Facts or Myth - Durian High Cholesterol & Nutritional Information

Durian Has High Cholesterol

Myth 
We sometimes hear people saying durian has high cholesterol.  Don't take too much durian, high cholesterol, etc.

There should be some confusion.

Facts
Let's understand that Plant based produce does not contain any cholesterol!  Animal (meat, fats, etc) produce contains cholesterol!  

Busted!

Plants doesn't produce cholesterol but it produces phytosterols.  Our body does not absorb (rejects instead) phytosterols, along which it also interfers our body in absorption of cholesterol, thus it is said that consuming more fruits and vegetables helps reduce cholesterol.  

We need to also understand that our body produces cholesterol too, thus doesn't mean a diet without cholesterols (eg vegetarians or vegans who does not even consume dairy products also has cholesterol in their body).

Cholesterol are not always bad.  Let's not get overly paranoid about it than.  

High Calories
Have not heard much myths about durian calories.

Facts

Durian contains high calories among other nutritional information.  

Just an indication.  Each seed of durian contains approximately 50 calories.

On calories intake and burning

-  an average adult male burns approximately 2,000 to 2,200 calories a day.

-  an average adult female burns approximately 1,500 to 1,800 calories a day.

As such, if we spread our calories intake, and keep it below our burn rate, we should be fine.  On a day I am consuming durian, I would avoid other sugary food as much as I can.  

Just a comparison with other food we eat daily:

-  A cup of mixed nuts contains approximately 800 calories.  

-  A plate of Chicken Rice contains approx 700 calories

-  Fried kway teow approx 750 calories

-  Nasi Lemak approx 800 calories

-  Regular can of beer 150 calories

-  Avocado contains approx 250 calories

-  Mango approx 200 calories

-  Banana approx 100 calories

With the above calories information, is durian that bad?  You need to consume 16 seeds of durian to match a cup of nuts or a plate of nasi lemak, or a few seeds to match your favourite fruits.  In that comparison, durian isn't that high in calories.  

Other Nutritional Information

If you do a search online for Durian Nutritional Information, you will be able to gather a lot of good information.

Generally, it is high in 

-  dietary fibre (good for bowel movement isn't it?), 

-  high potassium (said to be very good for health, be it fighting bacteria or help support healthy blood pressure.  Do an online search)

-  Very high in Vitamin C

-  High in Vitamin B-6 (converting food into energy, metabolize fats/proteins, among many other benefits)
-  High in Magnesium (essential to stay healthy, good for energy production, detox, healthy bones/teeth, etc)

-  Rather high in plant based fats and carbohydrates, protein, 

I did some searches on the effects of durian on blood pressure but couldn't find anything to show it cause high blood pressure either (more likely neutral on effects on blood pressure).

If one is concern with their blood pressure being on the high side, watch your diet, exercise more, reduce alcohol/tobacco, and may want to consume blood thinning fruits (berries, grapes, raisins, tomato, etc).  But on the other hand, thin blood can cause other problems too (blood doesn't clot easily).

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 

So much more goodness from durian compared to the myths we hear.  Time to indulge in durian.

Disclaimer : It is not the calories intake alone that cause health problems.  Fats, cholesterols, these are causing more problems to our arteries and thickening of blood.  Just take in moderation, do more exercise!  Stay healthy and enjoy what we eat.

Year End 2015 - Another Few Rounds

Many consumers are under the impression year end durian is not as good as mid year due to the wet weather.  They are not wrong to some extend.  Refer to my other thread on Durian Seasons and Quality 

I may be luckier than many :p  The few rounds I had this season (3 to be exact) had not disappoint so far.  Let's recap a little.

Tekka Durian

Tekka Durian durians tends to be semi ripe (ripe on 1 side, unripe on the other).  Generally, the choosing method, go for smell.  Sniff on all sides (except top and bottom) but do not take hard sniff, just a light sniff will do.  More description found in an old post Tekka

A new observation though.  Try to go for the odd shape, oblong.  I would avoid the rounder shape Tekka.

If you are consuming a range of durians, including Mao San Wang, D88, Tekka (I mentioned these 3 becase I had them in 1 sitting recently), etc, the rule of thumb is, go for the weaker taste ones first.  MSW is known to be overwhelming tasting durian, but if you clear your mouth and breathe a little before eating Tekka, you will still be able to distinct Tekka from MSW on the 2nd seed.  Tekka is that good thus doesn't get over beaten by MSW that easily.

Given a choice between Tekka and MSW, personally, I would love a good Tekka anytime!  It's a mixture of sweetness and bitterness, a good character of taste (distinctive) yet not 'expected' like MSW.

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 

Mao Shan Wang 

This year's Mid Season durian was among the best in the last decade (except in 2008).  I didn't expect too much good durians this year end, but I must say, the MSW I had (above) are really worth the calories.

In the same sitting 2 Sundays ago, we had 3 MSW and 4 Tekka.  One MSW was forgetable while another was overwhelming.  But I noticed Dr Roy in a corner quietly wacking away on a Tekka (thank goodness, thus I get to eat this MSW lol).

The texture, aroma, color, etc, were good!  It's no lesser than what we had in mid year, except it lacks the Omph factor of a fresh brew coffee (local coffee).  I have not had this Omph factor for a long time, not even during mid year season.  It's nearly as comparable in quality as mid year

More on MSW as blog years ago Mao Shan Wang

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 

D88

I was surprised to find D88 at the stall on 12 Dec 2015.  I didn't expect to see D88 as it's usually quite illusive (low supply and short season too).  I must be rather lucky.  There were a few and we picked 2 since my friends haven't try D88 before.  

This D88 we had has good aroma, generally sweet.  Not the best, but still, it's got my friends satisfied especially it was their first time trying it.  In that sitting, we had 1 x D2, 2 x D88, 3 x Tekka and 1 x MSW, for 8 persons (even after dinner).

More description from an old post D88 

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 

While a lot of durian consumers here in Singapore favours Mao Shan Wang, I don't.  Put it simply, a durian fanatic will try different varieties of durian than just stick to preferred 1 or 2.

Mao Shan Wang has a strong, hit your nerve, kind of taste.  It's quite straight forward durian.  Of course there are the sweet, the bitter, bitter sweet, different texture, strong taste or average taste, but by far and large, it's relatively similar in taste.

Most varieties are about the same in the that sense.  However, different types sometimes have got different characters even in the same variant.  Thus I prefer to try different durians during different seasons, even different durians in a single sitting.  Tease the taste butt.

Anyway, I'll have a few more rounds of durian before wrapping up the year end season.

(Photo courtesy of Alfred while gluttony me tuck in)

Facts or Myth - Consuming Alcohol And Durian Can Kill

You may have heard about alcohol being lethal when consumed with durian.  This may have cause many to avoid consuming these two at close intervals.  

How did that "never mix durian with alcohol" myth or granny tales come about?  I can only guess.  If we combine some information of alcohol and durian together, it could sound 'lethal'.

Excessive alcohol consumption is said to be damaging to health.  The mere consumption of alcohol may cause a burning effect to our throat and stomach.  Some relates alcohol as a strong substance that also cause blood pressure to escalate, heatiness, etc.

Durian tends to ferment.  Durian is said to be very heaty on the body thus some people may develop fever or heatiness after consuming durian.  However, this heatiness may be more for the first consumption (of the season or after prolong absence of durian maybe), especially before bed.

Combing both, it is perhaps due to the alcohol causing rapid fermentation effect of durians, and the believe that it cause organ failures, etc, that the myth came about.  I don't think there is anything scientific towards this combination till date.

Personally, I tends to consume beer after durian.  It's refreshing!  I have on several occassion, consumed brandy or whiskey (not in large quantity though.  Just 2 shots) before or after consuming durians. 

So, does alcohol and durian kill?  I'm still sitting here writing.

Oh, just a warning... if you are on calorie count, an average seed of durian contains 50 calories while a pint of beer contains about 220 calories.  
-  Thus, if you consume 6 seeds and 2 pints, that's going to add up to 1040 calories.  
-  But hey, a cup of mixed nuts contains approximately 800 calories.  Add that with beer, what's the calorie count? Burst!

So, wouldn't it be healthier consuming beer with durians, than beer with nuts? 

---------- 14/06/2016 ----------
Disclaimer.... if in doubt, always better to consult your physician about it. The myths debunk does not apply to people with medical conditions and the sceptics. Consume at own risk. I'm not liable for any consequences if any.

(Well, few friends had durian and wine just last night [13/06/16]