Thai Pumpkin Packs Lutein and Zeaxanthin

Thai Pumpkin — ฟักทอง (fak-thong) — Cucurbita moschata.

Thai pumpkin — fak-tong — a dense kabocha-style squash cooked and eaten skin and all, plus how to cook it and what its pigments do. The edible part is the fruit, and the same pigments that filter light inside your retina sit right inside it. Pumpkin supplies lutein and zeaxanthin, the blue-light-filtering pigments studied in retina research. For Thai pumpkin nutrition, the flesh is rich in vitamin A, vitamin C, and potassium. Fug Tong Gang Buad is a comforting Thai dessert of tender pumpkin pieces simmered in sweet coconut milk and palm sugar, served warm as a sweet treat. Pud Fug Tong is a savory stir-fry of sliced pumpkin, garlic, and scrambled eggs in a light soy sauce, best enjoyed hot alongside steamed jasmine rice. The seeds are edible and roastable too, and they're a notable source of magnesium and zinc. Pumpkin's pigments are fat-soluble, so a little oil at the table helps your body absorb them far better. Give this sprawling ground vine plenty of yard space to ramble.

Fug Tong Gang Buad — ฟักทองแกงบวด (fak-tong-gaeng-buat)
Pud Fug Tong — ผัดฟักทอง (pad-fak-tong)

Food and nutrients

Rich in: vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium

Research context

Pumpkin supplies lutein & zeaxanthin, the blue-light-filtering pigments of the retina — JAMA (AREDS2), 2013

Sources

Source: Chew EY et al. / AREDS2 (2013). Lutein+zeaxanthin for AMD: RCT. JAMA 309(19):2005-2015. DOI:10.1001/jama.2013.4997

Narration transcript

Opening

Thai pumpkin is a dense, kabocha-style squash — hard grey-green skin, deep-orange flesh — and here it's cooked and eaten skin and all. Thai pumpkin — ฟักทอง, fak-thong. You eat the flesh, simmered in sweet coconut milk for dessert or stir-fried with egg and garlic, and the seeds roast up into a snack too.

Fug Tong Gang Buad (Thai Pumpkin in Coconut Milk) (ฟักทองแกงบวด)

Fug tong gang buad is a comforting dessert that simmers tender pumpkin pieces in sweet coconut milk and palm sugar, served warm as a sweet treat.

Pud Fug Tong (Thai Stir-Fried Pumpkin) (ผัดฟักทอง)

Pud fug tong is a savory stir-fry that combines sliced pumpkin, garlic, and scrambled eggs in a light soy sauce, best enjoyed hot with steamed jasmine rice.

Nutrition summary

That deep-orange flesh is where the vitamin A lives — pumpkin runs high in it, with modest vitamin C and folate behind.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A contributes to normal vision and helps maintain healthy skin and surface tissues.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is used to build collagen and helps protect cells from oxidative stress.

Potassium

Potassium helps with normal fluid balance and muscle function.

Closing

Give this one room — it's a sprawling ground vine that'll ramble across a whole corner of the yard. And when you cook it, add a little oil or coconut milk: pumpkin's orange pigments are fat-soluble, so a bit of fat helps your body absorb them. Follow Longevity Biome, and LIKE this video for regular updates.

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