Last Updated on August 17, 2022 by Team THIP
Quick Take
A number of Facebook users claim that eating Jackfruit can cure Anaemia. We fact checked the claim and found it to be Half True. While Jackfruit is full of nutrients and can be immensely helpful to prevent Iron deficiency Anaemia, experts suggest that a single fruit diet cannot cure Anaemia. It is dangerous to believe or follow such kind of health advices.
The Claim
Jackfruits are attributed to a miracle cure for Anaemia by a number of Facebook users. Such posts can be seen here . A screenshot is given below.
Fact Check
Is Jackfruit nutritious?
Yes. Jackfruits are fairly nutritious. In fact, raw Jackfruits comparatively have higher nutrition content. A bowl of Jackfruit is loaded with multiple types of essential nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and fibre which reduces the chance of developing diseases.
Why anaemia occurs?
There are various reasons behind the occurrence of anaemia among people worldwide. Anaemia can occur when the body cannot absorb enough of Vitamin B12. Also, some long-term diseases like hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism or an advanced kidney disease can prevent the body from creating new red blood cells to cause anaemia. Besides this, not eating enough folate in diet or the body failing to absorb folic acid can induce anaemia. Even diseases like ulcer which causes continuous blood loss induces anaemia.
THIP Media also found different types of anaemia such as aplastic anaemia, sickle cell anaemia, thalassemia, iron and vitamin deficiency anaemia can occur due to different causes. The available evidence also shows that diet does not have much role to play in curing aplastic anaemia, sickle cell anaemia and thalassemia.
Anaemia can be chronic, meaning it lasts a long time and may never go away completely.
Can Jackfruit alone cure anaemia?
No. In most cases, jackfruit alone cannot cure anaemia. However, in very mild cases where the cause of anaemia is nutritional deficiency, eating jackfruit along with other certain fruits or vegetables like apples, banana or banana flowers may help meet the nutritional demand to some extent. But in severe cases, anaemia cannot be cured through diet alone. While diet can obviously help in the treatment process but consulting your doctor and taking medicines on time is advisable.
This was further explained by Nutritionist Ranjani Raman who said, “A healthy balanced diet can act as an additional supplement to Anemia treatment along with medicines. It’s important to look at a balanced approach. Moreover, some underlying medical conditions may demand supplementation and hence it’s important to diagnose appropriately and then come up with a treatment plan.”
Can diet cure anaemia?
Not exactly. Diet cannot cure anaemia completely. But eating a healthy diet which is inclusive of a right portion size as per body mass index (BMI) can meet the daily nutritional demand.
To this Dr. S Krishna Prasanthi, MBBS, MD (PGIMER) says, “Diet obviously plays an important role in improving haemoglobin levels. But curing anaemia through diet is not always recommended. If the person is pregnant or is suffering from severe anaemia, diet alone cannot help. Medication is important.”
THIP Media also referred to Dr. Ambrish Srivastava, MBBS, MD who explained, “It is important to know why you have anaemia. While iron deficiency is the primary cause of anaemia, we see a number of cases in rural India where anaemia happens due to intestinal worms. Such cases require investigation and medical intervention. In cases where anaemia is due to malnutrition and is mild, iron rich diet may help to certain extent. But then again, if the anaemia is moderate to severe where haemoglobin levels fall below 10, one should immediately seek medical attention. Depending on simply diet at that point can prove to be fatal.”
THIP MEDIA TAKE: Jackfruit cannot cure anaemia completely. But you can incorporate it in your diet to supplement ongoing anaemia treatment. A certified medical professional will always find out the real cause of Anaemia and suggest the right treatment. Anaemia can lead to serious health conditions including arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat), an enlarged heart or heart failure. Trying to cure eat only by eating Jackfruits can be dangerous. Hence, the claim has a missing context.
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