Cucumber is a widely cultivated plant belonging to the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae. In general, it is known as a vegetable but scientifically speaking, cucumber is a fruit. Cucumbers were first cultivated in southern Asia but is now grown in many parts of the world. Cucumbers are very rich in nutrients and are well known for their health benefits and beauty benefits. Eating cucumbers is good for our health but only when they are consumed in moderation as excessive consumption of cucumbers is bad for our health. Some of the major side effects of eating too many cucumbers are as follows.
# Can Cause Toxicity
Although cucumber is a healthy fruit it contains small patches that make it tastes bitter. These small portions of cucumber contain extremely toxic triterpenoids or cucurbitacins compounds. It is, therefore, important for us to make sure that we keep our cucumber consumption within limits and don’t overeat them.
Many of us have experienced eating cucumbers that taste very bitter and we just want to spit them out. These cucumbers are highly toxic in nature and it is better to just avoid them in all circumstances. In the same way, we should also avoid drinking cucumber juice that tastes bitter because such juice is highly susceptible to this toxic compound.
# Can Cause Fluid Loss and ImbalanceEating too many cucumbers can increase the risk of fluid loss and this can result in the imbalance of the body. The main reason behind the fluid loss by overeating cucumber is because of the presence of cucurbitacin and fatty oil in the cucumber seeds.
These compounds are mild diuretic in nature, which means overeating cucumbers can increase the frequency of urination which ultimately results in loss of fluids and electrolytes from our body, causing imbalances and in extreme cases it can even lead to dehydration.
# Vitamins and MineralsCucumber flesh is a good source of vitamin C and skin of cucumber is rich in minerals in like silica,potassium and magnesium, along with the dietary fibers All these compounds are very beneficial for our health but only until they are consumed within the limitations as over-consumption of these minerals and vitamins can trigger their dark side and cause harmful side effects.
Too much of vitamin C can promote the growth of free radicals which can harm our body cells, under certain conditions and in the same way too much potassium can put a negative effect on our kidneys and excessive fiber can cause intestinal gas, bloating and abdominal cramps. We will know more about these, shortly.
# Side Effects Of Excessive Vitamin CCucumber is an excellent source of vitamin C which is an antioxidant and plays a very important role in boosting our immune system and also prevents us from many diseases and give our immune system strength to combat various diseases like scurvy and flu. Being antioxidants, it fights with the free radicals of our body, stabilize them and prevents them from damaging our body cells.
However, all these benefits of vitamin C are only when it is consumed within the recommended dosage as too much of vitamin C can harmfully effect on our body. Ingesting vitamin C acts as a pro-oxidant when it is ingested in large quantities and can trigger the growth and spread of free radicals ( instead of stabilizing them) and these free radicals can then freely roam inside our body, damage our body cells and increase the risk of cancer, acne, premature aging, etc.
Although vitamin C is water soluble and excess vitamin C get flushed out of the body along with the urine but it is best to keep vitamin C intake within limits as the frequent urination is not at all good for our health and can increase the burden on our kidneys.
# Excessive WaterCucumber is an excellent source of water. In fact, almost 90 percent of cucumber’s weight is water and this water makes us feel hydrated and refreshed ( on eating cucumbers) and also provide nourishment to our skin.
However, excess consumption of cucumbers can have a very harmful effect on our body because excessive water intake can increase the total volume of blood in our body, put the strain our blood vessels and heart and can cause excessive wear and tear of kidneys by putting the burden on them.
Having too much water in our system can also imbalance the concentration of electrolytes in our body and this can give rise to health conditions that range from headaches to impaired breathing.
# Harmful Wax CoatingCucumbers are a fragile fruit which means they can get broken easily. This is not at all liked by the farmers and most farmers wax the skin of cucumbers at the growing or plucking stage. This wax coating protects cucumber from insects and also minimize the risk of damage while shipping. The bad part of this step is that the wax used for coating is made up of compounds like ethyl alcohol, soaps, and milk casein ( milk casein can trigger allergic reactions towards milk in certain individuals ).