Calabash the miracle fruit ,which has to be sawed, boiled and than filtered and the concoction is taken. Supposed to cure cancer and bring down sugar levels in Diabetics.
Costs about US$ 22-
Although not very popular yet, it looks like a young coconut in appearance and watermelon in size.
Its name is even strange: calabash. In the science world, it is called Crescentia cujete. It is known as calabacero in Spain; totumo in Colombia and Panama, mate in Ecuador; pate in Peru; jicaro in Mexico; higuera in Puerto Rico; and rum tree in Sri Lanka.
But most Filipinos call it miracle fruit. The reason: it cures some diseases, even cancer. In General Santos City, a group of students from the Notre Dame of Dadiangas University found that "calabash extracts have the ability to prevent blood vessel growth and development." As such, it "could be used to help prevent the cancer cells in the human body."
According to the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD), a line agency of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the students' analysis showed that the tree's "fruit and leaf extracts contain flavonoids such as quercetin and anthraquinone, the important phytochemicals for antiangiogenic activities, a process that inhibits the growth and development of new blood vessels in the body."
Antiangiogenesis controls the spread of tumor cells in the body by disabling the transport of nutrients toward the cancerous cells, the PCHRD explained. Tumor cells, as they normally do, start with a single cell, which then divides into more cells. "The growth of malignant cells will depend on the availability of specific nutrients being transported by blood vessels," it said.
In the web site of PCHRD, it was reported the researchers administered calabash fruit decoction (juice from boiled calabash fruit) to hyperglycemia-induced rabbits and compared effects to Metformin, a standard drug for the treatment of diabetics (positive control) and a mineral water treatment (negative control).
Analysis revealed that calabash fruit decoction and Metformin treated rabbits showed "a significant decreased in the amount of blood sugar in the body. While rabbits administered with mineral water solution have constant high blood sugar levels."
According to the study, "the decrease of blood sugar level was attributed to the effects of phytochemicals found in calabash fruit responsible for the release of insulin that lowers blood sugar in the tested animals."
Calabash is native to Central and South America. In fact, it is the national tree of Saint Lucia. How it came to the Philippines, no one knows. In countries where it is common, it is popular because of its medicinal properties. It contains vitamin B1, vitamin C, calcium, iron, sodium and potassium.
Calabash is not only known for its healing powers but also as an ally in food preparation. In Chinese cuisine, it is often fried and added to soups. In Japan, people buy it in the form of marinated strips, which they use in making rolled sushi. In Burma, the leaves are boiled and eaten with a hot and spicy fish sauce.
But don't use calabash too much in food preparation. It has been reported the fruit contains a toxic compound called tetracyclic triterpenoid cucurbitacin, which can trigger stomach ulcer. Pregnant women must also avoid consuming it as the fruit was once used to induce labor.
full article in the link below - Has anyone heard about this fruit
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/2015/10/15/calabash-the-miracle-fruit/
Video in the link below But have you heard of the fruit that you need to open with a Saw!?
Posted by: Ravi Narasimhan <ravi.narasimhan.in@gmail.com>
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