Overview

Blood sugar levels are the amount of glucose present in your blood. Maintaining an optimal glucose level is essential for your overall health and well-being, as well as for preventing diseases like diabetes mellitus and other metabolic disorders. Various natural remedies can help maintain healthy blood sugar levels, and one such remedy is sapodilla. Sapodilla is a naturally obtained, nutritious, and delicious fruit that offers several health benefits, including the ability to help regulate blood glucose levels. This outline explores how you can use sapodilla to control your blood sugar level, highlighting its nutritional profile, scientific studies, and practical tips for incorporating it into your diet.

What is blood sugar, and why is it important?

Blood sugar is the simple sugar (glucose) present in blood, which is the main energy source obtained from food.¹ It plays a crucial role in your body’s functioning, mainly by facilitating energy storage and immediate release of energy. It is required for proper brain function (the brain needs nearly 20% of overall glucose), metabolic regulation, muscle function and adequate functioning of organs such as the lungs, kidneys and heart. 

Blood sugar level

As we all know, too much or too little of something can be a real hassle. Similarly, too much or too less of blood sugar can be a real problem. Hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia are the terms used when the blood sugar levels are high and low, respectively. Measuring blood sugar levels regularly is essential in screening, diagnosing and monitoring diseases like Diabetes mellitus and other metabolic disorders.¹ This will also guide you in lifestyle changes and dietary changes, that might effectively reduce your risk of developing health complications.

Nutritional profile of sapodilla

Sapodilla mainly consists of water (73%), vitamins, fats, sugars fibre etc.³

Nutritional value of fresh sapodilla fruit (Per 100g)

Macronutrients

• Energy: 83 kcal
• Carbohydrates: 19.9 g
• Dietary Fiber: 5.3 g
• Protein: 0.44 g
• Total Fat: 1.10 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg

Vitamins

• Vitamin A: 60 IU
• Vitamin C: 14.7 mg
• Niacin (B3): 0.200 mg
• Folate (B9): 14 µg

Minerals

• Potassium: 193 mg
• Sodium: 12 mg
• Calcium: 21 mg
• Magnesium: 12 mg
• Iron: 0.80 mg
• Zinc: 0.10 mg
• Copper: 0.086 mg
• Phosphorus: 12 mg

In addition, sapodillas are rich in bioactive compounds that help in promoting your health. Those are antioxidants, polyphenols, flavonoids, terpenes, glycosides, non-haem iron and saponins.^2,4

Sapodilla's role in blood sugar control

High fibre content and its benefits

Reduces down sugar absorption

Sapodilla is a good source of fibre. Including foods rich in fibre in your diet helps control diabetes mellitus, as fibre assists in promoting a favourable amount of sugar in your blood. The fibre will decrease the intestinal transit time, which accounts for delays in the absorption of nutrients, leading to the gradual release of glucose. This slow release helps to maintain the stable level of glucose in your body.⁵

Promotes satiety

The high fibre content in sapodilla promotes satiety - a feeling of fullness. This is mainly because of the bulk property of fibres, absorption of food will be at a slower rate, causing satiety. This feeling of fullness will reduce your cravings for high-sugar snacks and heavy meals. This can lead to improving your overall dietary habits and help in the management of blood sugar levels.⁶

Presence of antioxidants

Sapodilla fruit extract contains 24 antioxidants, including polyphenols, flavonoids, terpenes and glycosides. Due to these antioxidant properties, the polyphenol content is able to reduce oxidative stress and support insulin sensitivity.²

Reduces oxidative stress

Oxidative stress leads to cellular and molecular damage in your body because of imbalances between the free radicals and antioxidants in the body. This cell injury can in turn account for the dysregulation of your blood sugar level. Polyphenol content in sapodilla will inhibit oxidative stress, which plays a pivotal role in tackling diabetes mellitus and other metabolic complications by neutralising free radicals and protecting cell damage.⁷

Supports insulin sensitivity

 When your blood glucose levels rise, the pancreas typically makes the hormone insulin, allowing cells to absorb glucose from the bloodstream for energy. However, in conditions like diabetes mellitus, the response of cells to insulin is reduced, leading to an increase in blood sugar levels. Sapodilla has antioxidant properties, promoting the cells’ sensitivity to insulin, which will aid in maintaining optimal glucose levels.⁹

Low glycemic index

What is the glycemic index?

The glycaemic index tells you whether your food raises the blood sugar level rapidly, moderately or slowly. It is a system that ranks foods on a scale from 1 to 100 based on their effect on blood sugar levels. Foods with a high glycaemic index cause a rapid increase in blood sugar, while foods with a low glycaemic index cause a slower increase in blood glucose. The foods with a lower glycaemic index rate are essential for managing your blood sugar levels.¹⁰

Benefits of low glycemic index foods for blood sugar control

Sapodilla has a glycemic index of 37, which means it is a low glycemic index food that can be used efficiently to control blood glucose levels and prevent hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia. Additionally, sapodilla can reduce your blood lipids (fats), blood pressure and body weight, which could be a risk factor for causing irregularities in your blood sugar levels.

Scientific studies and research

• Several studies have been conducted that have provided a foundation for understanding various health benefits of sapodilla, particularly its impact on blood sugar levels
• Nutrient profile: research centred on the nutritional profile of sapodilla has highlighted the bioactive constituents that are responsible for imparting various biological activist. The presence of several vitamins, minerals, magnesium, and potassium contributes to metabolic health and glucose metabolism³
• The medicinal advantages and health benefits of the antioxidants, like flavonoids, present in sapodilla make the fruit scientifically important. Several pieces of research are being done to investigate this¹²
• Studies focused on the polyphenolic content of sapodilla have concluded that they work on inhibiting carbohydrate-breaking enzymes which contribute to regulating postprandial blood sugar levels¹³

Incorporating sapodilla into your diet

Tips for selecting and storing sapodilla 

The things you must keep in mind when selecting a sapodilla are ripeness, aroma, colour and texture. The fruit should be soft, smooth, mushy and not overly hard. Ripened sapodilla will be brown, slightly rough skin with a sweet and pleasant aroma.

Parameters such as temperature and humidity might affect the shelf life of sapodilla. They can be stored for 4-7 days at a temperature of 20-27^oC. When stored at 10^oC, they might be prone to chilling injuries.¹⁴

Simple recipes and serving suggestions

Chikoo is a tasty fruit. You can consume this in a fresh fruit form or you can use it in various culinary applications like smoothies, sapota fruit bars, sapodilla pudding, etc.

Smoothie recipe 

• In a blender, combine the sapodillas, banana, milk and honey
• Blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk to achieve the desired consistency
• Add ice cubes for a chilled smoothie, if preferred
• Blend again until the ice is well incorporated
• Serve immediately in a tall glass¹¹

Fruit bar recipe

Cook 250 gm of sapota for 10 minutes over low heat. To prevent scorching the bottom, add sugar 30%, pectin 1%, milk powder 6%, citric acid 0.6%, and sprinkle the dash of salt evenly over cooked pulp while continuously cooking. Heat the mixture until it becomes homogeneous, then put it into aluminium trays in a thin layer, and it is then dried in a convection air dryer for 8 hours. Then, divide the cooled fruit bars into rectangles. Keep the fruit bars in a dry location. Add 0-3% of pectin. Now, the recipe is ready to serve.²

Precautions and considerations

Sapodillas are nutritious, delicious fruits that are beneficial to your health. However, some people may experience a few undesirable effects (rarely).

Some of these effects:

• Allergic reactions: Some people can be hypersensitive or allergic to sapodillas. Allergic reactions can range from mild to moderate, with symptoms including itching, swelling, or difficulty breathing
• Digestive problems: Some people might experience diarrhoea, gas buildup or bloating, mainly when they consume the fruit in larger amounts
• Medication interaction: For individuals taking medications for any health reason, consult a healthcare provider before incorporating sapodilla into your diet. As a sapodilla, it might interact with the efficacy of your medication⁸

Summary

The blood sugar level has to be controlled well in order to prevent conditions like hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia, which might result in diabetes mellitus and various metabolic complications. One of the natural methods to regulate blood sugar is the use of sapodillas. Sapodilla is a tropical, nutritious, and tasty fruit with essential nutritional value, including vitamins, minerals, fibre, carbohydrates, and antioxidants.

Sapodilla plays a role in managing optimal blood glucose levels, mainly because of its antioxidant properties, high fibre content, and low glycemic index. All these properties will contribute to the prevention of oxidative stress, delayed glucose metabolism and increased insulin sensitivity, which aids in managing sugar levels in the blood.

Various research and clinical studies support the sapodilla as a potent blood sugar regulator. Sapodilla can be incorporated into a diet as fresh fruit or as a culinary item by making smoothies, fruit bars and puddings out of fruit. However, sapodilla should be used with precautions in case of allergic reactions or digestive issues while taking other medications that might interact with the fruit.