Paw paw fruit. Melon tree. Carica papaya L. German: Papayabaum. French and Italian: Papago. Indian: Popoyiah. Arabian: Anabahe-hindi. Iranian: Anobahe-hindi. Malayan: Bate. Chinese: Mukua-wan-shou-kuo. Part used: juice of the unripe tropical fruit that contains papain, a non-animal enzyme which assists digestion of protein. Acts best with an alkali such as Meadowsweet. Has a similar action to pepsin, an enzyme secreted with the gastric juices of the stomach. Digests wheat gluten, thus assisting recovery from coeliac disease. High in beta-carotene (A).
Uses: acidity, flatulence, incomplete digestion of meats. Patient preference: vegetarian hypoallergenic yeast-free, freeze-dried Papaya. For slimming diet.
Tablets/capsules. Popular combination. Papain BPC 1954 60mg; powdered Charcoal BP 100mg; powdered Slippery Elm BHP (1983) 60mg; powdered Goldenseal BHP (1983) 10mg. Digestive disorders.
External. Juice of the fresh plant used for wounds that refuse to heal. William Scharf, 31, became desperately ill after a kidney transplant. Strong antibiotics failed to heal the infected wound. The surgeon of the Transplant Department of Guy’s Hospital laid strips of fresh paw-paw fruit across the wound. After one week’s treatment Mr Scharf was cured.
Diet. Paw-paw fruit or juice, raw, at meals.
Note: The fruit has a contraceptive effect in its ability to halt pregnancy by attacking progesterone, the hormone essential to pregnancy. (Researchers: Sussex University)
The large green fruit is widely used as a contraceptive in India and Sri Lanka. If a woman wants to become pregnant, she simply avoids eating them.
Linn.
Family: Caricaceae.
Habitat: Native to West Indies and Central America; now cultivated in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and South India.
English: Papaya, Papaw.
Ayurvedic: Erand-karkati, Papitaa.
Unani: Papitaa Desi.
Siddha/Tamil: Pappaali, Pappayi.
Action: Ripe fruit—stomachic, digestive, carminative, diuretic, galactagogue. Useful in bleeding piles, haemoptysis, dysentery and chronic diarrhoea. Seeds— emmengagogue, abortifacient, vermifuge. Juice of seeds is administered in enlarged liver and spleen, and in bleeding piles.
Key application: Papain, the enzyme mixture extracted from raw papain (latex of Carica papaya), has been included among unapproved herbs by German Commission E. Experiment-based as well as clinical research indicate that papain may be effective (in the treatment of inflammations) in high doses (daily dose 1500 mg corresponding to 2520 FIP units).Unripe fruit—emmengagogue and abortifacient. Latex—applied topically on eczema, ringworm, psoriasis, corns, warts, sloughing wounds, carbuncles and eschar of burns.Green parts of the plant and seed contain an alkaloid carpaine. Seeds also contain carpasemine.Latex contain enzymes—papain and chymopapain and alkaloids carpaine and pseudocarpaine. A proteinaceous material from latex showed anticoagulant activity; in higher doses it is heart depressant and as a spasmogen on smooth muscle of guinea pig ileum. An alkaloid solution showed depressant action on heart, blood pressure and intestine.The anthelmintic action of seeds against Ascaris lumbricoides is due to carpasemine.Papain, an enzyme mixture prepared from the fruit, seeds and leaf, hydrolyses polypeptides, amides and esters, particularly when used in an alkaline environment, and is used in digestive disorders.Papain inhibits platelet aggregation, which may further increase the risk of bleeding in patients also taking anticoagulants. Concurrent administration of cyclophosphamide with papain caused sever damage to lung tissues in rats. (Sharon M. Herr.)Chymopapin C is an immunosup- pressive enzyme from plant extract. Carpaine, extracted from the plant, exhibited anti-tubercular activity, also antitumour in vitro, and hypotensive.
Dosage: Leaf—40-80 ml infusion; latex—3-6 g (CCRAS.)... carica papaya
Carica papayaDescription: The papaya is a small tree 1.8 to 6 meters tall, with a soft, hollow trunk. When cut, the entire plant exudes a milky juice. The trunk is rough and the leaves are crowded at the trunk’s apex. The fruit grows directly from the trunk, among and below the leaves. The fruit is green before ripening. When ripe, it turns yellow or remains greenish with a squashlike appearance.Habitat and Distribution: Papaya is found in rain forests and semievergreen seasonal forests in tropical regions and in some temperate regions as well. Look for it in moist areas near clearings and former habitations. It is also found in open, sunny places in uninhabited jungle areas.Edible Parts: The ripe fruit is high in vitamin C. Eat it raw or cock it like squash. Place green fruit in the sun to make it ripen quickly. Cook the young papaya leaves, flowers, and stems carefully, changing the water as for taro.CAUTIONBe careful not to get the milky sap from the unripe fruit into your eyes. It will cause intense pain and temporary--sometimes even permanent--blindness.Other Uses: Use the milky juice of the unripe fruit to tenderize tough meat. Rub the juice on the meat.... papaya or pawpaw
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