Watermelon Smoothie

Watermelon is surprisingly good for you and recent research is showing that eating this sweet tasting melon, and particularly drinking it as fresh juice, can have some significant health benefits.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (240 g) fresh watermelon, cubed (black seeds removed)
• 1/2 ripe banana (50 g), previously peeled, chopped and frozen (optional)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup (120-180 ml) condensed milk or unsweetened milk
• 1 lime, juiced (~30 ml)
• 5 ice cubes

Instructions

Place the lid on the blender (or cover the cup if using a handheld blender), and then press your blender’s appropriate blending button to combine the mixture. Your smoothie is ready when all ingredients are thoroughly mixed together. If you are using cubed or crushed ice, use the ice crusher setting on your blender to chop and blend the ice into the smoothie.

Fat Content

• Calories: 182
• Fat: 6.2g
• Saturated fat: 0.8g
• Sodium: 48mg
• Carbohydrates: 30g
• Fiber: 9g
• Sugar: 14g
• Protein: 5g
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Nutrients

6 Health Benefits of Watermelon 

⦽  Lycopene for Your Heart, Skin and Cancer Prevention

   ➤  It is a powerful antioxidant, known to protect your cardiovascular system from free radical damage. 

   ➤  Protecting your skin from UV damage that can lead to photoaging, wrinkles and skin cancer. 

⦽  Citrulline for Better Blood Flow

  ➤  Citrulline can be converted in your body into arginine, an essential amino acid for improving blood flow and relaxing blood vessels.

  

⦽  Weight Loss Benefits

  ➤  drinking a glass of watermelon juice before a meal is great for hydration, high in nutrition and very low in calories – all helpful for losing weight.

⦽  Anti-inflammatory Watermelon Juice

  ➤  Watermelon is rich in flavonoids, carotenoids like lycopene and beta-carotene and other compounds that fight inflammation called triterpenoids.

⦽  Vitamins and Minerals

  ➤  watermelon is particularly high in vitamin C, as well as having more than enough beta-carotene that could be converted into vitamin A in your body if needed. There are also smaller amounts of B vitamins, the seeds contain good levels of iron and zinc.

⦽  Watermelon Juice for Kidney Health

  ➤  Watermelon juice is great for your kidneys, having a highly cleansing effect when you drink it. It helps to flush out ammonia and uric acid and has even been known to help with kidney stones.

(Base on my Internet Research)