What is jambo and its benefits

Jambo is a fruit rich in bioactive compounds. But don't confuse with jambu, an herb from Pará.

jambo

Jambo flower in the Botanical Garden of Rio de Janeiro. Edited and resized image by Halley Pacheco de Oliveira, is available on Wikipedia and licensed under CC BY 3.0

Jambo is a fruit that is born from the jambeiro tree and belongs to the family Myrtaceae, which also includes guava, pitanga and eucalyptus. Shaped similar to a pear, the jambo can be found in pink, yellow, white and yellowish-orange.

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The name "jambo" is sometimes confused with the name of a herb typical of the northern region of Brazil, called "jambo", which belongs to the species. Acmella oleracea, also popularly called jamburana. But they are very different vegetables, because jambu is an herb, while jambu is a fruit.

Jambo is composed of 28.2% water, 0.7% protein, 19.7% carbohydrates, vitamins A (beta carotene), B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin) and minerals such as iron and phosphorus. In 100 g of jambo pulp there are 50 calories.

Benefits

jambo

Red jambo flower and fruit not yet ripened. Edited and resized image by Fernando Cunha, available on Wikimedia

It is rich in anthocyanins

the fruits of the family Myrtaceae, like Jambo , have a large amount of anthocyanins, mainly in their bark. These substances are responsible for the red color of the fruit and have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and cardioprotective activity. Learn more about the topic in the article: "Anthocyanin present in red fruits brings benefits".

Serves as a natural pigment in cosmetics

The presence of heavy metals in cosmetic products, such as lead and cadmium in lipsticks, has become a concern, as they can cause adverse effects to consumers in the long term by being applied directly to the skin (learn more about this topic in the article: "Those who use lipstick, shine or lip balm may be ingesting, little by little, heavy metals"). These metals can cause cancer, neurological disorders, disorders in the reproductive system, among other problems. The red-jambo pigment can be a non-toxic alternative for application in the cosmetic industry and come to replace these metals.

A study showed that organic pigment Syzygium malaccense (jambo-red) presented satisfactory results for the production of a lipstick based on Bacuri butter (Insignis Platonia).

Decreases pain perception

O Syzygium jambos (jambo-rose) is a medicinal plant widely used traditionally in sub-Saharan Africa to treat various diseases. The analgesic potential of hydroalcoholic leaf extracts has been evaluated in studies that have shown that they can reduce the perception of cutaneous muscle pain, with a maximum effect (analgesic efficacy) similar to that of morphine. The extract significantly reduced pain with an analgesic efficacy superior to that demonstrated by the drug diclofenac. the extract from Syzygium jambos it has notable analgesic effects on cutaneous and deep muscle pain.

Has antimicrobial activity

O red jambo it is traditionally used in sub-Saharan Africa, too, to treat infectious diseases. Acetone and aqueous extracts from the bark of S. jambos were tested for antimicrobial activity in vitro by the agar dilution method in Petri dishes. Both extracts showed activity against the tested microorganisms. They have proven to be particularly effective in Staphylococcus aureus, Yersinia enterocolitica and coagulase-negative staphylococci, among which Staphylococcus hominis, Staphylococcus cohnii and Staphylococcus warneri. These properties seem to be related to the high tannin content, as the elimination of tannins completely suppressed these antimicrobial activities.

It is rich in bioactive compounds

Bioactive compounds are classified into three main groups and help prevent and fight non-communicable chronic diseases, such as: cardiovascular problems, cancer, respiratory problems and diabetes. Among all identified compounds, cyanidin 3-glycoside was the main anthocyanin found in red jambo. This compound is related to protective effects on oxidative stress, in addition to minimizing inflammatory processes and having preventive effects on obesity



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