Why does a ripe watermelon not sink in water? Watermelon berry or fruit? Watermelon or melon, which is healthier, is it possible to eat watermelon bones? If the watermelon floats in the water.
The right to choose
One of the most important assets of summer, especially such as this year, is the huge striped “berries” that delight the eye and cause the approval of the stomach. Today, the editors of the site will tell you what to be guided by when choosing a watermelon and how to avoid some unpleasant moments.
p.s. in fact, watermelon is not a fruit, not a vegetable, and not even a berry. Watermelon is a herbaceous plant whose fruit is called pumpkin, its closest relatives are, respectively, pumpkins, cucumbers and melons.
Be careful!
- Ask for a certificate. Each merchant must have an appropriate document confirming the quality of the goods. If there is one, you can safely buy a watermelon.
- Watermelons should not be stored on bare ground, pavement or in the open sun. Ideal - in a covered tent on special pallets and not lower than 15 cm from the ground.
- Be attentive to store watermelons, do not buy watermelons near the roads. And if many stores, as a rule, simply buy unripe berries, then watermelons along the road can absorb a whole periodic table.
- Do not take watermelons cut “for testing” and with defects: bacteria from the surface of the watermelon can enter the pulp through the knife blade, which is very likely to cause indigestion.
Photo: lubaslv — LiveJournal Purchase time
The ideal time for choosing a watermelon is the beginning of August. It was then that delicious and sweet Astrakhan watermelons appeared on the shelves of the country, the harvest of which takes place in mid-July. Yes, in our time there are so-called "early varieties" grown from foreign seeds in the same Astrakhan region and appearing on the shelves earlier than "domestic", but still, as buyers notice, the taste is different.
Photo: melonmold.com first look
The coloring of a good one should be bright, contrasting. The rind should not be matte, but a hard and shiny rind is a plus. However, unscrupulous merchants can clean and polish watermelons before selling, so focusing on color alone when choosing is not an option.
Photo: crooked mirror.ru earth spot
The yellow spot on the side is the place where the watermelon lay on the ground. The color of the spot should be saturated, brownish-yellow or with an orange tint. Ideally, if the spot size is from 5 to 10 cm - with a high probability, such a watermelon will be juicy and sweet. Don't risk it if the spot is white.
Photo: Produceguide.wordpress.com "Bee cobweb"
Brown "scars" spreading over the watermelon in an ugly net are the best indicator of sweetness. "Bee web" is formed when bees often touch the ovary of the fruit during pollination. The more often this happened and the more cobwebs - the sweeter the watermelon should be.
Photo: Bright Side Boy or girl?
Of course, watermelon does not have a specific “sex”: both male and female flowers can be found on the same plant. However, there is an opinion that girl watermelons are sweeter, while boy watermelons are watery. The conditional "sex" is determined by the shape of the watermelon butt: in girls it is flatter. In addition, "girls" are rounded, and "boys" are elongated.
Photo: Bright Side Tail
Spots, color ... the main thing is the tail! You can determine the maturity of a watermelon by the transition from the watermelon to the stalk, the so-called "tail". The tail of a ripe watermelon usually dries up on its own; if it is green, then the watermelon was collected from the melon by force and long before its maturity.
However, the tail can dry out during transportation, so pay attention first of all to the “button” from which the tail grows: if its edges are dry, then the watermelon should be ripe.
Photo: BashAgroPlast Ideal weight
A good watermelon doesn't have to be big or small. A good watermelon is medium in size, from 7 to 10 kg.
However, in our time there are a huge number of varieties, among them there are giants and midgets - this should also be taken into account when buying. Even despite the fact that it is the “Astrakhan” varieties that are most popular (and widespread, to be honest).
12 kg - Charleston gray;
8-10 kg - Astrakhan watermelon;
8 kg - Crimson Suite;
7 kg - Chill;
6-8 kg - Madeira;
4 kg - Sugar baby;
3 kg - Skorik;
2 kg - Light. 
How to find the most delicious, and most importantly, healthy watermelon among the dozens lying on the counter? Caught in front of a mountain of delicious pumpkins, we begin to recall common advice, some of personal experience, but how many inaccuracies and contradictions are in this random information! Let's take it seriously.
watermelon photography
First of all, sanitary standards. You're still picking from a pile piled up next to a dusty, gassed road. Copies for sale should be carefully laid on the deck under a canopy. It’s not worth cutting a slice to make sure it’s ripe, it’s better to take the risk of buying an unripe watermelon than for sure to bring home harmful microorganisms from a knife or from street air. For the same reasons, you can’t buy a fruit with a crack, even a small one, or with a bruise mark - bacteria multiply rapidly in an open or damaged pulp.
Unscrupulous melon growers abuse the responsiveness of watermelon plants to fertilizing with fertilizers and overfeed them with nitrogen. The fruits quickly reach apparent ripeness, they turn out large, but unripe and dangerous to health. The seller must have a certificate confirming the absence of harmful substances in doses hazardous to health. If it is missing or there is no certainty of its authenticity, you have to rely on your own knowledge.
Video on how to choose a ripe and tasty watermelon
Sometimes saltpeter is injected into an immature fruit with a syringe, a speck with a puncture in the middle remains on the crust. But if an excess of nitrates is introduced from the soil, such an uncut specimen cannot be recognized, it is given out by the pulp. A confident seller exposes an unopened sample for inspection.
The taste of excess saltpeter is not directly discernible, but can be guessed from the discrepancy between bright, ripe-looking, but not very sweet flesh and unripe seeds, too light and soft. This happens if maturity is imitated with the help of chemistry.
In an ecologically clean fruit, the structure on the fracture is granular, with distinguishable cells, in the overfed with fertilizers it is fibrous. White streaks appear under difficult ripening conditions, for example, with a lack of heat, yellow formations are a sign of overfeeding with fertilizers. If the pulp is very bright, stir the piece in a glass of water. If the water turns red, the berry is “tinted” artificially, if it only becomes cloudy, then the product is pure.
Pictured is a watermelon
If pumping with nitrates is excluded, then the size depends on ripeness, ripening conditions and variety. Most likely, the average fruit will be of high quality, weighing about 6 kg. Too small can be suspected of immaturity, but first it must be assessed on other grounds. Too large should not be chosen if you have to store the cut residue, even in the refrigerator it can deteriorate during the day. It has been noticed that a slightly unsightly, slightly lopsided fruit is usually sweeter than a perfectly shaped watermelon.
As it matures, the skin color of the striped kavun becomes more and more contrasting. Be sure to pay attention to the stain formed at the point of contact of the fruit with the ground. In ripe watermelons, it is yellow, about 10 cm in diameter, in unripe ones it is white, and if the spot is too large, the fruits ripened for a long time due to poor conditions.
The peel of a ripe watermelon is easily scraped off with a fingernail, under it is a dense, white layer.
The stalk should be dry, yellowish. Until the fruit is ripe, it is green. A trained eye will determine whether the “tail” separated from the stem easily, because when the fruit was removed it was already dried up or it was pulled for a long time, tearing it off green, and it dried up already during storage. The knife mark on the cut is harder to see, but possible. By itself, this part does not disappear from the fetus, which means that if it is not there, then it was intentionally removed - it is better not to choose this one.
Pictured are watermelons
Another well-known sign of a well-ripened fruit is the characteristic crackling when squeezed. The sound that a ripe watermelon makes when clicked or patted is described by words in completely different ways. To one it seems sonorous, as if from an empty vessel, others call it “voluminous”, it is best to experiment by drumming on a deliberately ripe fruit and remember the resulting sound.
The density of the pulp decreases as it ripens, the ripened kavun does not sink in water. Taking it in hand, you can feel that it seems too light for the size. For those who like to trust the exact sciences on the question of how to determine the ripeness of a watermelon, there is a simple calculation. If it does not sink in water, then its weight, according to the law of Archimedes, must be less than the weight of water in the same volume. And this is achieved with the following ratios: if the circumference of a watermelon is 80, 70, 60 cm, then its weight should be less than 8.6, respectively; 5.8; 3.6 kg. The calculation is made for a ball, therefore, it is applicable only for round watermelons.
About watermelon girls and some prejudices
The division of fetuses by sex, into "boys" and "girls" is too common to be neglected. Vegetable growers, sellers, buyers different countries It has long been believed that there are female watermelons - with a large flat trace from a separated flower and male ones, in which it is smaller and convex. Practice shows that, indeed, watermelons with a large spot opposite the stem are tastier, and you can use this feature when buying. Perhaps this is somehow related to the characteristics of pollination.
Video about tips for choosing a delicious watermelon
But calling watermelons "boys" and "girls" is only a joke. All vegetable fruits are formed from the organs of a female flower that has a pistil and an ovary, in our case, from the pericarp, they cannot have a sex! What would we think of a person who would think of dividing into "men" and "women", for example, apples or sunflower seeds?
The bad reputation of early, too large or small berries, unfortunately, is not without foundation. But we must not forget that breeders are constantly working to create more and more perfect varieties and hybrids. For the Russian climate, varieties called ultra-early, as well as large-fruited and with pulp of various colors, have been bred. In Europe, tasty and low-seeded watermelons weighing 2-3 kg are popular. It is necessary to pay attention to all signs of maturity and naturalness, of which there are many, and not to pre-select specimens that have ripened in July or fall outside the recommended size standard. Otherwise, you can pass by an excellent watermelon, and the achievements of scientists will remain unclaimed.
Watermelon is over 90% water. There are a lot of easily digestible sugars in watermelon and melon (mostly fructose in watermelon, sucrose in melon), mineral salts(primarily potassium). The composition contains ascorbic acid, carotene, folic acid, pectin substances (improve bowel function), and watermelon also contains lycopene, a natural antioxidant.
Due to its composition, watermelon can not only quench thirst. When with sweat we lose along with water and some salts, watermelon perfectly compensates for the loss of both.
What is the calorie content?
In 100 g of the edible part of the watermelon, there are only 27 kilocalories. Energy value melon is also small - 39 kcal per 100 g.
Watermelon is widely used in many diets - unloading, with diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract, problems with the gastrointestinal tract. This striped berry should be avoided only by owners of stones (cholelithiasis and urolithiasis). Given the high content of sucrose in melon, it should not be recommended for people with impaired carbohydrate metabolism, excess body weight.
Recently, high nitrate content has been associated with watermelons, which has limited their dietary use. The fault is not the watermelons themselves, but unscrupulous producers who violate the technology of their cultivation.
How to choose?
It is better to prefer a large watermelon (but not a giant), but at the same time light, which means ripe. Its tail should be dry, and on one of the surfaces there should be a yellow or orange spot. A ripe watermelon has a hard, shiny, ripe rind that is difficult to pierce with a fingernail and always springs back under impact. And if you knock on it, a clear, sonorous sound is heard. You can test the ripeness of a watermelon by dropping it into water. Floating means ripe.
The best melons in terms of sugar content and taste are considered to be Central Asian, in particular Chardzhow. The surface of the fruit can be either smooth or ribbed, bumpy, even warty, fully or partially covered with a net, which indicates a difference in varieties, and not a poor quality. The flesh of a ripe melon can be white, orange or green. To determine whether a melon is ripe or not, you need to press on its end on the opposite side of the stem: in an unripe melon, this end does not give in to pressure. Melon stalk good quality- thick. Another important sign of ripeness is the strong melon flavor coming from the peel. If you knock on a ripe, ripe melon, there will be a dull sound. In addition, when choosing a melon, you need to make sure that there are no dents or softened areas on it. Underneath, the flesh is often bitter.
Are nitrates in gourds dangerous?
Under good weather conditions, more than one crop of gourds can be harvested in one season. And to further accelerate maturation, producers overfeed them with fertilizers, mainly nitrates, which accumulate in the pulp. The accumulation of nitrates is facilitated by a lack of sun and an abundance of moisture. So in a rainy cloudy summer, the risk of buying nitrate watermelon is higher. In addition, nitrates are usually higher in early fruits than in late summer or autumn. In different parts of plants, nitrates accumulate unevenly. Most of them are in the first 3 cm of pulp from the peel. Therefore, it is better for the child to offer the part that is closer to the core.
By themselves, nitrates are slightly toxic. However, they are precursors of N-nitroso compounds that have a carcinogenic effect (increase the risk of developing cancer) and nitrites. This transformation occurs mainly inside our body, to a lesser extent in the watermelon itself during storage. Nitrites, unlike nitrates, are toxic, leading to hypoxia - oxygen starvation of tissues, which is especially dangerous for children.
How to recognize the presence of nitrates?
The following signs indicate the overfeeding of watermelon with nitrates:
- intense red color with a slight purple tint;
- the fibers that go from the core to the crust are not white, as expected, but with all shades of yellow;
- the cut of the watermelon should sparkle with grains, and the “wrong” watermelon has a smooth, glossy surface;
- you can check the quality by rubbing a piece of watermelon pulp in a glass of water: if the watermelon is good, the water will simply become cloudy, if not, it will become red or pink;
- To determine the level of nitrates, you can use household nitrate meters.
Where to buy watermelons and melons?
Improper storage and violation of trade rules can make gourds hazardous to health. First of all, you should be afraid of roadside collapses, where substandard goods or goods rejected by trade and sanitary inspectors flow. According to the rules, roadside trade in melons is generally prohibited, since in a few hours they are able to absorb heavy metals contained in automobile exhausts.
In addition, the place of trade should be fenced, be under a canopy. Watermelons and melons must be laid out on product trays, and not piled on the ground. Dirt and pathogens can penetrate into carelessly thrown fruits through microcracks. The outlet must have permission from Rospotrebnadzor, and the seller must have a medical book. Finally, a certificate of conformity of the goods being sold to the requirements of the standard is required.
In no case should you open a watermelon on the street to make sure it is ripe. Fruits with damaged skin are dangerous.
Opened watermelon should be stored only in a refrigerator and no more than a day.
How much watermelon and melon can be given to children?
You can offer watermelons and melons to children from 2-3 years old. A preschooler needs 1 piece a day, a schoolchild - 2 pieces.
How to understand that poisoned?
Signs of poisoning are fever, lethargy, weakness (symptoms of intoxication), recurrent vomiting and diarrhea. Intolerance may be indicated by skin rashes, changes in the nature of the stool in the absence of temperature and intoxication, as well as the fact that the child uses watermelon or melon for the first time. It should be noted that they do not apply to products with a high allergenic potential. In any case, you need to see a doctor.
"How to choose a watermelon?" - a question arises in the minds of thousands of people as soon as the green-striped beauties begin to appear on the shelves of shops and markets. The task is not easy, but solvable.
It is enough just to remember a few proven ways to identify a ripe and sweet watermelon.
There are a number of characteristics that will help you choose a truly ripe and sweet specimen from a pile of alluring striped fruits. Here is the cherished list:
- size;
- a spot on the side;
- safety;
- tapping sound;
- color and structure of the pulp;
- season;
- the appearance of the crust;
- "half" of watermelon.
In addition, there are quite popular "signs" of watermelon ripeness among the people, which do not really work and will not help you in such a task as choosing a ripe watermelon. The most common of these is the myth that a ripe watermelon should have a dry tail.
Many try to choose a fruit that is not too large. Someone fears that it will be too heavy and difficult to carry, and some are afraid that the watermelon has become large only because of the abundance of nitrates in it.
But after all, varieties of watermelons are different, and in some varieties, the size of the fruit can reach 20 kilograms. Therefore, when choosing, it is better to give preference to a medium-sized watermelon. The rule of the golden mean works in this case too.
Ripe watermelon do not hide "cheeks"
For reference: the “cheek” is a small light spot on the side of a watermelon, which forms in the place where the watermelon lay when ripe. The spot is not a sign of illness or immaturity, just that the sun has not touched this area of the crust.
So, in how to choose a good watermelon, a look at the light spot on the rind will help. Everything is simple here: the more yellow it has, the better.
But buying a watermelon with a white circle on its side, you run the risk of running into a tasteless product.
The size of the spot also requires attention. Know that a large stain indicates that the watermelon for a long time ripened in not too warm conditions. Because of this, the fruit loses its taste and becomes less juicy.
Buying a watermelon in the market or from the back of a car on the side of the road, Special attention look at this feature.
Watermelon should never have the following flaws:
- cracks;
- dents;
- incisions;
- rotted areas (even very small ones!).
The fact is that the juicy and nutritious pulp of a watermelon is an ideal breeding ground for bacteria, which, together with air and roadside dust, can get inside in abundance.
Eating watermelon with such a surprise can lead to poisoning and gastrointestinal upset. The same applies to cut watermelons, so do not try to save money by buying not a whole watermelon, but only a half. Such frugality can cost you dearly.
The most commonly used method for testing watermelon for ripeness is tapping. Yes, here's the problem: everyone knocks, but few people remember what the sound of a ripe fruit should be. So remember: a ripe and juicy watermelon makes a sonorous, booming sound, and an unripe one makes a deaf sound.
An overripe watermelon also sounds dull, in which there is already too much moisture and it has begun to sour. It is also better to refuse such a purchase. Thus, a voiced sound is good, a deaf sound is bad.
To be sure, you can also squeeze the copy you like with your hands. A slight crackle indicates readiness for use. The main thing is not to overdo it.
The color and structure of the pulp
And this is already a characteristic that will help you determine the ripeness of the fruit after cutting it. If the purchase is made in a supermarket, you can see watermelon halves on the counter.
They are wrapped in cling film, which almost eliminates the ingress of bacteria into the pulp, and gives you the opportunity to study the product in detail. So, how to choose a delicious watermelon according to appearance pulp?
Two main positions can be distinguished: color and structure. The color of the pulp should be pinkish.
The scarlet color indicates the presence of nitrates or that the watermelon is overripe. Both are not in his favor. The structure should be porous, granular. Such watermelons are sometimes referred to as "sugar".
sale season
As a rule, watermelons start selling almost from the beginning of summer. However, if you want to get enough of a real southern fruit, and not a product of chemicals, you will have to wait until about mid-August.
Of course, there are also early varieties, but it still takes time to transport them. You may be lucky and the July watermelon will indeed turn out to be sweet, but it is not known how useful it will be.
Ripe watermelon is easy to distinguish among fellows, paying attention to the appearance of the peel.
Here A few key features of a delicious watermelon:
- the stripes forming the pattern must be clear;
- the peel is glossy;
- the crust is hard, it is impossible to damage it without effort;
- when the colored layer of the peel is damaged, a recognizable smell of fresh grass appears.
Signs indicating immaturity or disease of the fetus:
- the pattern is broken or uncharacteristic, the stripes are blurry;
- dullness of the peel;
- the crust can be easily damaged even with a fingernail.
Choose watermelon with more space between the stripes, as they are considered to be sweeter.
"Sex" of watermelon
It is believed that girl watermelons are sweeter than boy watermelons, although the division itself is arbitrary. How to choose a watermelon girl? It is enough to look at the speck left in the place where the flower once was.
If the spot is flat and rather large, then it is a girl. In male watermelons, the spot is convex and smaller in size.
This division has nothing to do with biology and exists only to simplify the selection process. Indeed, watermelons-girls in practice turn out to be more juicy and sweet. There is an assumption that this is due to the characteristics of pollination.
Is a dry tail a sign of ripeness?
It is believed that when a watermelon, ripening, can no longer take in nutrients and moisture, and under its own weight separates from the bush. In general, the theory is correct, but it is broken by the fact that, in practice, watermelon can be separated from the food path before cutting.
And the tail dries out in 3 days, so a green watermelon with a dry tail may well lie on the counter.
If you still do not want to give up this method, pay attention to the tip of the tail. Even with a dried stalk, you can determine whether it was cut or broken off naturally.
All characteristics listed above are general.
It does not hurt to highlight several varieties of watermelons that fall on the tables more often than others, and emphasize their features.
- Watermelons Kherson. Kherson sugar watermelons never grow too large, their weight does not exceed 10 kg. If you are shown a twenty-kilogram giant and they say that he is from Kherson, do not believe it. It is either of a different variety, or grew on some nitrates. The appearance of watermelons of this variety is classic: bright light stripes, oblong shape, soft pinkish flesh and rather thin peel.
- Crimean Crimson Gloria. Watermelons of this variety can be really big. The weight of one copy on average can range from 10 to 17 kg. In addition, watermelons of this variety are able to withstand long-term transportation. They are also grown in the south of Russia. In appearance, they resemble Kherson ones, but they are distinguished by a thick skin and a large weight.
- hybrid chill. The peculiarity of watermelons of this variety is that they can be stored for a very long time, until the New Year. It is only necessary to provide the fetus with comfortable storage conditions. To do this, place it in a dry, dark place. However, representatives of this variety appear on the market only in early September, as they ripen late.
- Skorik. Watermelons of this variety are early and appear on the shelves among the first. You can distinguish them by the dark green uniform color of the skin and low weight - no more than 7 kg.
- Photon. The same applies to early varieties and differs from Skorik only in that it has a light skin with pronounced stripes.
Market or shop?
Wherever you buy this juicy berry, this place must meet certain requirements. Both for the market and for the supermarket they have their own.
Watermelon on the market
To begin with, it should be noted that the market does not mean a spontaneous accumulation of tents near your entrance, but a territory specially designated for this purpose. And the tents by the road are not even considered, since buying a watermelon in them, you can get severe poisoning instead of enjoying the taste.
So, The following requirements must be met by the owner of a trading place engaged in the sale of watermelons:
- the presence of a canopy that protects watermelons from direct sunlight;
- distance from the roadway;
- the storage tray is located at a height of at least 20 cm from the ground;
- availability of a certificate of the Epidemiological Surveillance Service for each batch of goods.
Watermelon in the store
When buying a watermelon in a store check the following points:
- watermelons are not stored outdoors, under the sun or near the roadway;
- storage pallets are located at a height of at least 20 cm from the floor and do not have any damage;
- Availability required documents on the purchase of goods from trusted suppliers.
Now you know what the perfect watermelon looks like, and you can safely go in search of it. And where to buy and which variety to choose - it's up to you.
Mother of two children. I have been running a household for more than 7 years - this is my main job. I like to experiment, I constantly try various means, methods, techniques that can make our life easier, more modern, richer. I love my family.
The end of summer is the time for watermelons and melons, which have officially appeared on the shelves of Moscow since August 3rd. However, stories about watermelons stuffed with nitrates have long become a sad reality for residents of large cities. The MK correspondent figured out how to distinguish a nitrated watermelon from a natural one and what to do if it didn’t work out.
The beginning of August is the time when the first watermelons and melons appear on the shelves. However, in the minds of Muscovites, the memory of July berry poisoning is still fresh. And to speed up the maturation process due to nitrates is a well-known story.
We went to a gourd breakup and decided to find out how the sellers themselves recommend distinguishing a real watermelon from a “chemical” one.
Watermelons are stacked on pallets, occasionally bright yellow melons come across between green berries. The salesperson Zaur chooses a bigger berry for us and along the way gives valuable recommendations. According to him, all watermelons that are brought to official points of sale undergo the necessary tests, so they can be bought without the risk of poisoning.
The paler the skin of a watermelon, the more likely it is to be chemical. In nature, the peel is bright and contrasting, but nitrates make this pattern pale. Another good indicator is the presence of a watermelon tail. If it is dried out, then the watermelon most likely ripened on its own. The next indicator of naturalness is yellow spot- It was on this side that the watermelon lay on the ground. If the spot is white, drop this berry and run.
However, if you can meet by clothes - more precisely, by the skin! - then it is better to make a decision on the content. It is worth trusting the color of the veins in the pulp of a watermelon: they should be white. But if the streaks are yellow or, even worse, purple, then the watermelon can be safely sent to the trash - it is either not fully ripe, or stuffed with nitrates.
You can also remember the cartoon “Just you wait!”, Where a hippopotamus squeezed it to check the ripeness of a watermelon. The writers knew a lot about delicious fruits - this is a great way to test for nitrates! A bad watermelon will not "pop". If you don’t have the strength to squeeze a watermelon, then you can at least smell it. If you caught a sour smell, this is also a chemical product.
If all these checks are not enough, then you can arrange another test for the watermelon. We take a piece of pulp and lower it into a glass of water. Water should not be colored, and a piece of watermelon should not sink.
At the Federal Center for Assessing the Safety and Quality of Grain and Its Derivatives, we were told that it is possible to distinguish a watermelon containing nitrates from a pure watermelon only by cutting it. You need to carefully look at the pulp of the watermelon - the seeds should be ripe, and the veins should not be thick and white color. Another important criterion is that the cut should by no means be smooth, shiny, but velvety-rough, with grains of sugar.
Well, ideally, special devices are used to determine the content of nitrates - nitrate meters, which are suitable for any vegetables and fruits. For watermelon, the maximum allowable concentration is 60 milligrams per kilogram of the product. If the figure is higher, it is better not to risk it.
But what to do if such a watermelon was still eaten? As gastroenterologist Natalya Smolikova told MK, if the nitrate limit is significantly exceeded in a watermelon (as well as any vegetable or fruit), the case can result in serious food poisoning.
- The amount of nitrates in fruits is increased due to the fact that producers use too much nitrogen fertilizer to increase yields. Mostly harmful substances are concentrated in the shell of the fruit. When nitrates enter our body, they are converted into more poisonous nitrites, which lead to disruption of oxygen transport in the blood and tissue respiration processes. Also, under the influence of nitrites, blood vessels expand, which further exacerbates the state of oxygen deficiency in the body. As a result, a person's blood pressure drops, heart rate increases, and shortness of breath appears. The case may result in a violation of cardiac activity. Lips and nail bed may turn blue - this is early signs hypoxia. Seizures may also occur. With a high concentration of nitrates in the product, the mucous membranes of the stomach and intestines are affected - blood may appear in the feces. Sometimes yellowness of the whites of the eyes appears, which indicates damage to the liver by nitrites, the doctor explains.
The first signs of poisoning with nitrate watermelons appear within 2-6 hours after eating - nausea, dizziness, abdominal pain and cramps, tachycardia, frequent loose stools (maybe up to 15 times a day), sometimes vomiting and fever. If you are experiencing these symptoms, go to the doctor.
In any case, experts advise peeling all purchased vegetables and fruits. And do not eat watermelons right to the crust - most of all nitrates are in it.
