Can you eat rambutan seeds?

What does a rambutan taste like?

Native to the Malay Archipelago, the name of this fruit is derived from the Malay word meaning "hairy," and you can see why. But once the hairy exterior of the rambutan is peeled away, the tender, fleshy, delicious fruit is revealed. Its taste is described as sweet and sour, much like a grape. Malay Archipelago, largest group of islands in the world, consisting of the more than 17,000 islands of Indonesia and the approximately 7,000 islands of the Philippines. ... Other political units in the archipelago are East Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak), Brunei, and Papua New Guinea.

Rambutan Seeds : Benefits & Side Effects

If you’re at all involved in researching superfoods, in your travels you will have most likely come across the Rambutan fruit. Native to Southeast Asia, this odd looking fruit has been praised as one of the new up and coming SuperFoods. Now if you’re like me at all and always trying to discover new ways to improve your overall health and wellbeing you will have found that some fruits seeds can actually offer amazing benefits. So this may have led to the question, Can I eat rambutan seeds? This post is going to address rambutan seeds beneifts and if rambutan seeds are poisonous or not.

What are rambutan seeds?



So first of all rambutan seeds are approximately 1-1.3cm in diameter, come singular in the middle of the fruit and usually have a light brown tinge. If you want to plant your own rambutan tree (which are absolutely gorgeous by the way) they will grow between 12-20m, take 5-6 years to bear fruit and do best in warm climates of between 20-30 °C. Rambutan grows in bunches of 10-20 and have been compared to the taste of grapes when consumed.



Rambutan Seeds Benefits

Rambutan seeds have a few benefits. They contain a large number of oils and essential fatty acids, both saturated and unsaturated. The primary fat being oleic acid, a monounsaturated omega-9 fatty acid, the benefits of which are well documented. These acids have been provem to: reduce blood pressure (1); increase good cholesterol (1); and cut the risk of developing ulcerative colitis by 89% (2)
Arachidonic acid is also heavily present in rambutan seeds. Unlike oleic acid this is an omega-6 fatty acid and also boasts a large amount of different benefits in its own right. Arachidonic acid has been proven to increase protein synthesis resulting in increased aerobic capacity and muscle hypertrophy (3). Therefore it is often sold as a bodybuilding supplement to increase recovery time and size of the muscles. Another unrelated effect of the acid is treating depression (4). It does this by reversing negative signals sent to the brain.
So as you can see there are a number of rambutan seed benefits. Great right? Unfortunately there are also reasons you should hesitate before gobbling them down.


Rambutan fruit side effects

After seeing all of rambutan seeds benefits you may be tempted to get yourself some but please be wary. The seeds ARE edible, however only when they have been correctly prepared. The fruit itself can be eaten raw or cooked but rambutan fruit seeds, without being roasted, are poisonous. Consumed raw or only boiled can actually make Rambutan seeds narcotic. Although only been tested in mice it significantly impacted motor coordination in a negative way (5). This alone is enough for me personally to steer well clear but there are those who consume them regularly. In the Phillipines for example they are eaten as a delicacy quite often but always after being correctly roasted. The taste has been compared to “nutty” like an almond or chestnut and basically in my head nothing to get excited about. Although the benefits of the fatty acids contained you would be much wiser to take them through alternate food sources.


Conclusion 

I hope this post has been informative for you regarding Rambutan seeds benefits and side effects. There was really very little information I could find online but I know many are curious.  In my opinion although the actual rambutan fruit contains numerous advantages and should be part of your diet to achieve diversity! Consuming the seeds is really more risk than reward and not worth pursuing.


If it’s seeds you’re looking for go with something proven and 100% healthy such as chia seeds! You can get them riight off Amazon;


Plasma lipids, erythrocyte membrane lipids and blood pressure of hypertensive women after ingestion of dietary oleic acid from two different sources.

Ruíz-Gutiérrez V1, Muriana FJ, Guerrero A, Cert AM, Villar J.

Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
To study the effect of a diet rich in mono-unsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), from high-oleic sunflower oil (HOSO) and olive oil, on plasma lipids, erythrocyte membrane lipids (including fatty acid composition) and blood pressure of hypertensive (normocholesterolaemic or hypercholesterolaemic) women.

METHODS:
There were 16 participants who were hypertensive women aged 56.2 +/- 5.4 years. The participants ate a diet enriched with HOSO or olive oil for two 4-week periods with a 4-week washout period before starting the second type of MUFA diet. At entry and during study of each diet, plasma lipids and apolipoproteins were measured by conventional enzymatic methods. Erythrocyte membrane lipid and fatty acid compositions were analysed by means of the latroscan thin-layer chromatography/flame ionization detection technique and by gas chromatography, respectively. Blood pressure was also measured. The statistical analysis was conducted by using Student's two-tailed paired t-test.

RESULTS:
In both groups of hypertensive patients, there was a significant increase in plasma high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol concentration after the HOSO or olive oil diets, with regard to baseline. Additionally, a significant decrease in plasma HDL2 cholesterol concentration and an increase in plasma HDL3 cholesterol concentration were evident. The membrane free-cholesterol concentration increased significantly and the phospholipid concentration decreased significantly in erythrocytes after the olive oil diet, though both MUFA diets produced a significant decrease in the concentration of membrane esterified cholesterol. Therefore, the molar ratio of cholesterol to phospholipids was raised significantly in the erythrocyte membrane of hypertensive women after the dietary olive oil, but not after the HOSO diet. In the hypertensive and normo-cholesterolaemic group the HOSO diet significantly increased the content in the erythrocyte membrane of oleic, eicosenoic, arachidonic and docosapentaenoic acids, whereas the olive oil diet increased the content of palmitoleic acid and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids of the n-3 family besides, compared with baseline. A significant decrease in linoleic acid was also evident. In the hypertensive and hypercholesterolaemic group, the HOSO diet resulted in significant increases in palmitoleic, oleic, eicosenoic and behenic acids, whereas the olive oil diet enhanced the content of arachidonic, docosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids besides, with respect to baseline. In addition, there was a significant decrease in stearic acid, but only after dietary olive oil was there a decrease in linoleic acid. The most important differences between the two MUFA diets were the increase in n-3 fatty acids and the decrease in the n-6; n-3 fatty acids ratio after dietary olive oil in the erythrocyte membranes of hypertensive patients. Interestingly, a significant reduction in systolic and diastolic blood pressures was only evident after the ingestion of olive oil.

CONCLUSION:
These data suggest that the beneficial effects of dietary olive oil on the plasma lipids and lipoprotein profile, lipid and fatty acid composition of erythrocyte membrane, and blood pressure in women with untreated essential hypertension are not found equally for the HOSO-rich diet, despite both vegetable oils providing a similar concentration of MUFA.

Dietary arachidonic and oleic acid intake in ulcerative colitis etiology: a prospective cohort study using 7-day food diaries.
de Silva PS1, Luben R, Shrestha SS, Khaw KT, Hart AR.
Author information
1
aDepartment of Gastroenterology, Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust bDepartment of Gastroenterology, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich cDepartment of Clinical Gerontology, Addenbrooke's University Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust dDepartment of Public Health and Primary Care, Biomedical Informatics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION:
Dietary fatty acids may be involved in the etiology of ulcerative colitis (UC). Arachidonic acid (AA), an n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid, is a precursor of the proinflammatory cytokines prostaglandin E2 and leukotriene B4, and its metabolism is competitively inhibited by oleic acid (OA). This study aimed to prospectively investigate whether AA is positively and OA is negatively associated with incident UC development, using data from 7-day food diaries.

METHODS:
A total of 25 639 men and women, aged between 40 and 79 years, from Norfolk, UK, were recruited into the prospective European Prospective Investigation into Cancer (EPIC)-Norfolk cohort between 1993 and 1997. At baseline, participants completed 7-day food diaries, checked by nutritionists using a database containing 11 000 foods and 55 000 portion sizes. The cohort was monitored until June 2004 to identify participants who developed UC. Each patient was matched for age and sex with four controls, and conditional logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted odds ratios for AA and OA intakes, and UC association.

RESULTS:
Of the participants, 26 (58% men) developed incident UC (53% left sided) after a median follow-up time of 3.8 years (0.5-8.3 years). The highest AA tertile was positively associated with an odds ratio of 6.09 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05-35.23], with a trend across tertiles [odds ratio (OR) 2.43, 95% CI 1.06-5.61, P=0.04]. The highest tertile of OA intake was inversely associated with a 0.03 OR for UC (95% CI 0.002-0.56) and an inverse trend (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.10-0.90, P=0.03).

CONCLUSION:
Dietary AA was positively and OA was inversely associated with UC development, with large effect sizes in a dose-dependent manner. This supports roles for measuring these nutrients in future etiological studies and modifying intake in future interventional studies in patients with established disease.

Elevated ratio of arachidonic acid to long-chain omega-3 fatty acids predicts depression development following interferon-alpha treatment: relationship with interleukin-6.
Lotrich FE1, Sears B, McNamara RK.

Author information:
Department of Psychiatry, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. lotrichfe@upmc.edu

Abstract

Cross-sectional studies have found that an elevated ratio of arachidonic acid to omega-3 fatty acid is associated with depression, and controlled intervention studies have found that decreasing this ratio through administration of omega-3 fatty acids can alleviate depressive symptoms. Additionally, arachidonic acid and omega-3 fatty acids have opposing effects on inflammatory signaling. Exogenous administration of the inflammatory cytokine interferon-alpha (IFN-α) can trigger a depressive episode in a subset of vulnerable people, though associated risk factors remain poorly understood. Using a within-subject prospective design of 138 subjects, we examined whether baseline long-chain omega-3 (docosahexaenoic acid - DHA; eicosapentaenoic acid - EPA) and omega-6 (arachidonic acid - AA; di-homo-gamma-linolenic acid - DGLA) fatty acid status was associated with depression vulnerability in hepatitis C patients treated with IFN-α. Based on the literature, we had specific a priori interest in the AA/EPA+DHA ratio. Lower baseline DHA predicted depression incidence (p=0.04), as did elevated DGLA (p=0.02) and an elevated AA/EPA+DHA ratio (p=0.007). The AA/EPA+DHA ratio predicted depression even when controlling for other critical variables such as sleep quality and race. A higher AA/EPA+DHA ratio was positively associated with both increasing Montgomery-Asperg Depression Rating Scores over time (F=4.0; p<0 .05="" a="" acid="" acids="" and="" as="" associated="" but="" c-reactive="" data="" depression.="" depression="" fatty="" font="" for="" ifn-="" importantly="" in="" indicate="" inflammation-induced="" interleukin-6="" levels="" not="" of="" omega-3="" omega-6="" p="" potential="" prevention="" prospective="" protein.="" response="" role="" status="" support="" sustained="" the="" these="" to="" treatment.="" viral="" vulnerability="" was="" well="" with="">