Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know are discussed in this article. The lychee (Litchi chinensis), also known as litchi or lichee, is a small tropical fruit from the soapberry family.
Fruits such as rambutan and longan also belong to this family. Lychees grow in subtropical regions throughout the world and are especially popular in China, as well as Southeast Asia.
Known for their sweet flavor, they’re typically eaten fresh and sometimes used in ice creams or processed into juice, wine, sherbert, and jelly. They’re a good source of several vitamins, minerals, and healthy antioxidants.
Lychees have inedible, pink-red, leathery skin, which is removed before eating. The flesh is white, with a dark seed in the center.
Nutrition
Lychees are mainly composed of water and carbs — which make up 82% and 16.5% of the fruit, respectively. Here, read the wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
A 3.5-ounce (100-gram) serving of fresh lychees provides the following nutrients. The following table shows the main nutrients in fresh lychees:
| Nutrient | Quantity |
| Calories | 66 |
| Proteins | 0.8 grams |
| Carbs | 16.5 grams |
| Fiber | 1.3 grams |
| Sugar | 15.2 grams |
| Fats | 0.4 grams |
Carbs
In addition to water, lychees are mainly composed of carbs.
Single lychee — either fresh or dried — contains 1.5–1.7 grams of carbs. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
The majority of the carbs in lychees come from sugars, which are responsible for their sweet taste. They’re relatively low in fiber.
Vitamins and Minerals
- Vitamin C: The most copious vitamin in lychees. One lychee provides around 9% of the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for vitamin C.
- Copper: Lychees are a decent source of copper. Insufficient copper intake may have adverse effects on heart health.
- Potassium: An essential nutrient that may improve heart health when eaten in sufficient amounts.
Other Plant Compounds
Like other fruits, lychees are a good source of various antioxidant plant compounds.
They have been reported to contain higher levels of antioxidant polyphenols than several other common fruits. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
Antioxidants in lychees include:
- Epicatechin: A flavonoid that may improve heart health and reduce your risk of cancer and diabetes.
- Rutin: A flavonoid that may help protect against chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.
Oligonol
Oligonol is a dietary supplement that is often mentioned in connection to lychees.
It’s a patented mixture of antioxidants (proanthocyanidins) derived from lychee skin and green tea, developed by the Amino Up Chemical Corporation in Japan.
The antioxidants are chemically altered to increase their approval from your gut. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know
Several studies indicate that Oligonol may reduce abdominal fat, fatigue, and inflammation after exercise.
However, as it’s not found naturally in lychee fruits, its health effects don’t apply to lychees.
Health Benefits
The health effects of lychees have not been studied yet, though. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
However, including a variety of fruits and vegetables in your diet may improve your health and reduce your risk of several chronic diseases.
Lychees contain several healthy minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants, such as potassium, copper, vitamin C, epicatechin, and rutin. These may help protect against heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.
Animal studies also indicate that lychee extract may help fight liver cancer. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
Still, further studies are needed to confirm the health benefits of lychees for humans.
Adverse Effects and Individual Concerns
When eaten in restraint as a part of a healthy diet, lychees do not have any known adverse health effects.
However, lychees have been associated with brain inflammation in South and Southeast Asia. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
Whether lychees are responsible is not entirely clear, but scientists have hypothesized that the toxin hypoglycin A may be responsible. Further studies are mandatory.
Moreover, lychees may cause an allergic reaction in rare cases. Wonderful Facts about Lychee you should know.
