It is also called “Queen of Fruits” because it tastes really good. You can eat mangosteen as it is but the mangosteen jam which is a sweetened version of the fruit tastes divine. You can pair this with coffee syrup and vanilla ice cream or roast a leg of pork and make a mangosteen chocolate reduction sauce.
Whether savoury or sweet, mangosteen can up any meal. But, mangosteen is not only known in the culinary world. More importantly, mangosteen is popular throughout the world because of its medicinal value. Mangosteen is known to have positive effects on cancer, inflammation, allergies and diabetes.
It is also rich in antioxidants and has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties which help the body fight various diseases. Mangosteen is also effective in giving a healthy and youthful glow to the skin, weight loss management and normal digestive function. There aren’t many mangosteen varieties but one popular kind is from Sulu Islands.
This is a good variety because of the humidity and rainfall that the island can give. There are mostly two harvesting season of mangosteen in different tropical countries. Health Benefits of Mangosteen
Anti-cancer Properties
As said above, mangosteen has anti-cancer properties. It has xanthones which hinders the growth of colon cancer cells. Studies show that mangosteen acts as a potent agent in the prevention of cancer or is being combined with other anti-cancer drugs as a supplement.
Anti-inflammatory Properties
For ages, mangosteen has been used as an anti-inflammatory agent in Southeast Asian countries. Mangosteen obstructs the release of prostaglandin and histamine, two known causes of inflammation in the body.
Healthy Skin
Because of its anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-oxidant properties, mangosteen can ultimately maintain a beautiful skin. It helps reduce different kinds of skin conditions like aging, eczema, allergies and bacterial infections.
Because of this, mangosteen can also be seen as a useful agent in combating skin cancer.
Immune System
Vitamin C is recognized for its ability to boost the immune system and mangosteen has a lot of it. Aside from that, mangosteen has plethora of nuritents, minerals and xanthone which is also good for the immune system.
Antioxidant Properties
The reason why mangosteen is gaining too much popularity as a supplement is because it contains xanthone which has remarkable medicinal effects in the body. Because of its anti-oxidant properties, mangosteen is considered to be a “healing fruit”.
Medicinal Use
If you use the bark and leaves of the mangosteen tree to a wound, it will quicken the healing process. You can also boil the leaves and the bark of the tree and drink it as a tea which cures thrush or aphtha while you can use its peel and pericarp for faster relief from stomach ache.
Additionally, the roots of mangosteen can be boiled with water to make tea for normal menstrual cycle.
Heart Health And Diabetes
There are also recent studies showing there are positive effects of mangosteen for the heart. It is said that there is a cardio protective effect of this fruit on antioxidant defense system and lipid peroxidation when stroke is happening.
When managing diabetes, you can drink magosteen tea or mangosteen supplement capsules as it helps lower the blood sugar levels of the body.
Other Uses Of Mangosteen
There are also other uses of mangosteen. They use mangosteen in China to tan their leather and as chewsticks in Ghana. They also use the wood of this tree as rice pounders, handles and some furnitures as well.
How to prepare and consume mangosteen?
It is best to eat the sweet fruit fresh but there are many ways to eat mangosteen. You can put it in the cake you’ll be baking or trifle. You can make the pulp into a juice by soaking it in water overnight or until the flavours have been well-blended.
*Mangosteen’s shelf life doesn’t last long so the moment you get your hands on some, make jam or tea or whatever it is you want to do with them just don’t wait a while longer.
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