Facts About African Pear And Its Effects On Your Health “corn butter”

African pear is a seasonal fruit that is harvested and made available during the rainy season. It begins to bear fruits within 5-7 years after cultivation.

It is enjoyed when cooked, or soaked in hot water and it is packed with a lot of health benefits.

It can also be eaten raw but been cooked makes it soft, easy to chew and that is when you enjoy the buttery nature of the pear. It is eaten with cooked or roasted corn as corn is also harvested during its season.

African pear should be kept in a container that air can easily enter because of heat which causes spoilage. It easily gets soft and also gets spoil.

African pear has a pink color when unripe and turns dark purple when ripe. The pear is oval-shaped and has a small seed inside covered by its buttery fleshy part.

African pear plants have green leaves throughout the year. The botanical name for African pear is Dacryodes edulis. Its origin is from the Eastern part of Nigeria. It is dominant in other parts of Nigeria and other countries where it is called different names.

The Igbos refer to it as Ube, the South Western part of Nigeria refers to it as Eleme, Cameroon refers to it as Safou. It is also referred to as African plum in some countries and bush pear or butter fruits in other countries.

The African pear contains minerals such as phytochemicals (chemical compounds produced by plants to help thrive competitors and predators). It also contains vitamins, proteins, fats, and oil.

African pear is soft, moist, sweet, and a pleasant fruit packed with numerous health benefits.

It acts as an agent that kills microorganisms or stop their growth, It prevents complications of high blood pressure such as stroke, It increases the amount of water and salt expelled from the body as urine.

Ube has a high heat of respiration, that is, it converts one form of energy to another thereby generating waste. This is the major reason why African pear easily get damaged by heat.

Some Health Benefits of African Pear

Healthy skin

African pear contains vitamins and very rich in oils that provide nutrients that might be missing from your daily diet.

The purple fleshy parts contain oil and butter that are good for skin health according to nutritionists.

It contains antioxidants that keep the skin shinning and glowing free from skin diseases.

Remedy for high blood pressure

African pear which is commonly used to eat corn and hence the name “corn butter” has been known to help regulate blood pressure. It contains a good amount of potassium which helps fight against high blood pressure and the occurrence of stroke.

The right fruit for a pregnant woman

One of the nutrients required by a pregnant woman is folic acid which is needed for the brain and spinal cord development of the fetus. This fruit contains this nutrient and hence every pregnant woman should consider taken it regularly.

Bowel movement

African pear help prevent the difficult passage of stool that persists for several weeks or longer i.e. infrequent bowel movement. It makes the stooling process easier and it is also rich in fiber.

Helps in teeth maintenance

Bush pear contains nutrients that kill microorganisms or stop their growth in the mouth thereby preventing toothache, tooth decay, and mouth odor.

It contains phosphorus and calcium. They serve as an important function to keep the gums and jaw strong. Phosphorus deficiency leads to chipping and breaking teeth in adults and children.

Calcium is important to promote strong and healthy bone formation.

Used in treating wounds

The peels of African pear is used by traditional healers to cure wounds/injuries such as rashes, ringworms, etc.

Helps boost the immune system

The presence of vitamin C in African pear contribute to immunity defense by supporting the various cellular function of both innate and adaptive immune system.

Vitamin C in African pear helps to fight against diseases and infections that may lead to system break down.

The body can only fight against diseases and infection when it has strong immunity and that’s what vitamins present in African pear builds (strong immunity).

Helps in protein synthesis

Vitamin B5 present in Bush pear is essential for fatty acid metabolism as well as synthesize and metabolize proteins in the body.