Carve out some healthy time

Don't be scared of all those Butterfingers and Juju Bees tempting your this Halloween season.  Try using your crafty skills with a pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo), a relative of the squash plant. 

Pumpkins are rich in vitamin A, fiber, magnesium, zinc, and potassium.  The seeds are rich in protein and plant based fatty acids.  The fruit pulp contains L tryptophan, a chemical compound that is noted to trigger feelings of well being that aid depression in a natural way.

• 1 cup pumpkin flesh provides 30 calories and almost 200% of your Vitamin A for one day.  
  
• 1 cup pumpkin seeds provides 280 calories with 12 grams of fat, but 6 grams are polyunsaturated heart healthy fats.
  
• 1 cup pumpkin flesh at 10.6 mg of vitamin C (The recommended daily amount is 60 mg)
• 1 cup of pumpkin flesh has 3 grams of dietary fiber, 2 of these grams are soluble fiber. (Helpful for regulation of cholesterols and blood glucose)
• 1/4 cup of pumpkin seeds provides 22.9% of your daily zinc needs (8mg for women and 11mg for men is the recommended daily amount) and 44.7% of your daily magnesium needs
• 1 cup of pumpkin flesh provides 284 mg of potassium (4700 mg is the daily recommendation) helpful for cardiac tissue health, gastrointestinal function and skeletal muscle contraction.