Cluster fig which is also called Ficus racemosa belongs to the family Moraceae. In India, this tree is believed sacred and is well known as Gular tree or Indian fig tree. It is native to Australia, South East Asia, Southeast China, and India. It grows in clusters that measure about 10-35 m long. It is a great vitamin supplement and is considered as a traditional medicine due to laxative properties, sugars, vitamins C and A, enzymes, and acids.

Cluster Figs (Ficus racemosa), also called Cluster Fig, Cluster Tree, Cluster Fig Tree, Goolar Fig, Country Fig, and Redwood Fig, is a medium-sized tree native to the Indian Subcontinent, Southern China, Southeast Asia, Papua New Guinea to Northern Australia Northern Territory, North of Western Australia and Queensland. It is also introduced to other tropical regions in South America. Udumbara, Nayodumbara, and Phalgu are the three varieties of Cluster figs. The tree bears a subglobose and pyriform fruit of about 2.5-5 cm diameter. The bark has a thickness of about 8-10 mm.

Plant

Cluster fig is an erect, laticiferous, deciduous, and evergreen tree which grows upto 25-30 m in height with a trunk diameter of 60-90 cm. It has long, irregular and brownish roots. The bark is smooth, greyish to brownish which has 8-10 mm as a thickness. Leaves are alternate, elliptic to obovate in a pale green of size 10-14 × 3-7 cm. Fruits are subglobose and pyriform shaped which has 2.5-5 cm as a diameter in dull reddish to dark crimson. Each fruit has lenticular seeds of 1 mm long.

Nutritional value

The serving size of 100 grams covers 81.9 grams of water, 1.3 grams of protein, 0.6 grams of total fat, 0.6 grams of ash, 0.21 grams of nitrogen, and no carbohydrate. It covers 30.77% of Vitamin B2, 16.25% of Iron, 11.11% of Copper, 10.81% of Potassium, 8.335 of Magnesium, 7.20% of Calcium, and 6.71% of Phosphorus.

Health Benefits of Cluster fig

Cluster fig is loaded with various medicinal properties which is beneficial for the health. It consists of phytochemicals that help to prevent and aid the diseases. It is used to treat muscular pain, pimples, boils, cuts, hemorrhoids, etc. It is anti-diabetic, antioxidant, anti-asthmatic, antiulcer, anti-diarrheal, and anti-pyretic action. The juice extracted from the fruit is used to treat hiccups.

1. Production of RBC

Vitamin B2 is required to produce fresh red blood cells as well as antibodies in the body which helps to increase the oxygenation and circulation to the various organs of the body. (1)

2. Prevent anemia

Iron helps to cure anemia which is experienced by women during menstruation or pregnancy. The lost red blood cells should be replaced with new red blood cells for which one should consume an adequate amount of iron which is essential for the women in that point. Anemia is caused due to a deficiency of iron in the human body. About millions of people in the world are suffering from anemia. It has become a common problem. (2)

3. Mental performance

An adequate amount of iron helps one to provide energy and focus concentration which helps to enhance mental and cognitive performance. It helps to increase the blood flow to the brain due to the activity of iron’s red blood cells. (3)

4. Sleeping disorders

Iron helps to treat insomnia and enhance sleeping quality and habits by regulating circadian rhythms. Due to the proper count of red blood cells, it leads to the fluctuation in blood pressure which could be a cause for awakening at night. (4)

5. Produces energy

Copper is required for the adenosine triphosphate synthesis which is a storehouse of energy in the human body. The intracellular production of energy is affected by the cytochrome c oxidase and cuproenzyme. It performs as a catalyst that helps to reduce the molecular oxygen to water, during those enzymes produce the electrical gradient which is used by mitochondria in order to synthesize the important energy-storing molecule called ATP. The adequate amount of copper in the body assists in the proper functions and energy without having the feel of tired or lethargic. (5)

6. Enhance immunity

Copper is essential for the healing process and promotes the healing of wounds. It builds immunity and acts as an aid for anemia, which permits the body to heal and defend faster. It is essential for the enzymatic processes that help in the endothelial growth or the tissue healing process. (6)

7. Prevent stroke

Potassium plays a vital role in maintaining brain functions. The high amount of potassium allows the body to transport oxygen to the brain by enhancing neural activities and raising cognitive functions. It helps to prevent stroke in the brain. It performs as a vasodilator that relaxes the blood vessels. It assists in the free flow of blood and prevents the chances of breaking off and clotting that causes strokes. (7)

8. Muscle problems

It assists in the regular contraction of muscles. Adequate levels of potassium are essential for the relaxation and contraction of muscles. The potassium ions are located in the muscle cells in the human body. It maintains the nerve and muscle function and reflexes fast as it promotes the neural connectivity of the brain and muscles. (8)

9. Heart ailments

Magnesium prevents irregular heartbeats and reduces the damage to the heart due to muscle stress. It soothes the nerves, digestive processes which help to prevent the problems such as cramps, vomiting, abdominal pain, indigestion, flatulence, and constipation. The deficiency of magnesium could result in harmful results. (9)

10. Prevent cramps

Magnesium helps to relax the kidney stress, back muscles, and muscular tension. It assists in calcium absorption which helps to heal the bones faster. The deficiency of magnesium shows the symptoms of leg cramps and general fatigue. The adequate intake of magnesium helps to aid the chronic leg cramp ailments. (10)

Traditional uses

• The decoction made with the mixture of 250 gm, 1 gm phulkari, and 3 gm catechu is used to gargle that effectively treats any sort of mouth problems.
• The gum paste is applied to treat the swelling of ears, muscles caused due to inflammations.
• The eruptions on leaves should be ground with 3-4 gm of milk which is strained and mixed with honey. The patient should be given this mixture twice a day which helps to prevent the pus in the boils and treats.
• The eruptions should be ground with honey and sugar which should be provided once a day. This helps to cure Multinodular tuberculosis.
• With the help of cotton, place its milk on the sinus. The cotton should be changed regularly. This remedy helps to treat the sinus in a few days.
• The intake of fruits helps to treat stomach pain.
• About 5 to 10 ml of juice should be provided to the Leucorrhoea patient twice a day along with sugar candy.
• The milk which is infused with fruits of Cluster fig should be consumed with meals. This prevents abortion and stimulates the fetus’s growth.
• 10-15 ml of ground bark of Cluster fig should be cooked in 250 ml of water. It should be cooked till the water becomes half. The strained solution should be added 1.5 gm of white cumin seed powder and sugar candy. It should be given twice a day. This helps to treat Metrorrhagia.
• Honey should be added to the ground leaves of Cluster fig. This paste helps to cure Pitta.
• Patients with bronchial asthma and bronchitis should consume the fruits by making a squash. It is helpful for them.
• The dried peel of Cluster fig’s fruits should be ground and sugar candy should be mixed with it. People with urinary disorders should be given 6-6 gm of this powder along with the cow’s milk twice a day.
• In India, this plant is used to cure diarrhea, dysentery, stomachache, diabetes, and piles and is used as a carminative, anticancer, and antioxidant agent.
• Fruits are considered astringent, carminative, and stomachic which provides relief from diarrhea, dysentery and treats diabetes.
• The paste made from the fruit paste is an aid for visceral obstruction, constipation and regulates diarrhea.
• Seed paste is used to cure measles, smallpox, and diarrhea.
• The mixture of powdered leaves powdered and honey is used to cure bilious infections, diarrhea, and dysentery and used as a mouth wash.
• Cow milk and leaf latex are mixed which is useful for boils, measles, and blisters.
• The juice of leaf juice is used to massage hair.
• The infusion made from leaves is used to treat menorrhea.
• The traditional healers use the milky sap as an anti-inflammatory agent for mumps and inflammation.
• The milky sap is used to treat diarrhea, stomach ache, piles, dysentery, and cholera.
• Bark has astringent properties which are used internally to treat menorrhagia, dysentery, and hemoptysis.
• The decoction made from the bark is used to treat various skin ailments, diabetes, and ulcers.
• It is used as a poultice in inflammatory boils/ swellings, burns.
• The powdered stem bark is used to enhance milk secretion for lactating mothers.
• In Sri Lanka, the paste made from stem bark is used to cure skeletal fracture.
• In Thailand, the root is used to cure dysentery and pyresis.
• The sap of root sap is used as an aid for chronic wounds, heatstroke, and malaria.
• It is used in Ayurveda to treat fractured bones, heavy periods, and diabetes.
• The topical application of latex is applied on boils, cuts, muscular pains, scabies, pimples, and hemorrhoids.
• The paste of tender leaf buds is applied to the skin to enhance the complexion.
• The plant is considered to be anti-diabetic, astringent, anti-asthmatic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiulcer, anti-diarrheal, and anti-pyretic properties.
• The unripe fruit bark and leaves provide relief from flatulence, stimulate appetite, assist digestion and eliminate parasitic worms.
• The bark of Cluster fig is ground on a stone with water which is applied to the swollen areas.
• In India, the paste is made from the bark rubbed on stone with which helps to cure boils and mosquito bites.
• It helps to cure asthma, bronchitis, laryngitis, spleen, and kidney diseases.
• The tree milk helps to eliminate the pain caused due to hand and feet blisters.
• In bleeding gums and mouth ulcers, the gurgles with the extract of the bark are very helpful.
• The figs are added to the side dishes and preserves as a vegetable.
• The stem bark was used as an ingredient in Nutra tea to have a beneficial effect.
• The paste made with the inner side of the bark is applied to the freckles and pimples. It helps to reduce them effectively.
• The application of the paste made with the Cluster fig and honey helps to maintain the skin tone.
• The intake of 10-15 ml of juice extracted from Cluster fig helps to cure dysentery.
• Stomach aches could be treated if the Cluster fig is consumed with ajwain and rock salt.
• The latex should be applied on the heels to have smooth and supple feet.
• Cook 400 ml of water with 10 gm of Cluster fig bark. Then add a pinch of alum and strain. Rinse the mouth with this solution to get rid of oral infections.
• About 7-14 ml of leaves juice of Cluster fig should be consumed twice a day. It helps to treat Dhatu Kshaya.
• The topical application of root’s latex helps to provide relief from cuts and muscle pain.

How to eat

• Unripe fruits are added to culinary purposes such as pickles, sambar, chutney, curry, and Sabji.
• The unripe fruits are preserved in salt.
• The bark is used to make Kashayam.
• Ripe fruits are consumed fresh or preserved in the honey for future use.
• The fresh figs are added to cakes, salads, and ice-creams.
• The dried figs are added to stews, soup, and lamb meat.
• Dried figs are added to breakfast cereal, cakes, muffins, pies, sandwiches, and cheesecakes.

Precautions                                                                                                 

• Those who are allergic to Cluster figs should not use it.
• The ripe fruit should be avoided in culinary uses as it may worsen the condition of intestinal worm infestation.
• One should consult the doctor for using Cluster figs during pregnancy.

References

Previous

Ficus carica - Nutritional Value, Health Benefits

Next

Ficus racemosa - Nutritional Value, Health Benefits