The Benefits Of Mango

Latin Name : Mangifera Indica

Mango is the national fruit of India, pakistan and the Philippines.

The mango tree is the national tree of Bangladesh.

Mango is called 'Aam' in India.

Mango is also known as the 'King Of Fruits'.

Mango tree is a native to India for over 4000 years and it spread the world over from here. Mango is a widely cultivated fruit in tropical and subtropical regions. The fruit is exported worldwide.

The mango tree grows to a height of about 50 to 60 feet and the branches spread wide. A perennial tree, some have been found to be fruiting even after 300 years.

The ripe mango fruit is available several colours like yellow, orange, yellow and red, green, green and red, purple green etc. The fruit is sweet with various combinations of sweet to sour tastes. The ripe mango gives off a distinct sweet aroma and you can find people sniffing the fruit, before buying mangoes.

India is the biggest producer of mango. Most of it is locally consumed though some of the popular varieties like the 'Alphonso' called 'Hapoos' in India is widely exported. Alphonso is the highest rated mango in quality and the most expensive mango that is available in India.

Some mangoes have hairy, fibrous seeds but most are free of fibre. The fibrous ones are ones commonly sucked and consumed since cutting them is difficult.

Mango skins of some mangoes varieties like 'Langda' etc and the raw mango can cause itching, burning and biting and inflammation of the skin around the mouth due to the anacardic acid content in them. The sap of some mangoes causes these symptoms too because of the caustic nature of the sap.



There are thousands of mango varieties all over the world. In India over 1000 varieties are encountered though one may never have seen more than a dozen due to a person being localised in one place.

In India, the varieties considered best, are :

• Alphonso, Benishan and Kesar in South India.
• Dussheri, Langda and Safeda in North India.

Raw mangoes are used in making chutneys, pickles, dry mango powder called 'amchur' in India. They can also be consumed raw with salt and chillies, juice and nectar are also prepared from it.

Ripe mangoes are usually eaten as a fruit. Other uses are as a mango lassi - a drink made with ripe mango pieces, curd and sugar. A thick juice of mango pulp, milk and sugar called 'aamras' is eaten with Indian flat bread or pooris.

Mangoes are used to make jams, jellies, pickles, smoothies, icecreams, sweet chilli sauce, mango drinks ,milk shakes etc.

The mango tree has very versatile uses. Apart from the fruit offering excellent health benefits, the other parts of the tree like the leaves, bark, trunk etc, in fact, each and every part is used in a variety of applications. Some of the uses are as under.

• Mango leaves are considered auspicious and therefore garlands and runners are made from the leaves and are hung at the entrance and the doorways of the home during the Hindu new year, diwali, weddings, birth of a child etc.
• The mango seed kernels are an ingredient of poultry and cattle feeds. They are soaked first and then dried to a 10% moisture level before incorporation in the feeds.
• The mango seed is high in stearic acid which is a fat used in making soap. The seed residue after fat extraction is used in cattle feed and as an additive to enhance the quality of soil.
• The bark contains 15 to 20 % tannin which is used for tanning hides. It also yields a yellow dye.
• A resinous gum is also obtained from the trunk of the mango tree and used in mending crockery in Africa. In India, the gum is used as a substitute for gum arabic.
• Mango wood is used for making furniture, carving, wood panelling etc after seasoning it.

Raw mangoes are green in colour and are an excellent source of Vitamin C and pectin. The sour taste is due to its oxalic acid, citric acid malic acid and succinic acid contents. It is also a good source of vitamin B Complex.

In India and Pakistan, a refreshing summer drink is made from raw mango called 'Panna'. This drink is very cooling and prevents heat stroke and dehydration.

Raw mangoes are pickled too and also used for making jams, sauces, chutneys, dried mango powder and as one of the ingredients used in marination.

Raw mango benefits in gastrointestinal diseases, heatstroke, scurvy. liver dysfunctions, blood disorders etc.

However do not consume more than 1 or 2 raw mangoes everyday and drain the sap before consuming.

A single mango is packed with high levels of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants while at the same time is low in calories.100 gms of sliced mango provides 25% of the daily vitamin A requirement and about of the vitamin C requirement.

Mango is rich in iron, Vit A, E, selenium and soluble dietary fibre, contains no cholesterol or saturated fat and is low in sodium but high in potassium making it healthy for people with heart disorders to consume. Mango has good amounts of copper and some Bcomplex vitamins.

Mango benefits by the number of phytochemicals it contains like lutein, cryptoxanthin, gallic acid, polyphenols, carotenoids and omega 3 & omega 6 polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Mango is the perfect after exercise replenisher of lost salts, vitamins, minerals and energy. Rather than reaching out for an energy drink or vitamin water, reach out for a mango instead. It's much healthier and natural.

In Ayurveda, mango is considered as constitutionally hot. Thus, they are required to be, either cooled in the refrigerator or dipped in cold water for sometime, before they are eaten.

Mango balances the tri doshas of the body, that of Vaat, Pitt and Kapha.

Every part of the mango tree is used in folk and ayurvedic remedies.

• Mango flowers, when dried, are used in controlling diarrhoea, dysentery and diseases of the urinary system.
• The bark is an astringent because of the mangiferene content and is widely used in relieving rheumatic pains & diphtheria.
• The gum resin is used in scabies, on cracks in feet and benefits in syphilis.
• The kernel powder & a decoction is used is used for removing worms and as astringent in diarrhoea, blleeding piles & haemorrhages.
• The extracts of raw fruits, bark, stems & leaves exhibit antibiotic properties.
• The tender leaves of mango benefits indiabetes, the seeds in diarrhoea and many disorders of the female reproductive system.
• Fresh mango bark juice is useful in heavy menstrual bleeding, leucorrhoea, mucus and pus discharge from the uterus and uterine bleeding.
• Among the medicinal properties attributed to mango are it being antiviral, antiseptic, antibacterial, antiparasitic, antitussive, antiasthmatic, expectorant, a tonic, a contraceptive, an aphrodisiac, laxative, beneficial to digestion etc.
• Mango benefits the eyes, memory, in anaemia, helps gain weight.

For Intestinal Worms

Take 1/4 tsp mango seed churan with hot water to get rid of worms.

In Diarrhoea

Grind mango seed with water to make a paste. Apply a thick layer on the navel. It benefits in all types of diarrhoea.

In Dysentery

• Grind mango seed. Add to buttermilk and drink.
• Dry mango leaves in shade. Grind and sieve them fine. Take 1/2 tsp of this 3 times a day with hot water.

Soil Eating

• To stop a child from eating soil, give ground mango seed with water.
• The mango seed can be roasted and eaten also.

For Strong Teeth

Chew fresh mango leaves and spit out after its done. This benefits in bleeding of gums and firms up the loose teeth.

In Tuberculosis

To a cup of mango juice add 60 gms honey. Take twice a day, once in the morning and then in the evening. Also drink cow's milk 3 times daily. Do this for a minimum 21 days.

In Brain Weakness

Take 1 cup mango juice, 1/4th cup milk, 1 tsp ginger juice. Mix well. Add sugar to taste. Take once daily. It benefits in brain weakness, chronic headache, etc. It purifies the blood and strengthens the liver & heart.

In Cholera

Take 25 gms tender mango leaves and grind them. Add 200 ml water to them. Boil till 100 ml water remains. Give this to drink twice.

In Piles

Take 1 cup juice of a sweet mango, 25 gms sweet curd and 1 tsp ginger juice. Mix all and drink. This is 1 dose. Take 3 such doses thrice a day. It benefits in chronic diarrhoea too.

To Strengthen Digestive Power

Fibrous mangoes are more beneficial and correct indigestion. Drinking milk after sucking on a mango gives strength to the intestines. Mango cleans the stomach, strengthens the liver and raises the haemoglobin level of the blood.

Drinking 70 ml juice of a sweet mango with 2 gms ginger powder added to it, in the morning, increases the digestion power.

For Spleen

Take 70 ml mango juice. Add 15 gms honey. drink in the morning daily for 3 weeks.It benefits in swelling of the spleen.
Abstain from sour things during this time.

As Strength Increaser

Mango increases haemoglobin and weight of weak persons, gives energy to the body. One can eat mango murabba also.

As A Beauty Enhancer

Eating mangoes regularly clears the complexion and makes the face glow.

For Dry Cough

Take a ripe mango and roast it by covering it in hot ash. when it's done cool and suck on it for relief from dry cough.

In Pyorrhoea & Dental Diseases

Brush the teeth with powdered mango seed.

For Burning Sensation In Hands & Feet

Rub the hands and feet with mango flowers.

In Diabetes

• Mix mango & java plum (Syzygium cumin) juice in equal quantities and drink for a few days.
• Dry mango flowers and grind them. Take 1 gm of this with honey daily.

Bites Of Poisonous Insects & Animals

In cases of bite by a rat, monkey, rabid dog, spider, scorpion etc rub am mango seed with water on the bite and apply its paste on the bite. It relieves pain.

In Marasmus (A condition where the muscles waste away)

To 2 tsp of honey add 1 tsp mango powder. Give this to the child to lick twice a day.

For Renal Stone

Dry fresh mango leaves in the shade. Grind them fine. Take 8 gms of this with water which has been kept overnight (not fresh). Take it early in the morning. It benefits in sand like fine stones.

For Sunstroke And Heatstroke

Drink mango panna. (Recipe for making mango panna is given below.)

For Scorpion Bite

Mix equal quantity of mango powder and garlic powder and apply on the bite. It neutralises the poison.

In Insomnia

Eat mango at night and then drink milk. It brings on good sleep.

In Dropsy

Eat 2 mangoes 3 times a day.

In Weakness Of Kidneys

Eat mangoes daily to strengthen the kidneys.

For Menstrual Cramps

Grind some wood of the mango tree. Add 4 parts of water to 1 part of this powder. Boil this for 10 to 15 minutes. When cool strain and drink twice a day for relief. This is mango.

In Skin Diseases Like Scabies

Add lemon juice to the gum og mango tree. Make a paste and apply on the affected area.

In Asthma And Cough And For Wound Healing

Drink mango decoction made as above.

For Amoebiasis

Grind mango seed. Mix with equal quantity of jaggery. Give 2 gms daily to children.

In Enlarged Gall Bladder

Add 25 ml honey to 300 ml mango juice. Take daily.

Overeating Fish

If you overeat fish don't worry about indigestion. Just eat a piece of raw mango to digest it.

Ingredients:

• 2 Pounds raw mangoes
• 3 Pounds sugar
• 1 tsp Lemon juice
• 6 Green cardamoms (seeds only)
• 2-1/2 Cups water
• 1/4 tsp Kewra (screw pine essence)

Method

•Wash and cut mangoes into thick pieces.
•Take a skillet and boil water.•
Add mangoes and boil them on low heat for 4 minutes.
•Remove the slices and dry them on a piece of cloth.
•Add sugar and lemon juice to the boiled water.
•Cook it properly on low flame to form syrup of one thread consistency.
•Add mango slices and cook until they become soft.•Now leave for 12 hours at room temperature
.•Again remove the mangoes and add cardamom seeds to the syrup.
•Boil it for 5 minutes.
•Add mango slices and cook it on low heat for few minutes
.•Remove skillet from the heat and cool.
•Add kewra essence.•

Aam Ka Muraba is ready.

source: http://www.indobase.com/recipes/details/mango-murabba.php

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 or embarking on a new health regime.