Melons are mellow
MELONS could hold the key to reducing stress and boosting feelings of well-being.
An antioxidant in the fruit appears to reduce feelings of irritability and even pain.
A pill with melon extract, superoxide dismutase, was given to 35 people for a month with another 35 getting a dummy pill. Stress and pain levels in volunteers taking the melon pill were almost a third better than the placebo.
The authors, whose report appears in Nutrition Journal, believe antioxidants reduce the damage caused to body cells.
Marie-Anne Milesi, from pharmaceutical firm Seppic, in France, said: “We will better understand the action of antioxidants on stress in further studies.”