You may not know cola nut. By the name it will have reminded you of a product used worldwide, Coca Cola. And it is that this nut is used as one of the key ingredients of this soft drink consumed throughout the world. Its scientific name is Cola acuminate And it not only works for the manufacture of this soft drink, but it also has great therapeutic properties used for many years.
In this article we are going to tell you everything you need to know about the kola nut and its properties. Do you want to know more about it? You just have to keep reading.
What is the kola nut?
The first thing we have to know is what this kola nut is. It comes from the cola tree, which comes from the jungle in tropical Africa. It is an evergreen tree that is up to 20 meters high. Among its leaves we find star-shaped flowers and oval leaves.
There are more than 125 different species of cola nut trees with some variations between the edible fruits they have. Among the species that most interest humans to introduce in Coca Cola soft drinks are Bitter Cola (garcinia cola), sharp tail (tail acuminate) and the monkey tail (Cwave suboppositifolia).
This food has been consumed by many cultures in West Africa thanks to its ability to increase people’s mood and for its great ability to reduce and satisfy the appetite. It is something you look for when you want to lose weight. Trying that hunger does not kill you in times of weight loss is the best thing to do. Thanks to the kola nut, many people have succeeded.
It has been used throughout history for the spiritual practices of the different tribes and even in divination rituals. Kola nut extract It is used as a natural flavoring in many parts of the food industry.
Main benefits of Cola acuminate
For the preparation of Coca Cola, this nut has a high caffeine content, which is why it becomes one of the key elements. It has various benefits in therapeutic use. Its high content in minerals such as potassium, calcium and magnesium make it a super food like its companion walnuts.
We are going to learn one by one the benefits of this fruit.
As a stimulant
Kola nut is a very healthy food and has a high concentration of caffeine. Just one nut has a higher concentration of caffeine than two cups of American coffee. This quantity is the necessary to stimulate any central nervous system of a human being.
Kola nut can be consumed in different ways. This is how its caffeine content will depend. We can consume it raw, cured for 6 months, ground, dried in the sun for about 40 days or even stored for a year. Depending on how we are consuming it, we will have a percentage of caffeine that varies between 1,5% and 3,8%.
For athletes, the consumption of kola nut is important to help both physically and mentally and prevents to combat the effects of fatigue. If we consume it in liquid form, it helps to stimulate the central nervous system, increasing the heart rate and our metabolic rate. The problem with drinking Coca Cola arises when so many amounts of sugar are introduced to it.
There are some studies that show that consuming a supplement based on Kola nut and Ma Huang helps you lose body fat, bad cholesterol, and more weight. It is a caffeine supplement.
As an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory
The kola nut has some compounds that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits for the body. Studies have shown that consuming decaffeinated kola nut extracts help reduce inflammation. It is said that this effect can be achieved thanks to the antioxidant action of the phenolic compounds in walnuts.
As an antimicrobial and antihypertensive agent
As we have mentioned before, there are several studies that show the therapeutic benefits of the kola nut. And it is that they have alkaloids, tannins, saponins, phenols and flavonoids. These substances are used to fight some diseases that are resistant to the use of antibiotics.
It has also been possible to demonstrate the potential of the antibacterial activity of the kola nut thanks to an inhibitory effect on the growth of bacteria. Therefore, it is perfect for preventing some wound infections, abscesses and blood.
Due to the effect that we have previously named that intervenes in the central nervous system, there is evidence that this fruit it can have additional effects on the cardiovascular system. It is important to control the tension that we have and, above all, at certain ages. A tension problem can lead to other more serious problems. Therefore, the kola nut is a perfect food to regulate hypertension.
side effects
As in almost all foods of this type, excessive or uncontrolled consumption can cause side effects. As with almost all dietary supplements, consuming them in excess can cause serious damage. In this case, Irresponsible consumption of kola nuts has a negative effect on the teeth. This results in bad breath and staining problems.
If its consumption is responsible, you just have to be careful with its high concentration of caffeine, especially if you are taking some drugs such as ephedrine, benzodiazepines, propranolol and quinolone antibiotics.
Your consumption It is not advisable during pregnancy, as it can cause gastrointestinal problems.
In conclusion we can say that the consumption of foods transmitted by numerous tribal and historical cultures can provide benefits today. Benefits not only for its stimulating effect and its high concentration of caffeine, but it is also good for the immune, cardiovascular and respiratory systems.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about the kola nut and its excellent nutritional properties.
