Bright and appetizing persimmons, benefits and harm to the body, what are the contraindications? How important are the properties of persimmon for us, how is it useful? Is tasty and low-calorie persimmon really harmful? To whom? Usually, these questions begin to arise in November, at a time when bright orange fruits appear on the shelves of markets and stores. It turns out that this is not only a delicious berry. The use of persimmons allows you to do without energy drinks, as it perfectly increases the tone of the whole organism.
The fruits have an exquisitely rich aroma, unusual taste. Fresh - contain more than 20%, and dried - up to 60% sugar. Organic acids are few. That's why they are useful for people with high acidity.
In China, persimmons have been cultivated for centuries - this is its homeland. From there she went to East Asia, then to Japan. Only at the end of the XIX century about her learned around the world. Its fruits are very much appreciated by the Chinese. And Japan considers it a national fruit.
Persimmon (Diospyros - translation from Greek - “fruit of the gods”) is actually not a fruit, but a large, round, juicy berry with smooth, thin peel of varying color (from yellow to brilliant orange). The color of the peel depends on the degree of maturation or variety. The pulp is soft, almost jelly-like when the fruit is fully ripe.
There are about five hundred varieties of persimmons. This evergreen plant has high nutritional value, and we get benefits not only from fruits, but also from leaves, bark, and roots.
Unripe fruits due to the high content of tannins are often used by the Japanese as an additive to sake or liquors.
Roasted seeds are used as a substitute for coffee.
How to choose a persimmon, which is more useful
This must be known. Only soft, fully ripe fruits have really juicy, tasty flesh. It is from these fruits that we receive the greatest benefit. Store them with extreme care, taking care not to damage the skin. Damaged berries quickly rot. Better to keep them frozen. Incidentally, freezing removes astringency. Persimmons are eaten when the fruits acquire a jelly-like consistency.
What is useful persimmon
In Japan, China, eating 2-3 berries is equivalent to lunch - they are the main ones on the dining table. One fruit contains almost six grams of dietary fiber, which is equal to a quarter of the daily recommended value. Since the fiber is digested slowly, you feel full for a longer period of time. That is why persimmon can be recommended to children, people involved in sports or experiencing great physical exertion.
This is a dietary product that, due to its pectin content, is recommended for the treatment of digestive disorders. Traditional medicine uses fruits to treat stomach ailments.
A large number of sugars that contain berries are glucose, fructose. They support a healthy vascular system, strengthen the heart muscle. Despite this, the level of glucose in the blood remains within normal limits.
Persimmons are very nutritious, as are figs or grapes. Many people even eat dried tea instead of sweets. This fruit contains so much glucose. When dried, it appears on the surface of the fruit, like frost.
The benefit of persimmon is that it contains vitamin C (antivirus), provitamin A (carotene helps with problems with the eyes, skin), vitamins B, PP, iron salts (blood formation), and many other valuable substances. It can be recommended to people suffering from high blood pressure or cardiovascular disease.
As a rule, in those people who are prescribed diuretics as prescribed by the doctor, the output of beneficial potassium from the body increases, that is, they must take potassium-containing drugs additionally. But if you add persimmon to your diet, along with apricots, apples, the need to take additional potassium-containing preparations will disappear by itself - the body will get the potassium so needed from these fruits.
It contains 2 times more useful micronutrients and dietary fiber than apples. It also contains a lot of antioxidants.
It is an excellent source of iron, calcium, copper, as well as magnesium, potassium. Magnesium reduces the likelihood of kidney stones. One of the most important health benefits is its anti-cancer properties due to its high content of beta-carotene, vitamin A. This fruit can reduce the risk of lung cancer, recommended for consumption by chronic smokers. Vitamins C, P reduce the fragility of blood vessels. Vitamins B1, IN2 contribute to the normal functioning of the nervous system. Due to its high iodine content, regular consumption of this fruit helps to improve thyroid function - it is also one of the most beneficial properties of persimmons.
Due to the high content of sugars, potassium, persimmon juice can help replenish the body with energy, relieve symptoms of stress, fatigue, therefore, there is no need to use special energy or nutritional supplements.
Persimmon, diuretic or not? Persimmon has a diuretic effect, tonic properties, and therefore relieves swelling.
It calms the nervous system, improves performance, has bactericidal properties against Escherichia coli, hay bacillus, and Staphylococcus aureus.
For colds, coughs, it is useful to gargle with the juice of one or two ripe persimmons, mixed with ¼ cup of warm water.
A decoction of her calyx, peduncle is sometimes used to stop hiccups.
For therapeutic purposes, persimmons are used for anemia: you should drink 50-100 ml of juice 2 times a day before meals.
With bleeding gums, high blood pressure, you should take ¼ teaspoon of powder obtained from crushed persimmon leaves twice a day for a week.
In case of chronic diarrhea, drink 500 ml broth of fruits every 4 hours. The broth is prepared from sliced into slices of six medium unripe berries, poured with 3 glasses of boiling water. The contents are covered with a lid for 20 minutes, and then filtered to release the broth from the pulp fibers.
Ripe fruits, devoid of astringent properties, are an excellent tool in the treatment of constipation.
They also help the body control cholesterol. Since the fruits contain a sufficient amount of pectin, which can prevent the absorption of cholesterol by the intestinal walls.
Any fresh fruits or berries, as you know, have so much necessary sugar for man, organic acids, salts, proteins, vitamins, which have valuable nutritional and medicinal properties. The various fruits contain these elements differently.
Persimmon, for example, surpasses many sugars in many crops growing under similar conditions. It is enough to give one example: ripe berries of this crop of any kind contain a lot of sugars, mainly glucose and fructose, against 8-11% in the fruits of apple, pear, peach. It should be noted that we import fructose from Holland. A semi-dried Caucasian (wild), sold in the fall or winter on the markets, contains sugar from 32 to 40%, and dry matter - 62-71%.
Fruits are used for various gastric diseases, as a preventive, therapeutic agent for scurvy. For food, use fresh or dried berries.
Drying them is very simple - you can even use an ordinary oven, gradually adding fire. Dried persimmons taste like figs, only it is more dense.
Due to the lack of acid, the benefits of persimmon in diseases of the stomach, with diarrhea, dysentery are undeniable. Due to the presence of pectin, it removes toxins. Glucose, fructose support the heart muscle.
The physician points out that it is recommended to drink thick juice of fruits in 2-3 glasses daily for the treatment of hypertension. It is useful for thyroid disease. What is especially important is that it regenerates damaged tissues.
Dried persimmons
Persimmon, one of the best fruits that promote health. It is processed mainly by drying.
Dried persimmons are rich in health-promoting nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, which are vital. When dried, the sugar content in persimmons increases by 3-4 times and it becomes more nutritious. Dried berries contain 8-10 times more vitamin C than apples. They also contain vitamin A, calcium, carotene and protein.
Dried persimmons are effective for people with high blood pressure. She can stop diarrhea. Finally, it is suitable for people who are on a diet.
The fruits of dried persimmons are always covered with white “hoarfrost”. This is not mold, it is glucose and fructose, which, after evaporation of moisture, crystallized on the surface during drying of the fruit.
Useful and medicinal properties of leaves, roots, persimmon shoots
Oriental medicine uses a decoction of persimmon roots or leaves as an external means to stop bleeding, to disinfect wounds, cuts, punctures or scratches. External use of such a decoction will help reduce pain, relieve inflammation in hemorrhoids.
The shoots, leaves of this plant have a large amount of ascorbic acid. Especially a lot of it in the fall. From the leaves you can make a substitute for tea. A study by Korean scientists (1980) showed that leaf tea contains 20.8 times more vitamin C than green tea!
Persimmon in cosmetology
Cosmetologists advise using the pulp of unripe fruits along with egg yolk, lemon juice - this mask is useful for skin with enlarged pores, for inflamed skin of the face, for acne prone skin.
Contraindications for persimmon, what you should know
If you try persimmon for the first time or give it to your child - be very careful - do not eat more than one fruit at a time, as there are people who, due to its astringent properties, can suffer from intestinal obstruction.
Diabetics should avoid eating it. It is not recommended to eat it for obese people, due to the high content of easily digestible sugars.
Unripe fruits contain an abundance of tannins (useful for periodontal disease of the gums), which give them astringency (0.2-0.5%). Therefore, a person who tries an unripe fruit will feel that his mouth will “bind”. However, the ripe fruit loses its astringency. If you pour unripe berry with warm water for 12 hours, then it will lose astringency.
Rinsing the mouth and brushing your teeth after consuming persimmons are mandatory, as the remnants of the sweet fibers between the teeth can trigger tooth decay.
Persimmon contains a lot of tannin and pectin, so if you eat it on an empty stomach, then this can lead to the creation of dense lumps in the stomach. Being there, they can cause nausea, vomiting, make you cry in pain.
Dried persimmons are very useful, but you can’t boil them, for example, in compotes, since the astringent taste characteristic of immature fruits is restored during cooking.
The use of persimmons in industry
Unripe fruits, leaves, branches, roots are characterized by a high content of tannins, so they are used for dyeing fabrics, producing varnish, indelible ink, and tanning of the skin. Its wood can be easily processed and polished. No wonder they used it for parquet in the construction of churches and museums. From persimmon wood made musical instruments, weaving shuttles, furniture.
In Japan, juice, squeezed from unripe fruits, is impregnated with nets, ropes, which makes them stronger, more durable. In addition, juice is also used for the production of packaging paper for tea. At the same time, the paper does not allow moisture to pass, protects the tea from mold.
All of the listed industrial, healing and beneficial properties of persimmons give it high popularity, especially among gardeners. It has a peculiar pleasant taste, significant nutritional value. It can be preserved by quick freezing in sugar syrup or frozen without it, packed in cellophane. Freezing is one way to get rid of astringency. This is a great dessert dish.
In general, persimmon is good everywhere, very useful! The main thing is to be able to choose the right fruit so that its tart taste does not disappoint.
So, to summarize, listing the main useful properties of persimmons:
- has diuretic, tonic properties;
- calms the nervous system;
- the fruits have an antibacterial effect;
- interfere with the development of vascular diseases;
- magnesium reduces the risk of kidney stones;
- vitamin A protects against cancer;
- vitamins C, P help reduce the fragility of blood vessels;
- the use of fruit for cosmetic purposes helps to narrow pores, smooth wrinkles, and make skin smooth, matte.
Contraindications, side effects, harm that persimmon can cause:
- should be used with great care, not more than one fetus per day, for people suffering from obesity or diabetes;
- it can lower blood pressure, level the effect of drugs used to increase blood pressure;
- to avoid negative effects on the intestines of astringent properties, eat only ripe fruits. But if you could not avoid this, then eat it at least on a full stomach;
- never eat persimmons (ripe or immature) after or before eating crab meat as this type of meat is likely to enhance astringent properties - problems with bowel obstruction are unlikely to be avoided.
The information contained in this article should in no way be construed as medical advice. Consult your doctor before starting any nutritional program that includes persimmon. The benefits and harms to the body, contraindications are very individual. Follow your doctor’s advice and common sense before making changes to your lifestyle.