Figs Health Dictionary

Nutritional Profile Energy value (calories per serving): Moderate (fresh figs) High (dried figs) Protein: Low Fat: Low Saturated fat: Low Cholesterol: None Carbohydrates: High Fiber: Very high Sodium: Low (fresh or dried fruit) High (dried fruit treated with sodium sulfur compounds) Major vitamin contribution: B vitamins Major mineral contribution: Iron (dried figs)

About the Nutrients in This Food Figs, whether fresh or dried, are high-carbohydrate food, an extraordinarily good source of dietary fiber, natural sugars, iron, calcium, and potassium. Ninety-two percent of the carbohydrates in dried figs are sugars (42 percent glucose, 31 percent fructose, 0.1 percent sucrose). The rest is dietary fiber, insoluble cellulose in the skin, soluble pectins in fruit. The most important mineral in dried figs is iron. Gram for gram, figs have about 50 percent as much iron as beef liver (0.8 mg/gram vs. 1.9 mg/gram). One medium fresh fig has 1.4 g dietary fiber, six grams sugars, and 0.18 mg iron (1 percent of the R DA for a woman, 2 percent of the R DA for a man). A similar size dried, uncooked fig has 0.8 g fiber, four grams sugars and the same amount of iron as a fresh fig.

The Most Nutritious Way to Serve This Food Dried (but see How other kinds of processing affect this food, below).

Diets That May Restrict or Exclude This Food Low-fiber, low-residue diets Low-sodium (dried figs treated with sulfites)

Buying This Food Look for: Plump, soft fresh figs whose skin may be green, brown, or purple, depending on the variety. As figs ripen, the pectin in their cell walls dissolves and the figs grow softer to the touch. The largest, best-tasting figs are generally the ones harvested and shipped in late spring and early summer, during June and July. Choose dried figs in tightly sealed airtight packages. Avoid: Fresh figs that smell sour. The odor indicates that the sugars in the fig have fer- mented; such fruit is spoiled.

Storing This Food Refrigerate fresh figs. Dried figs can be stored in the refrigerator or at room temperature; either way, wrap them tightly in an air- and moistureproof container to keep them from los- ing moisture and becoming hard. Dried figs may keep for several months.

Preparing This Food Wash fresh figs under cool water; use dried figs right out of the package. If you want to slice the dried figs, chill them first in the refrigerator or freezer: cold figs slice clean.

What Happens When You Cook This Food Fresh figs contain ficin, a proteolytic (protein-breaking) enzyme similar to papain in papayas and bromelin in fresh pineapple. Proteolytic enzymes split long-chain protein molecules into smaller units, which is why they help tenderize meat. Ficin is most effective at about 140 –160°F, the temperature at which stews simmer, and it will continue to work after you take the stew off the stove until the food cools down. Temperatures higher than 160°F inac- tivate ficin; canned figs—which have been exposed to very high heat in processing—will not tenderize meat. Both fresh and dried figs contain pectin, which dissolves when you cook the figs, mak- ing them softer. Dried figs also absorb water and swell.

How Other Kinds of Processing Affect This Food Drying. Figs contain polyphenoloxidase, an enzyme that hastens the oxidation of phenols in the fig, creating brownish compounds that darken its flesh. To prevent this reaction, figs may be treated with a sulfur compound such as sulfur dioxide or sodium sulfite. People who are sensitive to sulfites may suffer serious allergic reactions, including potentially fatal ana- phylactic shock, if they eat figs that have been treated with one of these compounds. Canning. Canned figs contain slightly less vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin than fresh figs, and no active ficin.

Medical Uses and/or Benefits Iron supplementation. Dried figs are an excellent source of iron. As a laxative. Figs are a good source of the indigestible food fiber lignin. Cells whose walls are highly lignified retain water and, since they are impossible to digest, help bulk up the stool. In addition, ficin has some laxative effects. Together, the lignin and the ficin make figs (particularly dried figs) an efficient laxative food. Lower risk of stroke. Potassium lowers blood pressure. According to new data from the Harvard University Health Professionals Study, a long-running survey of male doctors, a diet rich in high-potassium foods such as bananas may also reduce the risk of stroke. The men who ate the most potassium-rich foods (an average nine servings a day) had 38 percent fewer strokes than men who ate the least (less than four servings a day).

Adverse Effects Associated with This Food Sulfite allergies. See How other kinds of processing affect this food.

Food/Drug Interactions MAO inhibitors. Monoamine oxidase (M AO) inhibitors are drugs used as antidepressants or antihypertensives. They inhibit the action of natural enzymes that break down tyramine, a nitrogen compound formed when proteins are metabolized, so it can be eliminated from the body. Tyramine is a pressor amine, a chemical that constricts blood vessels and raises blood pressure. If you eat a food rich in one of these chemicals while you are taking an M AO inhibitor, the pressor amines cannot be eliminated from your body, and the result may be a hypertensive crisis (sustained elevated blood pressure). There has been one report of such a reaction in a patient who ate canned figs while taking an M AO inhibitor.