Sea cucumber is one of the most nutritious marine animals and it should not be confused with vegetables. It has been traditionally used for various medicinal purposes.

Some important information regarding sea cucumber

• Sea cucumber basically lives on sea floor and extensively found in Pacific Ocean
• It resembles caterpillars or worms
• It has a soft and tubular body. Basically it has a slippery texture
• It has bland taste, thus it is often infused with flavor from other ingredients such as spices, meats and other seafoods
• It has been widely used for various culinary purposes
• It has been traditionally used in folk medicines for various medicinal purposes as well

Nutritional profile                        

• It contains lesser amount of carbohydrates and fibres
• It also contains lesser amount of fat
• It does not provide enough calories on its oxidation due to its low fat and carbohydrate contents thus it is considered as low calorie food
• It is significantly rich in proteins and composed of various important amino acids. Proteins found in sea cucumber are generally considered as the protein of high biological value
• It is loaded with various important micronutrients, which include Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, calcium and magnesium

Biologically active components of sea cucumber

Apart from nutrients, sea cucumber is also loaded with various important biologically active components that exhibit several health benefits. These components include –

Phenols

• It is an important organic component found in sea cucumber
• It plays vital role in exerting several nutraceutical activities
• It is very effective for showing antioxidant activity that helps to reduce the susceptibility of becoming ill by protecting the body from the free radical induced oxidative damages

Flavonoids

• It is another important natural substance of sea cucumber that offers various health benefits
• It also acts as antioxidant and helps to protect the body from the detrimental effects of free radicals
• It exerts anti-inflammatory activity as well, which play vital role in preventing inflammation
• It helps in decreasing the concentration of inflammatory markers within body, as a result delays the onset of inflammatory events, which subsequently reduces the risk of developing chronic inflammatory diseases
• It is very useful for reducing the susceptibility of neurological disorders as well, especially Alzheimer’s disease by delaying the progression of neuro-inflammatory events

Triterpene glycosides

• These are very important components present in sea cucumber responsible for exhibiting numerous health benefits
• They help to exert antifungal activity and help to prevent the growth of fungus and various other microbes within host thus reduce the risk of developing infectious diseases
• They also exert anti-tumor activity thus help in suppressing the growth of tumor cells
• They help to exhibit immune boosting activity as well, which is accountable for enhancing overall immunological responses of the body as a result help in decreasing the susceptibility of becoming ill

Compounds that are structurally related to chondroitin sulfate

• Chondroitin sulfate is considered as one of the most important components of human connective tissue especially found in bone and cartilage and sea cucumber also contains various compounds, which are structurally related to chondroitin sulfate thus its consumption is thought to be extremely beneficial for strengthening the overall skeletal system
• It plays imperative role in improving the symptoms of arthritis especially osteoarthritis 

Biological activity

Antioxidant activity

• It contains various micronutrients as well as phytonutrients (mentioned above) that are accountable for exerting powerful antioxidant activity
• It plays vital role in neutralizing free radicals. We all know that free radicals are unstable atoms generated through metabolic reactions and are responsible for damaging cells severely, thus it is better to decrease their concentration within body in order to prevent cellular damages and it can be easily done by consuming antioxidant rich food like sea cucumber

• It is also associated with protecting the body from the harmful effects of reactive oxygen species. It helps to prevent lipid peroxidation too. As a result it helps in decreasing oxidative stress thus promotes well being as oxidative stress is considered as one of the leading causes of degenerative diseases

Anti-carcinogenic activity

• It contains various imperative substances that help to fight against cancers. Especially its triterpene diglycosides components are responsible for exerting potent anti-carcinogenic activity
• It plays vital role in hindering the growth of malignant cells within body by inducing apoptosis and helps to prevent metastasis as well
• It is also related with regulating cellular proliferation, which ultimately reduces the prevalence of tumor cell growth
• It has seen that consuming sea cucumber is extremely effective for decreasing the prevalence of skin cancer, prostate cancer, liver cancer and breast cancer

Antimicrobial activity

• It exerts potent antimicrobial activity, which is responsible for hindering the growth and replication of microbes within host. Even it can destroy microbial cell as well thus it is better to include sea cucumber in diet in order to reducing the risk of developing infectious diseases
• It has seen that consumption of sea cucumber or its extract is awfully helpful for inhibiting the growth of bacteria (both gram positive and gram negative bacteria) like S. typhi, S. aureus and E. coli

• It is also very effective against Candida albicans, which is a yeast responsible for infections
• Moreover its consumption is thought to be very beneficial especially for those individual who are immunocompromised

Health benefits

• It acts as an important therapeutic substance for cardiac health. It contains various cardio protective nutrients that play imperative role in promoting cardiac health
• Its consumption is also related with decreasing the concentration of LDL, VLDL and triglyceride in body as a result it helps in decreasing the prevalence of hypercholesterolemia as well as atherosclerosis
• It helps to reduce the risk of developing coronary artery disease as well
• Being a low calorie food it can be easily incorporated in the diet of an obese individual. Whereas its high protein content makes it an effective weight reducing aid too, as proteins helps in hindering appetite by delaying stomach emptying thus decreases food craving as a result facilitates weight reduction
• It plays vital role in boosting up the overall metabolism of the body and all the credit goes to its B vitamin contents
• It is also considered as a good choice for diabetic patient as it is a low glycemic food it helps to decrease postprandial blood sugar load and also helps in stabilizing blood sugar level
• Its consumption is very effective for promoting hepatic health and helps to protect liver from oxidative and inflammatory damages

• It contains significant amount of Vitamin A thus its consumption is thought to be very effective for promoting vision
• It helps in improving the health and functionality of connective tissues
• It accelerates wound healing as well
• It helps to improve renal functionality too
• It also helps in improving bone mass as well as bone mineral density and significantly reduces the risk of developing bone disorders

Culinary uses

• It can be eaten in fried or pickled or braised form
• It is widely used in dried form or fresh form for preparing various dishes
• It can be consumed with cabbage or mushroom or winter melon

Risk factors

• People with shellfish allergies should avoid its consumption
• Individual who are on blood thinning medications should also avoid its consumption

Guo, K., Su, L., Wang, Y., Liu, H., Lin, J., Cheng, P., Yin, X., Liang, M., Wang, Q. and Huang, Z., 2020. Antioxidant and anti-aging effects of a sea cucumber protein hydrolyzate and bioinformatic characterization of its composing peptides. Food & Function, 11(6), pp.5004-5016.

Hossain, A., Dave, D. and Shahidi, F., 2020. Northern sea cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa): A potential candidate for functional food, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical sector. Marine Drugs, 18(5), p.274.

Janakiram, N.B., Mohammed, A. and Rao, C.V., 2015. Sea cucumbers metabolites as potent anti-cancer agents. Marine drugs, 13(5), pp.2909-2923.

Mazliadiyana, M., Nazrun, A.S. and Isa, N.M., 2017. Optimum dose of sea cucumber (Stichopus chloronotus) extract for wound healing. Med Health, 12(1), pp.83-89.

Roggatz, C.C., González-Wangüemert, M., Pereira, H., Vizetto-Duarte, C., Rodrigues, M.J., Barreira, L., da Silva, M.M., Varela, J. and Custódio, L., 2018. A first glance into the nutritional properties of the sea cucumber Parastichopus regalis from the Mediterranean Sea (SE Spain). Natural product research, 32(1), pp.116-120.