates in strawberries are mainly fructose, glucose and xylitol.
Apart from the strawberries are a source of vitamin C, with a percentage even higher than that of oranges: the most widespread myth in the fruit world. An average serving of strawberries, about 150 grams, contains up to 86 milligrams of vitamin C, while a medium-sized orange of 225 grams contains 82 milligrams of this vitamin. Finally, strawberries contain various organic acids, such as citric acid, malic acid, axillic acid and salicylic acid (the latter in small quantities).
People who cannot eat strawberries
We have explained in the introduction that strawberries are one of the healthiest fruits we can consume. However, even with that, unfortunately there are people who, due to a condition or disease, should not consume them. These are the following cases:
- People suffering from diabetes, colitis or irritable colon: if you suffer from any of these diseases, it is not at all advisable to eat strawberries, because you can have a worse time.
- People with diarrhea or stomach pain: due to its content in organic acids, in cases of stomach pain, diarrhea, indigestion… it is not recommended at all the consumption of strawberries.
- Patients suffering from renal lithiasis (kidney stones) or renal insufficiency: calcium oxalate is a substance present in strawberries, and it is precisely what kidney stones may be composed of. Therefore, it can contribute to worsen this already unpleasant condition.
- Allergy: strawberry salicylates may cause hives in some allergy sufferers. Obviously, if someone is allergic to strawberries, they will never try them, but in this case we are talking about any type of allergy. One must be very careful and understand the characteristics of the allergy one suffers from, so as not to commit imprudence.
Having said all this, we must also say that these recommendations are general. Each case is unique, so it is important to analyze the situation of each individual to know if the consumption of strawberries can lead to health complications. The conclusion is that you should be well informed before eating this fruit, to avoid having a bad time.