Benefits Of Black Pepper And Peppercorns

Latin Name : Piper nigrum



Also called "King Of Spices" black pepper is native to India and it spread to Europe, Middle East and North Africa from here. It has a history of at least 4000 years of use.

The plant is cultivated for its fruit which is used as spice after drying. The fruit is called peppercorn when dried and is normally black to dark red. Green pepper is the unripe form of black pepper.

Peppercorns and ground pepper are also used as medicine. Black pepper is the world's most traded spice.

Black peppers were once used as a currency.

The compound piperine in pepper causes sneezing as it irritates the nostrils.

The following varieties are available:

Black Pepper

It is produced from green unripe peppercorns by heating them in water for sometime. During this heating the cell walls rupture releasing enzymes that make the peppercorns dark while they undergo drying. The peppercorns are dried in the sun or in a machine. The seed shrinks and darkens to a shrivelled and wrinkled form.

Pepper oil and Pepper spirit are extracted from these dried peppercorns.

Pepper oil is used for massage and some herbal therapies.
Pepper spirit is used in medicinal and cosmetic preparations and also in the coke we drink.

White Pepper

When the dark coloured skin of the peppercorn is removed we get white pepper.
White pepper is used in Chinese cooking and in light coloured sauces, salads and mashed potatoes. White pepper has a somewhat different flavour than the black pepper due to the absence of certain compounds which are in the removed skin.

Green Pepper

This is also made from unripe green peppercorns by treating them either sulphur dioxide or freeze drying, canning or pickling them in vinegar or brine. Fresh green peppers are used in some Asian cuisines.

Orange & Red Pepper

True red peppercorns are very rare. They are the fully ripe fruit which are left on the vine till they turn yellow with a red blush.The ripe red peppercorns are either preserved in vinegar or brine. They are dried as done for green peppers.

Black pepper is the most pungent of all the varieties.

Black peppercorns contain an essential oil, piperine, an alkaloid which increases the absorption of selenium, Bcomplex vitamins and beta carotene from food.
They also contain good amounts of potassium,calcium, zinc, manganese, iron, magnesium and vitamins Bcomplex, C,and A and flavonoids like carotene, crypto xanthin, zea xanthin and lycopene.

Black pepper relieves a variety of health problems like constipation & diarrhoea, heat diseases, earache, hernia, gangrene, hoarseness, insect bites, insomnia, joint pains, liver and lung problems, abscesses, dental diseases, loss of appetite.

It is used in traditional Indian medicine for relief in throat problems and respiratory afflictions. It induces urination in weak kidney function.

In Migraine

Chew 12 gms black pepper and drink 30 ml pure ghee after this.

In Fever

A. If there is body pain, weakness, chilliness, crush 20 black peppercorns and boil in 200 ml of water till 50 ml of water remains. Drink this as hot as you can. Take this morning and evening.

B. Crush 5 black peppercorns, 5 Tulsi leaves, 1 clove, little ginger and 1 cardamon and add to the water used to prepare tea. Drink this thrice a day to reduce fever.

In Cough & Phlegm In Throat

Crush 30 black peppercorns and boil in 2 cups of water till 1/4 th water remains. Strain and add 1 tsp honey. Drink in morning and evening for benefit.

In Phlegm

Crush 10 black peppercorns & 15 tulsi leaves. Add 1tsp honey. Lick this 3 times a day. It helps to remove the collected phlegm and clears the throat.

In Gas

Swallow 10 crushed black peppercorns with hot water in which lemon juice has been added, 2 times a day. It helps to stop gas formation.

In Intestinal Worms

Crush 1 gm black peppercorns and take with buttermilk to eliminate worms.

In Dysentery

Take 10 crushed peppercorns with water for relief.

In Dandruff And Head Lice

Take 6 black peppercorns and 12 seeds of custard apple. Grind them with some water. Add ghee to this and apply on the scalp at night. Wash in the morning. It helps to remove lice and dandruff and increases hair growth.

Caution:

Do not allow this mixture to get into the eyes. Keep eyes shut while washing hair and wash hair thoroughly with a lot of water.

In Cough- Dry & Wet

A. Keep a black peppercorn and mishri (Candy Sugar) in the mouth and suck on this. It clears the throat too.

B. Take equal quantities of blac kpeppercorns & mishri. Grind them. Add just enough ghee to make pea sized pills from this mixture. Suck on these pills for relief.

C. Take 10 crushed peppercorns. Add honey and lick this 2 times a day. At night add crushed peppercorns to hot milk and drink.

D. Add hot ghee 1 tsp to 10 crushed peppercorns and lick this for relief.

E. Take 5 peppercorns and 1/4 th tsp crushed dry ginger. add 1tsp honey.Lick this twice a day.

F. Add 1 tsp ground black pepper to 60 gms jaggery and make pea sized pills. Suck 1 pill morning and evening.It benefits in all types of cough.

In Cough & Gas

Boil 10 black peppercorns in a glass of water & drink.

To Improve Semen Quality

Boil 10 peppercorns in 250 gms milk. Cool and strain. Eat the peppercorns first and then drink the milk.

To Increase Memory

In 30 gms butter add 8 black peppercorns and sugar. Licking this will benefit in improving memory and relieving brain weakness.

In Vertigo

Crush 12 black peppercoorns and fry in ghee. Strain the ghee. Add wheat flour to the ghee. Cook till it turns brown. Add sugar or jaggery to make a mixture. Add the fried peppercorns. Eat this before taking meals once in the morning & once in the evening for some time. It relieves vertigo.

In Mouth Ulcers

Take 15 peppercorns & 30 raisins. Chew together for relief.

In Ringworm & Itching

Grind 5 gm black peppercorns with 1/2 tsp cow's ghee.

In Boils

Applying black pepper crushed in hot water on the boils suppresses boil formation.

In Hiccups & Headaches

Prick a pin in a black peppercorn and burn the pepper. Inhale the smoke released. It stops hiccups & headaches due to wind in the body.

In Facial Pimples

Grind 20 black peppercorns in rose water. Apply on the pimples at night. Wash in the morning with hot water. This removes pimples, wrinkles and clears the face.

In Indigestion

Take equal parts of black pepper, caraway seeds, black salt, dry ginger and seeds of the Fig tree.. Grind all together. Take 1/2 tsp after meals in theafternoon and night. It helps in digesting food.

It is made from the unripe red peppercorns. It is a stong and spicy smelling light amber to yellow green oil of watery consistency. The oil is made in India, Singapore and Malaysia.

The oil is mainly used in relieving pain due to arthritis and rhuematism, aches, to increase circulation, in cold and flu, as a nerve tonic and in fevers. It also helps in digestion.

Black pepper should be freshly ground and added at the very end of cooking to reduce the loss of beneficial essential oils.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this hub is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your physician, or health care provider before taking any home remedies or supplements.