Cantaloupe Melon

Cantaloupe is a small fruit with hard, scaly, or warty skin, typically 15-25 cm in diametre. It is a round melon range from orange-yellow to salmon colour, with moderately-sweet flesh and a thin reticulated light-brown rind with a stem that disconnects from the fruit at full maturity. With its refreshingly rich flavor and aroma cantaloupe is the most popular variety of melon. Inside of the melon there is a hollow cavity that contains seeds encased in a web of netting.

It belongs to the same family as the cucumber or pumpkin, and like many of its relatives, grows on the ground on a trailing vine. It can also referred to as a netted melon because of a ribless rind with a distinctive netted skin.

With minimum content of calories, cantaloupe is also an excellent source of vitamin A and beta-carotene. Once inside the body, beta-carotene can be converted into vitamin A, so when you eat cantaloupe it’s like getting both these beneficial nutrients at once. Both vitamin A and beta-carotene are important vision nutrients. One medium cantaloupe can provide more than 100% of the daily recommended serving of vitamin A, which has been proven to hepl reduce risk of developing cataracts.

As an excellent source of vitamin A and beta-carotene, cantaloupe is also a very good source of potassium and a good source of vitamin B6, dietary fiber, folate, and niacin (vitamin B3). The combination of all these B complex vitamins along with the fiber found in cantaloupe make it an exceptionally good fruit for supporting energy production through good carbohydrate metabolism and blood sugar stability. These B complex vitamins are required in our cells for processing carbohydrates (including sugars), and cantaloupe’s fiber helps ensure cantaloupe’s sugars are delivered into the bloodstream gradually, keeping blood sugar in level.