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BLACK PEPPER
(Botanical Name
-
Piper nigrum
)
Origin of Herbs:
Black pepper is
native to Malabar, a region in the Western Coast of South India. Today, this region belongs to the union state Kerala. Pepper is
cultivated since millennia. The wild form has not yet been
unambigously identified, but there are closely related pepper
species in South India and Burma. While black and white pepper were
already known in antiquity, but green pepper (and even more, red
pepper) is a recent invention. The most important producers are
India before Indonesia, which together account for about 50% of the
whole production volume.
Plant family :
Piperaceae .
Parts Used :
Dried fruits
Healing
options:
Common cold & cough:
Black peeper is
beneficial in the treatment of cold and fever. Six
pepper seeds finely ground and mixed in a glass of
warm water along with 6 pieces of Batasha- a variety
of sugar candy, can be taken for a few nights for
good results. In case of acute coryza or cold in the
head, 20 gms pepper boiled in milk with a pinch of
turmeric powder can be used once daily for three
days.
Pepper is an effective remedy for coughs caused due
to throat irritation. Three peepers sucked with a
pinch of caraway seeds and crystal of common salt
provides relief.
Sore throat:
It is commonly used as gargle for sore throat. Very effective in
fever also.
Digestive disorders:
Pepper has a stimulating effect on the digestive
organs and produces an increase flow of saliva and
gastric juices. It is an appetizer and
a good home remedy for digestive disorders. Powdered black pepper,
thoroughly mixed with malted jaggery, may be taken
in the treatment of such conditions. Alternatively,
a quarter teaspoon of pepper powder mixed in thin
buttermilk can be taken during indigestion or
heaviness in the stomach. For better results, an
equal part of cumin powder may also be added to the
buttermilk.
Amnesia:
A pinch of finely ground pepper mixed with honey
taken twice a day is effective in amnesia or
dullness of intellect.
Impotency:
Eating 6 peppers with 4 almonds once daily with
milk, is a nerve-tonic and acts as an aphrodisiac
especially in an impotent person.
Teeth disorders:
Peeper powder and common salt mixture is an
excellent dentifrice. Its daily use prevents dental
caries, foul breath, bleeding from the gums, painful
gums, toothaches and cures the increases
sensitiveness of the teeth. A pinch of pepper powder
mixed with clove oil can be put in the caries to
alleviate toothache.
Muscular
pains:
As an external application, pepper dilates the
superficial vessels and acts as a counter-irritant.
A tablespoon of pepper powder fried in sesame oil
until it is charred can be applied beneficially as
an analgesic liniment for mylagia and rheumatic
pains.
Other uses:
Pepper is most widely used as a condiment, its
flavour and pungency blending well with most savoury
dishes. It is extensively used in pickles, ketchups,
sausages and for seasoning dishes.
Ayurvedic supplements that contains
Black Pepper :
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