Jackfruit: Jackful of Health
Look at the nutrition that the jackfruit packs in, starting with beta-carotene,
cued by the beautiful yellow-gold color of its insides. Apart from being one of the most powerful disease-fighting antitoxidants, beta-carotene is also the raw material, which the body converts into Vitamin A, the deficiency of which causes millions of children in developing countries to go blind.
Jackfruit is an excellent source of minerals such as calcium, potassium,
magnesium, and iron. Both calcium and magnesium are vital for healthy bones and teeth, but calcium also helps in clotting of blood, while potassium and magnesium help to lower high blood pressure. The jackfruit is also an excellent source of complex carbohydrates and dietary fibre, making it a great energy food.
The seeds are even more impressive - dietary fibre, Vitamin A, C, and some of the Bs, calcium, zinc, sulfur, and phosphorus, apart from a whole range of antitoxidants, making them the perfect nutritious snack.
Jackfruit is used in Ayurveda, Folk, Unani, and Siddha
medicine. In both Ayurveda and Chinese medicine, the ripe fruit is regarded as a nutritious and cooling tonic. In Malayasia and Philippines, the ash of the leaves is used to heal ulcers, boils and wounds, in Sri Lanka, to treat diabetes. Kanji eaten with 'spoons' made of the leaves is good for respiratory problems! Root, bark, and sap are used for a host of ailments including syphilis, intestinal worms, fever, diarrhoea, skin disease, and asthma. Even the latex is used to heal sores and abscesses, even snakebite.
At last, most surprisingly, it is believed that one of the foods which increases breast milk production in nursing mothers is tender jackfruit !