Winter Melon for Weight Loss
Benincasa hispida, wax gourd, also called winter melon in China, is a commonly eaten vegetable. The icing powdery look of the mature melon skin got it the name winter melon, even though the fruit matures in summer.
The most well-known health functions of the winter melon are to reduce swelling, clear heat and toxins, and promote urination. "Shen Nong's Herbal Classic" documented: "Winter melon is slightly cold, sweet, and non-toxic, and enters the three meridians of the lung, large intestine, and bladder; it can clear lung heat and resolve phlegm, clear stomach heat, remove vexation and quench thirst, relieve dysentery, remove dampness and relieve summer heat, facilitate urination and eliminate edema." "Compendium of Materia Medica" documented: "Winter melon is good for urination and treats ascites swelling."
As a commonly eaten vegetable in Asian countries, winter melon remains to be known by people in western countries. Very few papers on various health benefits of winter melon were published in English. Among the few published studies, one mice study investigated the effect of winter melon (peel extract) on glucose, lipids, and body weight (1).
C57BL/6 mice were fed a high-fat diet or high-fat diet mixed with 1% winter melon peel extract for 8 weeks. The mice fed a high-fat diet had a larger body weight gain when compared to the chow-fed (control diet) mice after 8 weeks of treatment. Supplementing winter melon to the high-fat diet blocked the body weight gain of the mice (p<0.05). The food intake amount was not significantly different between the groups, thus the lower body weight in winter melon-treated mice did not result from a decreased calorie intake. The fasting blood glucose levels in high-fat diet-fed mice were markedly higher than that in chow control mice, while winter melon treatment significantly lowered the fasting glucose levels in the mice (p<0.05). In addition, winter melon treatment also improved glucose tolerance in the high-fat diet-fed mice. The high-fat diet-fed mice had higher serum total cholesterol, triglyceride, and LDL-cholesterol levels when compared to those of chow-fed control mice (p<0.05). Winter melon-treated mice had significantly reduced total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels compared to high-fat diet-fed mice. These results suggested that winter melon could prevent body weight gain from the high-fat diet and reduce the metabolic disorders induced by a high-fat diet in mice. The authors showed that winter melon could inhibit peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) activities in the mice (1).
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are nuclear receptor transcription factors and have been identified as drug targets for metabolic disorders. These receptors are lipid and glucose metabolism sensors and are present in adipocytes, liver, and muscle. The inhibition of PPAR𝛾 could reduce fat and body weight and improve insulin resistance via modulation of the genes related to lipid and glucose metabolism. Winter melon is a healthy food that can modulate PPARs to have these health benefits (1).
"Shen Nong's Materia Medica" recorded that winter melon's "long-term eating could light body and anti-aging". Winter melon can reduce glucose, lipids, blood pressure, and body weight, which can help to alleviate metabolic syndrome. Winter melon does not contain much fat. It can be part of a healthy diet to prevent weight gain and promote weight loss. Winter melon has the nickname “diet melon”.
If you are trying to lose weight, you may have a special interest in winter melon. You may see a noticeable weight drop on the scale a day after you eat some winter melon. The immediate weight loss is likely the water loss due to winter melon’s diuretic effect, but it can be a very encouraging starting point for folks who are eager to start the weight loss. A long-term intake of winter melon can lead to more pronounced and "real" weight loss. Summer is the time that winter melon is harvested. Now is a good time to eat winter melon for weight loss.
Reference:
1. Gu, M., Fan, S., Liu, G., Guo, L., Ding, X., Lu, Y., … Huang, C. (2013). Extract of Wax Gourd Peel Prevents High-Fat Diet-Induced Hyperlipidemia in C57BL/6 Mice via the Inhibition of the PPARγPathway. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2013, 1–11. doi:10.1155/2013/342561