Pumpkin vs. Watermelon — Health Impact and Nutrition Comparison
Summary
Pumpkins are richer in minerals and vitamins. On the other hand, watermelons are higher in carbs. Watermelons are also richer in fructose compared to pumpkins. Both of them have a lot of health benefits.
Introduction
In this article, we discuss the main differences in nutritional content and health impacts of pumpkin(1) and watermelon(2). You can check the daily coverages of some essential nutrients these vegetables provide in the corresponding charts.
Actual differences
Watermelon is round in shape and has pale yellow or reddish skin, which can be rough or smooth. The pumpkin’s shape is round or ellipsoid. It has a yellow or orange flash. Pumpkin tastes like a sweet potato. Watermelons have a combination of sweet, bitter, and sour flavors.
Watermelon is native to Africa, while pumpkin originates in North America.
Nutrition
Both pumpkin and watermelon are juicy vegetables with many similarities, yet there are differences in how nutrients are distributed.
Calories
Pumpkin and watermelon are plant food products. So, these two are considered low-calorie foods. However, watermelon is higher in calories due to its higher carbohydrate content.
Carbs
Watermelon is higher in carbs compared to pumpkins.
Watermelon provides nearly the same amount of fiber as pumpkin but also contains 3.36g of fructose, which is absent in pumpkin.
Protein
These two vegetables are supposed to contain little protein. They both contain tiny amounts of proteins per 100g. We can neglect that amount.
Fats
Both vegetables have less than 1g of fat per 100g, so we can ignore the fat amounts. Pumpkins and watermelons do not contain any amount of cholesterol.
Vitamins
Pumpkin is the absolute winner of this section.
Pumpkin is higher in all the vitamins compared to watermelon.
Pumpkin is 15 times richer in vitamin A than watermelon.
Watermelon covers 27% of the DV of vitamin C.
Vitamin Comparison
Minerals
Pumpkin is higher in all minerals as well.
Pumpkin is 4 times higher in phosphorus and 3 times richer in potassium than watermelon.
You can compare the mineral composition of these two vegetables in the chart below.
Mineral Comparison
Health impact
Cardiovascular health
Pumpkin is high in potassium, which is an important mineral for lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of stroke (3) (4). It contains a lot of antioxidants, especially phenolics and carotenoids, that protect the organism from lipoprotein oxidation, thus reducing the risk of heart disease (5).
Watermelon produces lycopene, essential for lowering cholesterol and blood pressure (6). It also contains citrulline, an amino acid that increases the nitric oxide concentration, dilating blood vessels and lowering blood pressure (7).
Skin health
Studies show that beta-carotene, which is abundant in pumpkins, acts as a natural sunblock (8). What is more, carotenoids provide protection against UV radiation (9). Pumpkin is also rich in vitamin C, essential in collagen synthesis (10).
Watermelon contains notable amounts of vitamin A. This vitamin is important for skin repair after damage (11).
References
- https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/168448/nutrients
- https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/167765/nutrients
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28024910/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27792643/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17639513/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4464475/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30029482/
- https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/96/5/1179S/4577133
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23053552/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28805671/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31389093/
Infographic
Macronutrient Comparison
Fat Type Comparison
Comparison summary table
Lower in Saturated Fat | |||
Lower in price | |||
Lower in Sugar | |||
Lower in Glycemic Index | |||
Rich in minerals | |||
Rich in vitamins | |||
Lower in Sodium | Equal | ||
Lower in Cholesterol | Equal |
All nutrients comparison - raw data values
Nutrient | Opinion | ||
Net carbs | 6g | 7.15g | |
Protein | 1g | 0.61g | |
Fats | 0.1g | 0.15g | |
Carbs | 6.5g | 7.55g | |
Calories | 26kcal | 30kcal | |
Fructose | 3.36g | ||
Sugar | 2.76g | 6.2g | |
Fiber | 0.5g | 0.4g | |
Calcium | 21mg | 7mg | |
Iron | 0.8mg | 0.24mg | |
Magnesium | 12mg | 10mg | |
Phosphorus | 44mg | 11mg | |
Potassium | 340mg | 112mg | |
Sodium | 1mg | 1mg | |
Zinc | 0.32mg | 0.1mg | |
Copper | 0.127mg | 0.042mg | |
Manganese | 0.125mg | 0.038mg | |
Selenium | 0.3µg | 0.4µg | |
Vitamin A | 8513IU | 569IU | |
Vitamin A RAE | 426µg | 28µg | |
Vitamin E | 1.06mg | 0.05mg | |
Vitamin C | 9mg | 8.1mg | |
Vitamin B1 | 0.05mg | 0.033mg | |
Vitamin B2 | 0.11mg | 0.021mg | |
Vitamin B3 | 0.6mg | 0.178mg | |
Vitamin B5 | 0.298mg | 0.221mg | |
Vitamin B6 | 0.061mg | 0.045mg | |
Folate | 16µg | 3µg | |
Vitamin K | 1.1µg | 0.1µg | |
Tryptophan | 0.012mg | 0.007mg | |
Threonine | 0.029mg | 0.027mg | |
Isoleucine | 0.031mg | 0.019mg | |
Leucine | 0.046mg | 0.018mg | |
Lysine | 0.054mg | 0.062mg | |
Methionine | 0.011mg | 0.006mg | |
Phenylalanine | 0.032mg | 0.015mg | |
Valine | 0.035mg | 0.016mg | |
Histidine | 0.016mg | 0.006mg | |
Saturated Fat | 0.052g | 0.016g | |
Monounsaturated Fat | 0.013g | 0.037g | |
Polyunsaturated fat | 0.005g | 0.05g |
Which food is preferable for your diet?
Low Fats diet | ||
Low Carbs diet | ||
Low Calories diet | ||
Low Glycemic Index diet |