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Fruit full of Yin
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A symbol of immortality in ancient cultures, the peach also has tremendous medicinal value
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ACCORDING TO Chinese culture, the peach is full of Yin. It is a symbol of femininity and fertility in Oriental cultures. Trade along the Silk Route carried the peach to Greece and Persia, and Western Europe got its peaches from Persia — which explains why the scientific name of the fruit is Prunus persica. The Taoists believe the fruit is a symbol of longevity and immortality, the Romans regarded it as a symbol of Venus, the ancient Egyptians offered peaches to the god of tranquillity and European quacks prescribed the luscious fruit as an aphrodisiac. Peaches are delicious whether cooked, puréed, boiled, canned, roasted and even as jam. But the most nutritious fruit are the ripe ones when eaten raw. About 100 gm of the ripe fruit contains only 38 calories which meets nearly a third of a day's requirement of Vitamin A and a sixth of the daily Vitamin C requirement. The mildly fragrant fruit also contains valuable amounts of B Vitamins, iron and phosphorus. Like all fruits it is low in sodium and rich in potassium. A diet rich in fresh fruit is widely regarded as an important lifestyle measure in the prevention of cancer and heart disease, and the peach is a great, low calorie source of antioxidants and other anti-cancer principles.
Like all members of the prune family, the peach tree contains significant amounts of cyanide compounds. These chemicals are most common in the bark and in the stony seeds. These cyanide glycosides make the peach tree a valuable source of medicinal compounds. Throughout the ages, plants with small amounts of cyanide in them have been widely used to treat various cancers, and the peach has a 2500-year-old history in this respect. Even today, the seeds of stony fruit are a fertile topic of research in anti-cancer therapy. Peach bark is an ancient Oriental remedy for delayed menstruation. It is also a common folk remedy for cough, stuffy nose, bladder infections, constipation and chest pain. The bark decoction has an antibiotic effect against a few medically important bacteria.
RAJIV. M
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