(NaturalNews) Honeydew melon is more than a mildly sweet, refreshing melon typically enjoyed during the warmer months; it's also a highly nutritious food that can help maintain a healthy weight, fight colds, keep blood pressure in check and keep nervous system health functioning well.

Here's a closer look at the top health benefits of honeydew melon. As always, it's wise to choose organic foods as they're free of harmful pesticides that fill the body with toxins.

Health benefits of honeydew melon

1) Weight control. Honeydew melons have only 60 calories for every 1/2 cup making it a low-calorie option that also satisfies the craving for something sweet. Furthermore, they have a high water content that not only helps with hydration, but provides a feeling of fullness to stave off the urge to eat foods that may be unhealthy.

2) Fights colds. These tasty melons provide approximately half of daily vitamin C needs in just one cup. Since vitamin C plays a role in keeping the immune system strong, honeydew can help fight infection and ward off illnesses.

3) Regulates blood pressure. Nutrition experts at the University of Texas Southwestern (UTS) Medical Center at Dallas advise eating melons like honeydew, citing their high potassium levels as a way to reduce salt retention and therefore, better control blood pressure. It's also thought that the ratio of water to potassium on honeydew can help lower blood pressure may also help prevent an increase in blood pressure.

4) Healthy nervous system. Honeydew contains B vitamins thiamin and niacin which are known to not only increase energy levels, but to remove toxins from the body and in turn, boost nervous system health. The vitamins have been known to help boost brain health and prevent detrimental changes to it such as the onset of Alzheimer's.

Honeydew may be eaten fresh, directly scooped from the melon itself as a snack, or can be added to a variety of dishes including fruit or green salads.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.fitnessrepublic.com

http://www.qualityhealth.com

About the author:
Raw Michelle is a natural health blogger and researcher, sharing her passions with others, using the Internet as her medium. She discusses topics in a straight forward way in hopes to help people from all walks of life achieve optimal health and well-being. She has authored and published hundreds of articles on topics such as the raw food diet and green living in general. >>> Click here to see more by Michelle