What Are the Benefits of Eating Sea Cucumber? Detailed Explanation of Effects, Side Effects and People Who Should Avoid It
Sea cucumber, also known as "sea imperial king", is a rather common luxury food along the coast of the South China Sea. Because of its high nutritional value and its effects of boosting immunity, fighting tumors, and nourishing yin and blood, it is deeply favored by people. So what are the benefits of eating sea cucumber? What are the effects, side effects and people who should avoid it?
I. Benefits of eating sea cucumber:
1. Effects and functions
(1) Boosting immunity: The active substances contained in sea cucumber, such as acidic polysaccharides and polypeptides, can greatly improve the body's immunity. As long as the body's immunity is strong, it can resist the invasion of various diseases. The large amount of selenium it contains can effectively prevent and fight cancer, while chondroitin sulfate can delay aging, and arginine and zinc can nourish yin and strengthen yang.
(2) Nourishing yin and blood: Sea cucumber can nourish yin and blood, strengthen yang and moisten dryness, and has a very good regulating effect on postpartum women with weakness and qi deficiency. Compared with traditional Chinese medicines for replenishing qi and blood, a high-protein substance like sea cucumber greatly enhances the effect of replenishing qi and blood, nourishing internally to bring out external beauty, making women beautiful because they are healthy.
(3) Preventing and fighting cancer: The content of the trace element vanadium in sea cucumber ranks first among all kinds of food, and it can participate in the transport of iron in the blood, enhancing hematopoietic function. Moreover, sea cucumber contains a special substance, holothurin, and this compound can effectively inhibit the spread of various molds and certain human cancer cells.
(4) Tonifying the kidneys and improving essence: In addition to active substances such as protein, calcium, potassium, zinc, iron, selenium and manganese, sea cucumber also contains holothurin and acidic mucopolysaccharides from stichopus composed of aminohexose, hexuronic acid and fucose, as well as 18 kinds of amino acids and no cholesterol. It has the effects of tonifying the kidneys and improving essence, nourishing yin and strengthening yang, thus tonifying both yin and yang.
(5) Repair function: The repair and regeneration function of sea cucumber is a major feature, such as rapidly healing wounds, repairing the gastrointestinal tract damaged for many years, repairing the immune system, repairing pancreatic islets, and restoring hematopoietic function, all of which reflect the powerful repair and regeneration characteristics of sea cucumber.
2. Benefits for pregnant women:
Sea cucumber can provide comprehensive nutritional support for pregnant and postpartum women and strengthen their constitution. It can be seen that the nutritional value of sea cucumber is very high! When cooked properly, sea cucumber tastes very good and can also promote appetite. Pregnant women can eat sea cucumber, and there are many benefits.
3. Benefits for the elderly:
(1) Delaying aging.
Sea cucumber contains many nutritional elements, all of which have functions such as eliminating fatigue and prolonging life. In particular, elements such as arginine in sea cucumber have the ability to repair body damage and promote the regeneration of human cells. Regularly eating sea cucumber will make you radiate youth and prolong your life.
(2) Enhancing the body's immunity.
Because the abundant protein, arginine, polysaccharides, saponins and so on contained in sea cucumber are substances necessary for human immune function, regular consumption can not only fight fatigue but also enhance and regulate the body's immunity; at the same time, nutrients such as niacin, potassium, nickel and taurine in sea cucumber all have the functions of restoring physical strength, quickly eliminating fatigue, and regulating the nervous system.
(3) Regulating, improving and preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
Regular consumption of sea cucumber can effectively regulate, improve and prevent the occurrence of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Sclerosis and inflammation of the cardiovascular and cerebrovascular systems are significantly improved, and it also plays a certain role in cleaning the cerebral blood vessels, enhances the elasticity of the cardiovascular and cerebrovascular systems, relieves cardiovascular and cerebrovascular spasms, relaxes cardiovascular and cerebrovascular blood flow, and promotes the establishment of collateral circulation.
(4) Producing blood, nourishing blood and promoting calcium absorption.
After middle-aged and elderly people reach a certain age, their bodily functions begin to age, and insufficient blood production and osteoporosis will appear. The keratin in sea cucumber has the effect of promoting the hematopoietic function of red bone marrow, and regular consumption can effectively improve anemia. At the same time, it contains abundant natural active calcium components from the ocean, and regular consumption can effectively play a role in calcium supplementation.
(5) Nourishing yin and blood, tonifying the kidneys and improving essence, tonifying both yin and yang.
Sea cucumber contains arginine, which is the main component of male sperm cells and has the function of regulating sex hormones, with special effects on treating kidney deficiency and impotence. In addition, trace elements such as zinc, manganese, vanadium, phosphorus, nickel and selenium in sea cucumber are of great help in promoting the improvement of sexual function in the human body.
(6) Lowering blood sugar and blood lipids, preventing cardiovascular diseases.
Sea cucumber contains fucoidan, which can lower blood lipids and inhibit blood coagulation. In medicine, it is also believed that patients with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary heart disease and hepatitis, as well as middle-aged and elderly people, who insist on eating sea cucumber for a long time will have good results in alleviating symptoms and treatment.
II. Suitable people and foods to eat it with:
1. Who is suitable to eat it?
(1) Elderly people with the “three highs”. Sea cucumber can regulate lipid metabolism in the body, significantly reduce the body's fat content, and lower blood sugar, blood lipids and cholesterol. It improves the condition of patients with type 2 diabetes in terms of blood sugar and urine sugar, and improves frequent urination in middle-aged and elderly people.
Sea cucumber is low in cholesterol and relatively low in fat. It is a typical high-protein, low-fat and low-cholesterol food. For patients with hypertension, coronary heart disease and hepatitis, as well as the elderly, it can be called an excellent food therapy product, and regular consumption is very beneficial for treating diseases and strengthening the body.
(2) Beauty lovers. Sea cucumber has an extremely high protein content, and its collagen is also very rich. It can delay body aging, make the skin smooth, and eliminate wrinkles and facial dark spots.
(3) People lacking immunity. Sea cucumber contains chondroitin sulfate, which helps human growth and development, can delay muscle aging, and enhance the body's immunity.
(4) People with anemia. The content of the trace element vanadium in sea cucumber ranks first among all kinds of food, and it can participate in the transport of iron in the blood, enhancing hematopoietic function. The keratin in sea cucumber can enhance the hematopoietic function of red bone marrow cells. It contains abundant natural active calcium, which is easily absorbed by the human body. After consumption, it can produce and nourish blood, promote calcium absorption, and supplement the calcium needed by the human body.
(5) Men. Sea cucumber is rich in zinc, and zinc is an important component of the male prostate. Therefore, regular consumption can help prevent and treat urinary tract infections and prostatitis.
(6) People seeking health care. Recently, American researchers extracted a special substance from sea cucumber, holothurin. This compound can effectively inhibit the growth and spread of various molds and certain human cancer cells. It can inhibit the growth of cancer cells and play an anti-cancer role.
(7) Post-surgical patients. Sea cucumber is rich in high-quality protein, vitamins and so on, which can accelerate the healing of surgical incisions and quickly restore physical strength and energy.
2. What is good to eat it with?
(1) Mutton: Mutton can both resist wind-cold and nourish the body. Anyone with soreness and weakness of the waist and knees, insufficient kidney yang, deficiency from overwork, or cold pain in the abdomen can use it as a food therapy item. Eating it with sea cucumber has the effect of nourishing blood and moistening dryness.
(2) Duck meat: The nutritional value of duck meat is similar to that of chicken. It has effects such as nourishing, benefiting the stomach, tonifying the kidneys, eliminating consumptive bone-steaming fever, reducing edema, stopping heat dysentery, and relieving cough and resolving phlegm. Eating it with sea cucumber can replenish the five qi, remove fire-heat, and nourish the five viscera.
(3) Goji berries: Goji berries are listed by the Ministry of Health as a “medicinal and edible” variety and can be processed into various foods, beverages, health wines, health products and so on. Eating them with sea cucumber can play a role in tonifying the kidneys and strengthening yang.
(4) Asparagus: Asparagus is rich in nutrition, containing abundant vitamin B, vitamin A, as well as trace elements such as folic acid, selenium, iron, manganese and zinc. Eating it with sea cucumber has the effect of preventing and fighting cancer.
(5) Bamboo shoots: Bamboo shoots are rich in nutrients such as protein, amino acids, fat, carbohydrates, calcium, phosphorus, iron, carotene and vitamins. Eating them with sea cucumber can nourish yin and moisten dryness, clear heat and nourish blood.
III. Contraindications
1. Who should not eat it?
(1) Children generally should not eat much sea cucumber.
(2) When taking certain individual Chinese medicines, one should also eat less or not eat it.
(3) People with common cold, wind-cold, or fever should not eat it.
(4) Patients with colds and diarrhea had better temporarily not eat sea cucumber.
(5) Patients with hyperuricemia should not eat sea cucumber for a long time.
(6) People who are easily allergic to protein should not eat much sea cucumber.
(7) Sea cucumber moistens the five viscera and nourishes fluids to promote urination, so people with dampness in the spleen and stomach, excessive coughing with phlegm, or a thick and greasy tongue coating should not eat it.
(8) Those with weak spleen and stomach should not eat it, but may selectively take sea cucumber health care products.
(9) People with rheumatoid disease should also eat less or not eat sea cucumber (there are not many dietary restrictions for rheumatoid arthritis; if it is not accompanied by hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary heart disease, obesity, diabetes and so on, it can be eaten.)
2. What can it not be eaten with?
(1) Edible vinegar: Sea cucumber has very high nutritional and food therapy value, but if vinegar is added when preparing sea cucumber, its nutritional value will be greatly reduced. Eating the two together will produce an effect similar to eating them with glycyrrhizic acid.
(2) Grapes: Grapes have high nutritional value, and eating some appropriately can strengthen the spleen and stomach, but sea cucumber cannot be eaten with grapes, otherwise it will have the opposite effect. Not only can it not repair the stomach and intestines, but it is instead harmful.
(3) Persimmons: The tannic acid contained in persimmons, together with the protein and calcium salts of sea cucumber, will form precipitates. This kind of precipitate will irritate our gastrointestinal organs and can easily cause illness, such as nausea and constipation.
(4) Hawthorn: Hawthorn cannot be eaten together with sea cucumber, because the acidic substances contained in hawthorn will destroy the collagen contained in sea cucumber, and eating the two together will also cause symptoms of abdominal pain and vomiting.
(5) Glycyrrhizic acid: Glycyrrhizic acid will cause changes in the spatial structure of the collagen in sea cucumber and cause protein molecules to aggregate and contract to varying degrees, which not only affects the delicious taste of sea cucumber but also affects the absorption of collagen.