4 Amazing Health Benefits of Palm Fruit

Palm fruit is an amazing, tasty summer fruit that solves all the problems due to intense heat. It is called nungu in Tamil, tadgola in Marathi and tari in Hindi. I have fond childhood memories of palm fruit.

Every summer, me and my sister used to stay in my aunts house for a month during our summer holidays. I love to go and visit my aunt and uncle, I will be usually waiting for my summer holidays to go there. Like the rest of the family, my uncle (now he is no more) was an agriculturist and lived in a village. The village is so remote that people have to walk for 15 minutes to come to the main road to catch a bus, but for me it was like heaven. The highlight of the holiday was palm fruit, there are a lot of palm trees in my uncle’s farm and whole summer will be spent eating tender palm fruit along with my playmates there.

Usually the palm fruits are cut before the rains, else the fruits will become hard, we call it kalikottai in Tamil. In the cities, the whole outer covering is removed and sold, and I find that it is usually a bit on the firmer side, as the vendors need mature fruits for the flesh to stay intact, when they are peeling the whole fruit. But what we usually do is cut the top part of the palm fruit, so that the three holes with the flesh is visible. We keep the fruit near our mouth and scoop out the flesh with our fingers and eat it just like that. It sounds messy but trust me, it tastes heavenly as the fruit is usually very tender, though it need a little bit of practice to scoop out the flesh without spilling. I don’t remember a single summer getting boils or falling sick due to the intense heat though we used to play out the whole day. I think it is because of eating plenty of natural summer fruits like palm fruit. Palm fruit, apart from taking internally can be applied externally on the skin too. Palm fruit treats acidity, constipation, is full of nutrients and treats prickly heat very effectively. When buying palm fruit always make sure to buy the tender fruit, as over ripe fruits will be hard to digest and will cause stomach problems.

1.PALM FRUIT FOR ACIDITY:

This recipe made with fresh palm fruit tastes wonderful. It is one of the best home remedies for treating stomach burn. If you have stomach burn during summer, try this drink for a few days, you will feel better in no time. This drink is very nutritious, as it is made with palm candy. Palm candy is rich in vital nutrients and minerals, it is very high on Vitamin B12. To make this drink, pound palm candy and green cardamom pods in a mortar and pestle. Peel the outer skin of the palm fruit and cut it into very small pieces. Boil whole milk in a pan and once it comes to boil, add the pounded palm candy and cardamom mixture. Let it dissolve, once dissolved switch off the flame. Add the finely cut Palmyra fruit to the milk and let it cool. If you don’t want to use cows milk, it can be done with coconut milk, which is even more effective for treating ulcers. But make sure to boil it in low flame, else the coconut milk will split. You can also use a combination of both cows milk and coconut milk. This drink can be refrigerated and used for 2 to 3 days. Palm fruit is full of nutrients and is rich in B vitamins, calcium, iron and phosphorous. This drink is very easy to digest and is full of nutrients that are very quickly absorbed by the body making it the perfect summer treat. However always try to get the tender fruit, as it is easily digestible and mature fruits will also be hard to bite into. Palm fruit keeps the body hydrated during hot summer and replenishes the body of nutrients lost due to intense heat, thus preventing tiredness which is very common during hot summer months. 

2. PALM FRUIT FOR HEAT RASHES:

During hot summer months, many suffer from heat rashes, including babies and children. The Palmyra fruit is a very good remedy for heat rashes and heat boils, as it is very cooling. We make a poultice out of it, to use it on the rashes and boils. Since the fruit is so cooling, it greatly helps in reducing the heat rash very quickly. The Palmyra fruit is very soothing on the skin and when applied externally, helps to reduce the itchiness that accompanies heat rash. To make the poultice, first take a 100 {30e6b8360db511af0e1f77984c542ff30ea10c4b009d596ff6d5f40eac675d71} pure cotton cloth and sterilize it by boiling it in water. Squeeze out the water and let the cloth cool to room temperature. Now take the fruit and peel the outer skin on top. Grind the fruit to a pulp in a mixer and spread it on the cloth. Apply this poultice on the affected area and wait for 15 to 20 minutes before removing the cloth. You can use this Palmyra fruit poultice safely on young babies too.

3. PALM FRUIT FACE PACK:

Palm fruit also can be used to make face packs that is perfect for summer, a perfect summer spa treat! This face pack treats redness of the face due to intense heat, this face pack is so very cooling and refreshes the face immediately after using it. To make the face pack, take pure sandalwood bark and rub it into a paste using a sandalwood stone. Now grind a fresh palm fruit after removing the outer shell finely using little coconut water. Mix both palm fruit paste and sandalwood paste and mix well. To use, apply a thin coat on your face and wait for it to dry before washing it off. This face pack is best for summer and it prevents boils, prickly heat and redness of the face. This face pack also can be used by people with very sensitive skin. After going out in the sun, if you have a burning sensation in the face, make this face pack and apply it, you will find good relief. This pack is also ideal after long hours of trekking, outdoor playing and running.

4. PALM FRUIT FOR PAINFUL URINATION:

During peak summer, many suffer from painful urination. This simple and tasty drink will take care of the problem very effectively. Take around 3 peeled tender palm fruits in a blender add around 3 cups of fresh coconut water and whiz together. Don’t grind it to a fine paste, it should have some very tiny pieces of the palm fruit. If you feel the sweetness is not enough, add palm candy (seen in the picture above) while blending. This drink is an amazing summer drink that keeps our body hydrated and free from infections during summer time, the left overs can be stored in the refrigerator. This drink is full of minerals, vitamins and iron. Adding palm candy will increase the iron content in the drink. This is also a perfect sports drink that will hydrate and replenish the body of minerals and vitamins very quickly. If you like it cold, add few ice cubes while blending but I prefer to chill it after blending, as I don’t want to thin the mixture down with ice cubes. Heat strokes are very common in India, if you consume a lot of palm fruit, it will prevent the body from getting dehydrated easily. During summer months, stock up on this fruit, preferably as a whole fruit so that it can be stored for a long time. When you want to eat, cut the top part off and scoop pout the flesh and eat. If you buy it already opened and peeled, it will spoil faster, so always store in the refrigerator. Encourage young children to consume this fruit often before going out to play in the hot sun. 





Stay healthy and positive! Share and make your loved ones aware!

Source: Wild Turmeric