Kokum butter is a wonderful solution to be used on the skin. The butter has many amazing properties that greatly benefit the skin and even more when they are used in combination with certain other substances.
The Kokum tree is a tropical evergreen fruit tree that provides culinary, industrial and medicinal uses especially in ayurvedic and eastern medicines. The trees are found in the forests of Goa in India. The dried outer skin is used as a culinary spice. The seeds, fruits, and extracted oils of and are used in curries and syrups. The bark and young leaves provide astringent benefits.
Kokum (botanical name: Garcinia indica), is a deep purple fruit that is very similar to Mangosteen. The tree is native to the Western Ghats and Konkan regions of India and the fruit is commonly used in west-Indian cuisines. Various parts of the tree such as the seeds and bark of the root are used in Ayurvedic preparations since they offer a myriad of health benefits.
Dried Kokum fruit rinds are widely used in cooking as they impart a sweetish-tangy flavor to the food. The fruits contain –
- Ctric acid
- Acetic acid
- Malic acid
- Ascorbic acid
- Hydroxycitric acid
- Garcinol
Kokum fruits contain rich amounts of anti-oxidants that bind with free radicals and prevent oxidative damage to body cells. They also promote cell regeneration and repair.
Kokum juice is especially popular during scorching summer months as it has a cooling effect on the body and shields the body against dehydration and sunstroke. It also helps in bringing down fever and allergic reactions.
Kokum seeds contain a high percentage of oil that freezes to form Kokum butter. Kokum butter is extensively used in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry as it works wonders on dry, chapped, sensitive, irritated or burnt skin.
Kokum butter is rapidly gaining popularity over cocoa butter as an intensive skin moisturizer.Due to its soothing and healing properties, it is also applied directly to wounds and infected areas on the skin. Kokum butter is rich in healthy fats like stearic and oleic acids and can also be used as edible oil.
Extracts from the Kokum fruit are traditionally used to relieve gastric problems like acidity, flatulence, constipation and indigestion.
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