Pears

Pears often get short shrift on menus, encased in green gelatin or served as grainy cubes. But with colors ranging from golden-brown to blushing yellow to apple-green, pears can provide visual interest to fruit bowls and salads. Pears have an edible core, so they produce little waste. Eating pears helps you to rehydrate, prevent muscle cramping, avoid illness and recover more quickly from gastric distress.

Adequate Hydration

Pears have a water content that ranges from 83 percent for most varieties to 88 percent for the Asian variety, according to the USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Adequate hydration aids recovery from illness, especially lower respiratory infections such as pulmonary pneumonia, according to a study conducted by K. L. Szafara and colleagues at the University of Michigan Institute of Gerontology, published in the April 2011 issue of the "Journal of the American Medical Directors Association." With a lower acid content than apples, mild flavor and soft texture, pears work well as a second-stage food in a bland diet such as BRAT, the bananas, rice, applesauce and toast diet touted by pediatricians for recovery from bouts of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

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Fiber

Asian pears provide 3.6 g of fiber, and other varieties provide 3.1 grams. Men under 50 should get 38 g of fiber per day, according to the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine, and men 51 and older should aim for 30 g per day. Women under 50 need 25 g of fiber daily, while women 51 and older should get 21 g per day.

Potassium

Pears provide 119 to 121 mg of potassium per 100 g serving. Potassium makes muscle contract and relax, so it is vital to heart function. Potassium also prevents cramping and speeds recovery from muscle fatigue after strenuous exercise. Children over age 10 and all adults need 2000 mg of potassium daily.

Lutein and Zeaxanthin

Lutein and zeaxanthin concentrate inside the eye in the macula, part of the retina where light strikes the eye to form the images we see. Macular damage leads to a loss of visual sharpness and eventual cataracts. Lutein and zeaxanthin protect the eye from ultraviolet light and help block damage from free radicals. Pears provide 50 mcg of lutein and zeaxanthin per 100 g serving.