Certain fruits and vegetables may provide specific health benefits, sometimes even for one sex more so than the other.
For example, there’s been some research to suggest that there are particular pomegranate benefits for men.
So, what are the primary pomegranate juice benefits? Are there pomegranate juice benefits for men in particular? Will drinking pomegranate juice increase testosterone levels or provide other sexual health benefits for men?
In this article, we will discuss the benefits of pomegranate juice in general and then focus more specifically on the pomegranate juice benefits for men.
We will cover the following:
- Pomegranate Juice Benefits for Men
- Why Are Pomegranates So Good for You?
- Benefits of Pomegranate for Men
Let’s dive in!
Pomegranate Juice Benefits for Men
Although pomegranates have been part of the human diet for thousands of years, it has only been in the last 20 years or so that this route has seen a massive resurgence in popularity, being dubbed a “superfruit.”
For example, in the five-year span from 2007 to 2012, the number of farms producing pomegranates in the United States doubled.
In the year 2015 alone, there were 60 new pomegranate products added to the shelves in grocery stores, indicative of the massive surge in interest in consuming pomegranates and drinking pomegranate juice.
But, why is there such a hubbub surrounding pomegranates? What are the benefits of pomegranates?
Although there are numerous health benefits of pomegranates, which is why they are sometimes classified as super fruits or superfoods, there may even be specific pomegranate benefits for men.
The aforementioned surge in new pomegranate products to hit market shelves in 2015 was not solely confined to various iterations of pomegranate juice or foods with pomegranate in them for flavoring but also in terms of pomegranate supplements.
With some research evidence suggesting that pomegranates may help boost testosterone levels and improve male fertility and sexual performance, the number of natural sexual performance and male libido supplements containing pomegranate were indeed some of the newer products to be introduced to the market in recent years.
So, does pomegranate increase testosterone levels in men? Are there pomegranate juice benefits for men in terms of enhancing sexual function and/or overall health?
Do the pomegranate benefits for men come from only supplements containing pomegranates, or will eating pomegranates or drinking pomegranate juice provide health benefits for men?
Let’s look at what the research says about the overall benefits of pomegranates, as well as the specific pomegranate benefits for men and pomegranate juice benefits for men.
Why Are Pomegranates So Good for You?
The primary reason that pomegranates are considered a superfruit or superfood, or a fruit that can provide various health benefits, is due to their high antioxidant content.
Antioxidants are natural compounds that help combat reactive oxygen species in the body known as free radicals.
Left unchecked, free radicals can cause deleterious oxidative damage to cells, proteins, DNA, tissues, and other biological compounds in the human body.
The oxidative damage induced by chronic exposure to high levels of free radicals in the body can cause premature aging on both a cellular and macroscopic level.
This can potentially shorten telomeres, which are the ends of chromosomes that have been linked to youthfulness and supporting a younger biological age, causing outward signs of aging such as wrinkles and saggy skin.
Free radicals also have the potential to increase the risk of cancer, inflammatory conditions, and other chronic diseases such as heart disease.
Essentially, free radicals cause the breakdown of cells and tissues as well as biological molecules such as proteins and nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), which can have a cascade of adverse effects on the health and function of various systems, pathways, and structures in your body.
Studies have found that diets high in natural antioxidants can help protect against oxidative damage, indirectly preventing premature aging, protecting the heart and vasculature, reducing the risk of cancer and other diseases, and supporting healthy skin and cell membranes, among other benefits.
Many of the best food sources of antioxidants are fruits and vegetables.
Pomegranates are especially rich in potent antioxidants.
Due to the protective nature of antioxidants and the impressive antioxidant concentration in pomegranates, Harvard Medical named pomegranates the “fruit of the month” in December 2021, highlighting some of the many health benefits of pomegranates.
According to Harvard Medical, pomegranate juice contains three times the antioxidant levels of green tea or red wine, two other antioxidant-rich drinks often promoted for their health benefits.
The report also makes note that there is scientific research to support that two of the other pomegranate juice benefits are reducing blood pressure and decreasing serum levels of LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol associated with forming atherosclerotic plaques in blood vessels and increasing the risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke).
Some more of the benefits of pomegranates include the following:
- Providing nutrients like vitamins E and K and magnesium
- Reducing oxidative damage
- Helping prevent the growth of cancer cells
- Reducing the risk of osteoarthritis
- Reducing symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease
- Protecting against Alzheimer’s disease
- Enhancing memory and learning ability
- Reducing inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis, IBD, metabolic diseases, and cardiovascular diseases
- Decreasing blood pressure
- Supporting cardiovascular health and reducing the risk of heart disease
- Aiding recovery from exercise
- Improving aerobic endurance
Benefits of Pomegranate for Men
It is important to note that many of the pomegranate benefits that are attributable to the antioxidant content are applicable to either biological sex.
However, there’s also been research that has looked specifically at the pomegranate juice benefits for men and the pomegranate benefits for men that point to the antioxidants in pomegranates providing particular support for the biological male body.
For example, some studies have found that supplementing with pomegranate juice may help improve male infertility and enhance sperm motility and sperm count.
There have also been a handful of human and animal studies that have found that pomegranates and/or pomegranate juice may help increase testosterone levels.
When we discuss the pomegranate benefits for men in relation to increasing testosterone levels, it is important to note that biological females can also benefit from boosting testosterone levels.
The male and female bodies both produce testosterone, though testosterone levels are significantly higher in biological males.
Testosterone is generally most associated with providing secondary sex characteristics for men, such as increasing libido, deepening the voice, supporting sexual function, and enhancing the growth of body hair, but testosterone also serves a host of other benefits in the body for both biological males and females.
For example, testosterone is a crucial hormone for supporting muscle growth and muscle repair after exercise as well as bone health and brain health.
However, although both males and females produce testosterone naturally, testosterone levels begin to decline with age, generally at a rate of about 1 to 2% per year.
For this reason, employing various strategies to boost testosterone levels naturally can be important, particularly for middle-aged and older adults.
Because testosterone provides numerous benefits in both the male and female bodies, low testosterone levels that are associated with advanced age can lead to unwanted side effects such as low sex drive, infertility, and loss of muscle mass, among other problems.
That said, because testosterone is considered the male sex hormone and is implicated in issues with male infertility, impotence, low sex drive, and loss of muscle mass in men, many of the studies looking at the benefits of pomegranate supplementation on testosterone levels have focused mainly on men.
The good news is that there are different natural strategies to boost testosterone production, potentially including eating certain testosterone-boosting foods, such as pomegranate.
Research suggests that pomegranates may be one of the best fruits that boost testosterone in humans.
Pomegranate juice may also help protect Leydig cells from injury. These are the specific cells in the body that produce testosterone.
Another small study looking at serum testosterone levels in male weightlifters found that the male athletes who took a pomegranate juice supplement saw improvement in the hormonal response to exercise, including testosterone levels.
Lastly, fruits such as pomegranates, berries, and cherries provide antioxidants that have been found to potentially combat the risk of inflammation due to obesity.
Because excessive weight gain has been found to negatively affect testosterone production and lower testosterone levels, adding these nutritious fruits to the diet may further support healthy testosterone levels indirectly by preventing deleterious weight gain.
Curious to learn more about the potential health benefits of other fruits? Check out our guide to the health benefits of drinking pineapple water here.
