Orange A-Peel

Could an orange a day keep diabetes away?

Oranges are known to protect against heart disease and high blood pressure, and they're full of cancer-fighting phytochemicals. But in parts of Asia, it's believed that overeating oranges is asking for health trouble, including diabetes. Just the opposite, say investigators. Turns out that people who eat at least an orange a day are less likely to have diabetes, not more. Have one for dinner in the healthy Mandarin Chicken recipe below.

Fruit consumption in Japan has fallen or stayed the same, leading researchers to speculate that some Japanese believe eating too many oranges makes people gain weight, increases fats in the blood, and invites diabetes. To determine if there was any truth to this bad rap, scientists surveyed more than 6,000 people in an area of Japan where satsuma mandarin oranges are especially popular. Instead of finding that eating oranges was risky, the scientists discovered the opposite: Diabetes was less common in people who ate one to four oranges a day than in those who rarely ate the fruit. All those vitamins and nutrients in oranges may actually help prevent diabetes, say the researchers.

As for the other fears, the orange-lovers were no more likely to be obese or have elevated levels of fat in their blood than those who ate few or no oranges.

So make eating one of these juicy, zesty, tangy, refreshing, portable treats a daily habit.

Recipe Corner
Mandarin Chicken
This dish is a great way to use leftover cooked chicken, and it goes together in 20 minutes, tops. Blanch the snow peas while the chicken and mandarin oranges speed-marinate -- that's all the cooking required.

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 1/4 tablespoons pickled ginger, jullienned
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 pound cooked boneless and skinless chicken breast, chopped
1 1/2 cups canned mandarin orange segments, drained, or fresh orange segments
1/2 cup blanched snow peas
1/2 cup canned bamboo shoots, drained
1/2 cup canned water chestnuts, drained
4 cups shredded lettuce
2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

Thoroughly mix the vinegar, oil, garlic, ginger, and soy sauce. Add chicken and orange segments; marinate for about 10 minutes. Add snow peas, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts. Toss well. Arrange lettuce on four plates. Top with chicken mixture, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and serve. Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 184 calories; 23 g protein; 26 g carbohydrate; 5.7 g fat (1.6 sat. fat); 4 g fiber; 10 g sugar; 487 mg sodium

[PDF] Cross-sectional analysis of Satsuma mandarin (citrus unshiu Marc.) consumption and health status based on a self-administered questionnaire. Sugiura, M., Matsumoto, H., Yano, M., Journal of Health Science 2002:48(4):366-369.