Nopales: More than Prickly Pear Plant   

Nopales: More than Prickly Pear Plant          

Tara A. Spears

Have you ever wondered why diced, sliced, or whole leaf Prickly Pear Cactus is available in every Mexican grocery store or fruit market?  What appears to be just an exotic plant to foreigners is believed to be a wonder herb in Latin American countries and is revered by natural health practitioners. The quintessential Prickly Pear Cactus-Nopal in Mexican Spanish- is so important that it is included in the official Mexican logo.

Although the cactus thrives in arid and semi-arid climates, growing up to twelve feet (3.5 meters) tall, Opuntia ficus-indicais cactus is also an important cultivated cash crop in Mexico and several other countries. I was first told to eat nopal for fluid retention and bone issues. Because I wanted to be certain that I wasn’t allergic to the cactus, I started by adding diced nopal to my morning egg. Then I began adding it to cooked veggies, soups, even fresh raw salads. There are lots of interesting recipes on line for making drinks, side dishes, and with beef. 

According to the Instituto Nacional de Salúd there are ten ways that including nopal in your diet improves your health.  1. Nopales boosts immunity. The high levels of vitamin C in opuntia aids in toxin removal. Likewise, the antioxidant property of the fruits helps boost the immune system and stimulate the production of white blood cells. 2. Nopales improves digestion. The dietary fibre content in Prickly Pear plays a significant role in regulating your digestive process. The fibre helps by aiding the movement of food through the digestive tract and prevent the possibilities of constipation, bloating, and gastrointestinal issues such as gastric ulcers.

3. Nopales improves bones and teeth. Its calcium content can help improve the strength of your bones and teeth.
4. Nopales protects heart health. Packed with dietary fiber, potassium and betalain – prickly pears help improve your heart health. Along with that, the betalains strengthens the endothelial walls of blood vessels which reduce the risk of a weak circulatory system. Consuming the fruit help prevent the onset of atherosclerosis, coronary heart diseases, and stroke.

5. Nopales aids in weight loss. Cactus is low in calories, high in fiber, and packed with various other nutrients that help prevent unnecessary weight gain. 6. Nopales can reduces inflammation. The antioxidants and minerals found in opuntia are beneficial for treating arthritis, gout, or muscle strain as it can help lower inflammation. 7. Prickly pear can help lower cholesterol. Opuntia can successfully help manage one’s cholesterol levels by eliminating LDL cholesterol from the body.
6. One of the biggest claims is that Prickly Pear Fights free radical cells. Various studies have suggested that the cactus can help reduce the risk of breast, prostate, stomach, pancreatic, ovarian, cervical, and lung cancers.
7. Prickly Pear protects the liver. Packed with plenty of antioxidants, prickly pears/ opuntia can help prevent liver damage. The antioxidants aid you by reducing the oxidative stress caused by toxins and unwanted particles in your body.

Lastly, Adding Prickly Pear to your diet can help prevents ulcers. The compound called betanin in opuntia helps reduce the levels of pro-inflammatory chemicals found in your body, which are the causal factors of ulcers. Consuming prickly pears can be beneficial in preventing the onset of ulcers as it helps regulate the gastric mucus production as well.

Whew, sounds like a miracle fruit! Makes you wonder why more people from NOTB don’t include this in their daily diet. Partly it is because we grew up in the time of big pharma pushing costly pills and perhaps not living where Prickly Pear is readily available. The taste is good, but having to remove the sticky thorns maybe off-putting to some. For me, it was the mucus-y texture of the flesh; I enjoy it cooked in everything, raw, not too much.

Whether you embrace natural wellness strategies or just want to try something new, include nopales in one of your fav recipes. Or is you have too much tequila, sip a nopal juice smoothie to cure that hangover.