This post will provide information on "What are the health benefits of Ube fruit or African pear (Dacryodes edulis)?" as well as provide answers to questions like: What's the English name for Ube? What is UBE in Yoruba? What is the health benefit of Ube fruit? What is the scientific name of butter pear? What is the English name for UBE fruit? What does native Pear do to the body? Is African pear good for diabetics? Is Yam good for health? What does Ube do to the body? Is Ube high in cholesterol? What does native pear give to the body? What is the English name for Ube?
Dacryodes edulis is a fruit tree native to Africa, sometimes called safou (Cameroon), atanga (Equatorial Guinea and Gabon), ube (Nigeria), African pear, bush pear, African plum, nsafu, bush butter tree, or butterfruit. Dacryodes edulis is an evergreen tree attaining a height of 18–40 meters in the forest but not exceeding 12 meters in plantations. It has a relatively short trunk and a deep, dense crown. The bark is pale gray and rough with droplets of resin. The leaves are a compound with 5-8 pairs of leaflets. The upper surface of the leaves is glossy. The flowers are yellow and about 5 mm across. They are arranged in a large inflorescence. The fruit is an ellipsoidal drupe which varies in length from 4 to 12 cm. The skin of the fruit is dark blue or violet, whereas the flesh is pale to light green. The tree flowers at the beginning of the rainy season and bears fruits during 2 to 5 months after flowering. There are two variants of Dacryodes edulis: D. e. var. edulis and D. e. var. parvicarpa. The fruit of D. e. var. edulis is larger and the tree has stout, ascending branches. D. e. var. parvicarpa has smaller fruit and slender, drooping branches. The preferential habitat of D. edulis (Safou)is a shady, humid tropical forest. However, it adapts well to variations in soil type, humidity, temperature and day length. The natural range extends from Angola in the South, Nigeria and Sierra Leone in the West and Uganda in the East. It is also cultivated in Malaysia.
The wood of D. edulis is elastic, greyish-white to pinkish. The wood has general use for tool handles, and occasionally for mortars, and is suitable for carpentry. The main use of D. edulis is its fruit, which can be eaten either raw, cooked in salt water or roasted. Cooked flesh of the fruit has a texture similar to butter. The pulp contains 48% oil and a plantation can produce 7-8 tons of oil per hectare. The fat content of this fruit is much higher compared to fruits such as apple, guava, and pawpaw. It is also rich in vitamins. The kernel can be used as fodder for sheep or goats. The flowers are useful in apiculture.
One cup (100 grams) of cooked ube provides the following:
- Calories: 140
- Carbs: 27 grams
- Protein: 1 gram
- Fat: 0.1 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 0.83% of the Daily Value (DV)
- Potassium: 13.5% of the DV
- Calcium: 2% of the DV
- Iron: 4% of the DV
- Vitamin C: 40% of the DV
- Vitamin A: 4% of the DV
- Prevents constipation
- Ube also contains a lot of soluble fibre which reduces absorption of cholesterol and bile acid from the small intestines, thereby reducing blood cholesterol level
- Ube also helps to improve the texture of your skin by making it smoother and reducing wrinkles
- The African pear also contains a lot of calcium and phosphorus; minerals found mainly in the bones and teeth of our body
- Ube has also been known to prevent stiff joint and bone pain
- Studies in the last threee decades has shown a direct link between an increased fibre in-take which is containes in Ube and a decrease in Colon cancer which could be due to the fibre contained or other nutrients like vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and essential fatty acid
No side effects of Ube the African pear fruit has been diagnosed so far. It can be eated by the young, old, and even the elderly. It is very good for pregnant women as well.