The efficacy and function of plums and precautions for eating plums

Plum has a long history in my country. Literati and scholars of all dynasties have written a large number of poems about plum. Plum is the fruit of the plant Prunus rosaceae. It is full and round in appearance, exquisite and translucent, beautiful in shape, and sweet in taste. It is one of the traditional fruits that people like to eat. Plum can be eaten fresh or made into canned food, preserved fruit and other foods. It is one of the main fruits in my country in summer. So what are the effects and functions of plum?

The effects and functions of plums

According to traditional Chinese medicine, plums are mild in nature, sweet and sour in taste, and enter the liver and kidney meridians. They have the functions of promoting fluid production and quenching thirst, clearing the liver and removing heat, and promoting diuresis and reducing swelling. They are mainly used to treat yin deficiency and internal heat, liver and gallbladder dampness and heat, bone steaming and fatigue fever, thirst and drinking, ascites, and urinary difficulties.

Plums contain sugar, trace protein, fat, carotene, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin C, asparagine, glutamine, calcium, phosphorus, iron and other amino acids and trace elements.

The benefits of plums are as follows.

① Lowering blood pressure and relieving cough: The kernel of plum contains amygdalin and a large amount of fatty oil components. Modern pharmacological experiments have confirmed that this substance has a significant effect of lowering blood pressure, relieving cough and removing phlegm.

② Promote digestion: Plums are acidic, which can increase appetite, promote the secretion of gastric acid and gastric digestive enzymes, and promote gastrointestinal motility. The fatty oil contained in the plum kernel can speed up intestinal motility and promote the discharge of dry stool. Therefore, eating plums can promote digestion and is a good food therapy for those who lack gastric acid, feel full after eating, and have constipation. Recommended reading: Can impotence be treated?

③Clear the liver and promote diuresis: Fresh plum flesh contains various amino acids such as glutamine, serine, glycine, proline, etc., so eating raw plums is very beneficial for the treatment of ascites caused by liver cirrhosis.

④Beauty and skin care: According to the "Compendium of Materia Medica", the flowers of the plum tree can be added to facial cream and have a very good beauty effect. They can "remove powder residue and dark spots" and "make the face radiant". In other words, plum flowers have a good therapeutic effect on tinea versicolor and dark spots on the face.

Anti-aging wine

250 grams of fresh plums, squeeze out the juice, mix it with 250 ml of rice wine, and take it in early summer, 1 small cup each time. This recipe comes from "Shuo Lin". The ancients believed that drinking plum juice wine in summer (Lixia) can make women beautiful, so it is called Zhuyan wine.

Nourishing the stomach and promoting salivation – fresh plum juice

100-120 grams of plums, pitted and crushed, squeezed to extract juice, add a little honey to adjust. This recipe comes from "Sui Xi Ju Diet". It has the effect of clearing liver meridian deficiency heat, nourishing stomach yin and producing body fluid. It can not only be used to treat stomach yin deficiency, but also for people with insufficient qi and yin who are not adapted to the summer heat. Recommended reading: Wrinkled glans with small red spots

Precautions for eating plums

Most people can eat plums. Plums are a good fruit choice for patients with fever, thirst, asthenia, and ascites due to liver disease. Plums have a good therapeutic effect on teachers and actors who use their voices too much and have hoarseness or aphonia. Plums are especially suitable for people with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis. However, patients with ulcers and acute and chronic gastroenteritis should eat less or avoid eating plums. Because plums contain a lot of fruit acid, eating too much will hurt the spleen and stomach, and eating too much can easily cause stomach pain. Eating too many plums can easily cause phlegm and dampness, hurt the spleen and stomach, and easily damage teeth. Therefore, people with spleen deficiency and phlegm and dampness and children should not eat too many plums.

① Plums are suitable for eating raw, squeezing juice, or making soup with dried plums.

②Don’t eat unripe plums.

③ Do not eat too many plums. It is best to eat 4 to 8 plums (about 60 grams) each time.

④ Stewing plums with rock sugar can help moisten the throat and open up the voice.