What is black plum and what are the health benefits of black plum? A more popular name for black plum is jamun fruit, also known as blackberry india, Jambolan, Damson Plum, Java Plum, Portuguese Plum, Jamun, Jambolan Plum, Purple Plum, Jambu, Malabar Plum, Jambul, Jambas, Kala jamun, Rajaman. , Neredu, Naval, Jamali, Java plum, Black berry and Nerale. Black plum has the scientific name “Syzygium cumini”. This jamun fruit or black plum plant grows naturally and wildly in India, Indonesia, the Himalayas, Sri Lanka, and Australia. This plant was then introduced to Fiji, Guam, French Polynesia, Niue, Cook Islands, Palau, Tonga, New Caledonia, Hawaii, Florida, Palau, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, India, Christmas Island, South America, Caribbean, and Africa.
Black Plum Benefits and Uses
The black plum plant grows up to 20 meters tall, the leaves look thick and wide, the leaves look pinnate on the bones. The fruit is rather long or oval. Young fruit is green and tastes bitter, when ripe it turns purple and even black and tastes sweet. The black plum plant does well in moist, moist soil, and it can tolerate drought as well.
Blank plum is a tropical fruit known for its several health benefits. Among its health properties is to relieve colic, and it also acts as an anti-scorbutic, diuretic and as a carminative. In jamun or black plum contains polyphenolic compounds which are very helpful for heart disease, cancer, diabetes, arthritis and asthma. It is also very effective at curing bowel spasm, flatulence, dysentery and stomach ailments. The benefits of black plums are also used in increasing sexual activity in partners. This fruit can convert starch into energy and is good for diabetes drugs. In fact, black plums are also rich in vitamin C and iron which are good for maintaining healthy blood. Iron is an essential mineral that operates in producing new red blood cells so that they can maintain good body health.
Plant
Black plum plants grow big like mango plants or guava plants. Black plum or jamun is a plant that can grow up to 20 meters in diameter and up to 90 cm in diameter. It is classified as a single root plant that spreads in various directions according to the presence of nutrients in the soil. Black plum trees have branches, sometimes small branches that can be called twigs that have a leaf on each end of the branch.
The flowers are usually located on the stalk/twig, at the end of the branch or in the middle of the small branch. Black plum flower color is white and pink. Then it turns into an oval-shaped fruit about 2 cm, the fruit is small and green, the color then changes with maturity, from green to pale white, pink, purplish and black with a sweet taste.
Health Benefits of Black Plum
What is the benefits of black plum? Let see here! Black plum belongs to the Myrtaceae family. There are many names embedded in this plant such as crest, jambolan, jambas, malabar plum, rajaman, kala jamun, neredu, jamali, java plum and naval. This plant was first grown in India and then its comprehensive distribution to various tropical countries including Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, Suriname, Trinidad, Bangladesh, Tobago, and Sri Lanka. This plant has many variants with fruits that are almost the same shape and size, but what is commonly found is the black plum with oval fruit and is red to purple and dark black after it is completely ripe.
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Black plums have many health benefits if consumed regularly. Below are some of the health benefits of black plums for us to know.
1. Diabetic treatment
In fact, black plum is a very good fruit for diabetics and treats various diseases related to diabetes. There are several compounds in this plum plant that make it valuable in the eyes of fruit and health lovers. To be able to produce drugs that are effective in treating various diseases including diabetes, further research needs to be done carefully.
2. Lower apoptosis
Research states that black plum has apoptotic and inhibitory effects on cervical cancer cell lines. This purple fruit has a gallic acid substances that known for its anti-HIV, anti-carcinomic, anti-adenoviral, anti-peroxidant, apoptotic activities and is also popular with its chemopreventive properties. This substance is a topoisomerase-I-inhibitor. Research shows that black plum fruit benefits as an apoptotic and as an inhibitory effect of extract. While the anti-viral effect needs more trial and research.
3. Antioxidant activity
Research by scientists on plants, especially black plums contain antioxidants and are expected to be effective as preventive agents against various chronic diseases. Methanol extract is an excellent and effective free radical scavenger in comparison with those using polarity solvents. It is said that antioxidants with different polarity can be found in plum leaves.
There is also use of extracts from black plums as a preservative. Usually this is in the form of black plum essential oil, but this needs further research on the antioxidant activity of this essential oil.
Also see: Benefits of Eating Papaya, Fruit and Leaves
4. Antioxidant activity
The health benefits of black plum is closely related to the antioxidants in them. Research says that black plum leaves extracted as an antioxidant are justified in finding new bioactive compounds. If the research is final, it is hoped that the extract from the leaves of this plant can produce something valuable in the world of health, especially in terms of cancer prevention and treatment.
So far, black plum leaves are still showing positive results and still lead to great results in overcoming various diseases.
Other Medicinal Uses of Black Plum
- Bed Wetting: How to make the concoction is to take the seeds and grind them until smooth, one teaspoon of black plum seed powder, stir with warm water and drink.
- Nightfall: Take 4 grams of black plum seed powder and mix it with warm water and drink it twice daily.
- Blood Dysentery: Mix 20 grams of black plum seeds with 1/2 cup of water.
- Or you can also make a potion with 10 grams of bark boiled with 500 ml, wait for the remaining 1/4 of water. Then drink three times a day as much as 20-25 ml each time you drink.
- Diarrhea: To treat diarrhea, grind the leaves of the black plum plant using a little rock salt, put it in a capsule and drink it in the morning and evening.