After the 13 Christmas desserts, it’s time for the 12 New Year’s grapes! On social networks, many Internet users film themselves eating these grains at midnight on December 31. And if this fruit is full of benefits, you still need to learn how to enjoy them without risk… Our advice for a delicious and peaceful 31st!
Twelve grapes at midnight: a practice believed to bring good luck
As the New Year approaches, it is not uncommon to come across videos where Internet users hide under the table to swallow twelve grapes to the rhythm of the clock, secretly hoping for an extra dose of love or a new job for the year to come. A popular practice which may seem modern, but which in reality turns out to be much older.
This is in fact a Spanish tradition called “uvas de la suerte”, or lucky grapes. According to this custom, one should swallow a grape at each stroke of midnight (since each symbolizes a month of the year). If the twelve grapes are eaten correctly, superstition promises a prosperous and happy year. Something to ward off luck at a lower cost!
Grapes, a fruit that combines benefits
If grapes are one of the fruits most contaminated by pesticides, when they are not treated, they are full of benefits.
It not only provides a “boost” thanks to its cocktail of anti-fatigue minerals (iron, phosphorus, magnesium) but also “a quantity of invigorating vitamins, including vitamin B2 which reduces physical fatigue, vitamin B5 which stimulates our cognitive functions and stimulating vitamin C“, indicates Magali Cros-Roig, dietician-nutritionist.
Grapes also help protect the heart by reducing bad cholesterol (LDL) by limiting the accumulation of plaques in the arteries and improving the strength of the vessels.
“Grapes owe all these benefits to their richness in potassium, a mineral which has the property of fighting againsthigh blood pressurewith fibers which trap dietary cholesterol particles and eliminate them through natural channels and
antioxidants such as the
resveratrolquercetin polyphenols, myricetin, kaempferol, catechins and epicatechins, anthocyanins and proanthocyanins“, lists Magali Cros-Roig.
So many good reasons to consume it!
Be careful not to swallow the grapes too quickly.
So you will have understood: grapes are full of nutrients essential to our health. However, it also carries some little-known risks: a grain swallowed too quickly can cause choking.
In this case, the first aid actions to adopt are always as follows:
- Give up to 5 slaps on the back;
- If this fails, perform the Heimlich maneuver, hugging the person from behind, just above the navel;
- Monitor the reactions of the person who is choking: if the grape is expelled, or if the cough starts again, the choking is in the process of being resolved.
“While waiting for help, every second counts. Knowing what to do can really make a difference“, concludes Dr Gérald Kierzek.