|
Eggplant is a pulp type vegetable. There
are small sesame like seeds in the pulp. Today you can find eggplants
that are long and thin, short and fat and also round and comes in many
hues: pure white, green, yellow, purple or almost black.
In terms of nutrition, the eggplant is
rich in vitamin A and phosphorus compared to other vegetables. It also
contains vitamins B1, B2 and C.
Dieters should love eggplant, being low
in calories and fat and yet contain ample amounts of protein, iron,
calcium, sodium, niacin and B vitamins. 100 grams eggplant contains
1.7 mg protein, o.1 mg fat, 1.5 mg calcium, 2.0 mg phosphorus, 0.6 mg
iron, 9 mg sodium, 15 mcg vitamin A, 0.07 mg Vitamin B1, 0.05 mg
vitamin B2, 0.7 mg niacin and 18.4 mg vitamin C.
The unripe eggplant is believed to be
cardio tonic (stimulates the heart), able to improve the appetite as
well as enrich the blood. The ripe eggplant is taken by some people as
a laxative.
A paste of the leaves or a decoction of
the roots is used to treat syphilis, a contagious venereal disease, or
applied on wounds. The ashes of eggplant are used (in a dry hot
poultice) on hemorrhoids. The pounded roots are applied inside the
nostrils for ulcers.
Eggplant may also lower blood pressure
and can be cooked with various methods and without the side effects of
taking medicine. |