HEALTH: HEALTH BENEFITS OF AFRICAN STAR APPLE FRUIT

  Am sure of us as kid or even as adult must have had one beautiful experience or the other with this wonderful juicy fruit.

   African star apple or local cherry fruit as widely known bears different other local names according to different people and tribes. Take for instance in Nigeria,It is popularly known in IGBO land and south eastern part of Nigeria as "udala or udara" while the yoruba's called it 'agbalumo',cherry in English.Furthermore it goes by the name ute for the Igala in kogi state, The hausa's name for it ciwoh.(pronounced chi-wou), then it is called 'kwonkwi' in irigwe  from jos,plateau state.
    This fruit is basically associated with health the dry season and no doubt has been widely enjoyed by Nigerians as a fruit it goes by a botanical name as Chrysophyllum Albidum.
   This fruit is very delicious and has been considered by scientist to be very good and with a lot of health benefits the fleshy pulp of fruits is eaten especially as snacks and its fruit  has been found to have hgiher contents of ascorbic   acid than oranges and guava. it is reported  as an excellent source of vitamins,irons,flavors to diets.seeds are also used for local games and discarded.
  You can easily get this fruit in the marketplace as it has become a source of income to the people living mostly in the rural areas you will see both adult and children savoring the great taste of this indigenous fruit but have you ever bothered to know the health benefits of this fruit.
   Well in case you not aware, the fruit is highly nutritional and can help take care of some diseases.

HEALTH BENEFITS;
1.     This fruit is a natural remedy for headache,constipation,sore throat,drug resistance bacteria,constipation and much more. 
2.     According to researchers,the bark of the tree is used traditionally to treat malaria and yellow fever,While the leaves are used in the treatment of wounds,stomachache and diarrhea
3.     African star apple fruit has  been suggested to contain more vitamin c than oranges and guava;the fruit is also rich in calcium terpenoids,iron potassium,phosphorous, flavonoids, magnessium, tannins and phytochemicals.
4.    When the fruit is consumed for its flesh,it lowers blood sugar and cholesterol   prevent and treat heart diseases.
5.    Still on the benefits,some researchers have gone far to say the cotyledons from the seed of this star apple are used as ointments in teratment of vaginal and dermatological infections in Nigeria.
6.   the fruit is known to have anti-oxidant properties that help fight against cancer and treatment of diabetes.