Let’s be honest. Everyone looks to stay healthy and good looking without losing the good taste of life. Even though integral wellness is a wonderful achievement that makes you happy once you find it and keep it, if we use healthy and delicious foods in our routine to improve our quality of life with tasty choices, it’s going to be easier to keep those changes, not as a part of a diet but as a lifestyle.

Tamarind is a fruit from the family of the legumes, and its tree grows in tropical and sub-tropical areas. It has several names but the word Tamarind means ‘Indian date’. It has been largely used in India and also around the world because of its flavor and multiple benefits for health. Here next we bring to you the 10 most important facts about its properties.

Nutrients

At first, let’s be clear about which nutrients are the most abundant in tamarind to understand better its multiple effects. In parenthesis the percentage of recommended daily intake in 100 gr of tamarind:

• Calcium (7%)
• Iron (20%)
• Vitamin C (6%)
• Vitamin A (1%)
• Potassium (13%)
• Niacin (12%)
• Phosphorus (16%)
• Magnesium (23%)
• Dietary fiber (13%)

Tamarind against constipation and diarrhea

In folk medicine the laxative effects of tamarind are pretty well known, being maybe the most important use given by ancient cultures from India to Africa. Because of its important (but not excessive) content of dietary fiber, potassium and tartaric acid, it promotes defecation in those people with chronic constipation. In case of diarrhea, it’s suggested to use the leaves of the tamarind plant in infusions.

Good against inflammation

Once again, not only the fruit but also tamarind leaves are a great alternative against inflammatory processes, as acute as also those named low grade inflammation (chronic), being this last one a very important cause of the most of chronic diseases. Maybe the effect isn’t the most notorious or important from tamarind benefits. but it will be useful to add tamarind juice or teas (using no sugar or honey if needed) for your daily routine.

Good antiseptic

This is another of the oldest uses given to tamarind in history, as it has proved to be a great ally against an important disease in tropical zones: malaria. It also works against menaces from viruses, fungus and infections like Aspergillus niger, Escherichia coli, Kelbsiella pneumoniae, Salmonella typhi, among others.

Improve your cardiovascular health with Tamarind

This fruit is very rich in flavonoids and polyphenols, which are excellent for controlling the levels of HDL-LDL (“good” and “bad” cholesterol) and triglycerides in blood. Its seed has also shown a relevant modulatory effect on the immune system, which helps controlling cholesterol levels but also balances your defenses and its impact on your cardiovascular system1.

Protection for your liver

One of the most affected organs in our system due to modern lifestyle is the liver. It has a crucial role on detoxification and digestion, and it’s mandatory to help him as much as possible. Tamarind could be a great choice to take care of the liver and should be taken as regular food in case of liver toxicity induced by alcohol or non-alcoholic fatty liver conditions.

It’s also important to remind that in order to receive the benefits of these and other natural remedies, it’s mandatory not to mix them with refined sugar and allergens like gluten and dairy products (in case you use tamarind for desserts), as this kind of ingredients produce immune reactions –in celiac and lactose intolerants and also in normal people- that won’t allow the body to absorb the benefits of tamarind and other healthy foods.

Tamarind during pregnancy

This delicious fruit has been used by many generations for pregnant women against nauseas, morning sickness and overeating. The laxative effect of tamarind is also another excuse to administrate it constantly, as constipation is a common problem present in the most of would-be mothers. To face or prevent nausea, suck the pulp directly from the fruit. The flavor could be bitter and hard to pass, so seasoning it a bit is suggested.

Having acne? Use tamarind

Eating tamarind has a lot of benefits for your wellness, as the most of health issues we face are directly related to metabolic disorders and chronic inflammation and, the properties of this fruit –as well as many other natural foods do-, act on regulating and shutting down this permanent unbalance, that sometimes cause even damages in our skin, including acne.

Make a homemade tamarind + turmeric paste

In case you have problems related to acne and pimples, there’s an easy solution you can get by yourself, mixing 1 tablespoon tamarind extract, 1 tbsp. yogurt and ½ tsp. pure turmeric powder. These ingredients combined will create a homogeneous paste that you can apply on your face for 10 or 15 minutes. Add this resource to your cutis health care set and your face will be fresher and renewed.

Anti-aging benefits

It’s usual to find a lot of people expending fortunes on beauty products, but some of them ignore or underestimate the power of nature to be ageless. Tamarind consumption is an easy option to stay healthy and young because of its antioxidants that prevent aging. Using a tamarind-based paste on your cutis –as the one we explained before- will directly increase this benefit on your looking.

Tamarind for weight control

Obesity isn’t caused just because of eating too much, but also because of metabolic disorders that impede your body to use energy and fat from food correctly. To face this, we have to keep a physically proactive lifestyle, and also eat healthy food, as organic as possible. Tamarind has shown to regulate lipid metabolism, easing detoxification and correct use of toxic and healthy fat, respectively 2.

Nature can be your best ally to stay healthy and happy. Tamarind is just an example. Visit our blog for more details about how to heal naturally with conscious nourishment, lifestyle, and good music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7YLo7WP8jE

References

1 CY Lim, SM Junit, MA Abdulla, AA Aziz, (2013). In vivo biochemical and gene expression analyses of the antioxidant activities and hypocholesterolaemic properties of Tamarindus indica fruit pulp extract. PloS 2013.

2 KF Azman, Z Amom, A Azlan, NM Esa, RM Ali, ZM Shah, et al. (2012). Antiobesity effect of Tamarindus indica L. pulp aqueous extract in high-fat diet-induced obese rats. J Nat Med, 66 (2)