Almonds are a very delicious food. Among nut foods, almonds are very nutritious. And apricots are an even more delicious and tasty fruit.
Although apricots are delicious, they should not be eaten in excess. Apricots are native to our country and began to be cultivated in large numbers around 3000 BC. They are now grown all over the world. There are many varieties of apricots, which are roughly divided into three types on the market: flesh type (eating the flesh), which is the main type; kernel type, with less flesh and poorer taste, but the kernels are large and suitable for eating (or medicinal); and dual-purpose type (Hazelnut Apricot).
Apricot fruits have a sweet and sour taste and are rich in nutrients. But we often hear the saying: "Peaches nourish people, apricots harm people, and under the plum tree, the dead are buried." Is there any truth to this?
Peaches are very nutritious. Traditional medicine believes that they have the effects of tonifying the middle and replenishing qi, nourishing yin and promoting fluid production, and moistening the intestines to relieve constipation, making them more suitable for people with deficiency.
From a traditional theory perspective, apricots are sour and warm in nature. Therefore, medical books warn that they "should not be eaten in excess," as they can easily "cause carbuncles and sores, damage muscles and bones," "generate phlegm-heat," and more. Life experience also shows that the sourness of apricots can easily cause dental hypersensitivity, which we commonly call "sensitive teeth"; eating too much or on an empty stomach can easily promote gastric acid secretion, damaging the spleen and stomach; and it can also cause symptoms like "heatiness" and diarrhea. Therefore, the saying "apricots harm people" is not without reason, especially fresh apricots, which should not be eaten in large quantities.
Medical books suggest that apricots should be "dried and eaten as preserved fruit," that is, sun-dried into preserved apricots. In this way, the acidity and heatiness of the processed apricots are reduced, and they have the effects of quenching thirst and detoxifying. Therefore, for friends who love apricots, the flesh type (sweet apricots) is the first choice, and you can also choose more preserved apricots, dried apricots, etc. Similarly, eating too many plums also has a certain impact on the human body, such as generating phlegm and dampness, damaging the spleen and stomach, causing bloating and deficiency-heat, etc. Moreover, plums that are bitter and astringent and do not sink in water are somewhat toxic and should not be eaten.
In fact, there is a difference between medicinal almonds and almonds for both food and medicine. Simply put, they can be divided into bitter almonds and sweet almonds. Their plant sources are from the genus *Prunus* in the Rosaceae family. The "big almonds" commonly seen in the market in the United States should actually be called *Amygdalus communis* kernels. Their plant source is from the genus *Amygdalus* in the Rosaceae family, similar to the species of *Amygdalus communis* mainly produced in the western part of our country, and they are more nutritious.
Bitter almonds are bitter and slightly warm in nature, slightly toxic, and affect the Lung and Large Intestine meridians. Their main effects are to stop coughing and wheezing, and to moisten the intestines to relieve constipation. Almonds are an important medicine for treating coughs and asthma. Regardless of the nature of the cough, almonds can be used. At the same time, their effects can be enhanced by adding or subtracting other herbs. For example, add *Ephedra* for wheezing, *Fritillaria* for coughing, add *Mulberry Leaf* and *Arctium Fruit* for hot-type coughs, and add *Platycodon Root*, *Perilla Leaf*, and *Peucedanum Root* for cold-type coughs. In addition, almonds contain more oil and have the function of moistening the intestines to relieve constipation. They can be used with other oily seeds like * Cannabis Seed* and *Trichosanthes Seed* for a milder medicinal effect, suitable for intestinal dryness and constipation, as well as for the elderly and the weak. Due to the certain toxicity of bitter almonds, the dosage should not be too large. The pharmacopoeia recommends a dosage of 3-10 grams. It is best to crush them before decocting to allow the active ingredients to be better dissolved. Generally, it is not suitable for people with loose stools, and pregnant women, postpartum women, and infants should also avoid taking it. Sweet almonds are both a traditional Chinese medicine and a healthy food. They are the sweet seeds of cultivated apricots or mountain apricots, formerly called *Amygdalus communis* kernels or "bada" almonds. This type of almond is mainly produced in Xinjiang, Gansu, and Shaanxi. In ancient times, sweet varieties were mostly used, and modern applications are also based on whether they are sweet or bitter to decide whether they are mainly for food or medicine.
Sweet almonds are sweet and neutral in nature and also have a cough-suppressing effect, but they are more focused on moistening. Therefore, when used as medicine, bitter almonds are more focused on treating coughs and wheezing with excess pathogens in the lungs, while sweet almonds are often used to treat chronic coughs due to lung deficiency. Sweet almonds are more suitable for dietary therapy. There are many ways to eat them: raw, roasted, cooked in congee, ground into powder, decocted in soup, or made into pastries. For example, almond tea is a very popular dessert. There is also a famous dietary remedy: use 15 grams each of sweet almond kernels and walnut kernels, roast them, grind them into powder, add honey, and mix with boiling water to drink. It can moisten the lungs and kidneys and is suitable for the elderly with chronic cough due to deficiency and intestinal dryness with constipation. However, sweet almonds are also not suitable for some people, such as those with a lot of phlegm in their cough, a very weak spleen and stomach, or those who often have loose stools.
Modern pharmacological research has not only confirmed the traditional effects of almonds in relieving coughs and wheezing and lubricating the intestines but has also found that almonds have good anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and anti-tumor effects. In addition, the oil in almonds is mainly monounsaturated fatty acids. These fatty acids have a good effect of regulating blood lipids, lowering cholesterol, and lowering blood sugar, which can effectively reduce hypercholesterolemia to a certain extent and prevent the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases. Externally, it also has the effect of softening the skin.
We often see reports of almond poisoning, so if you accidentally eat toxic almonds, you must seek medical attention immediately and take rescue measures such as gastric lavage. The fresher the almonds, the stronger the toxicity. Storing almonds for a long time or eating them with sugar at the same time can reduce their toxicity. Therefore, the processing method of bitter almonds is very important. They must be repeatedly soaked in warm water for more than 12 hours, the skin of the kernel must be removed, and then they can be cooked or directly roasted to reduce their toxicity. The content of amygdalin in sweet almonds is very small, and they generally do not cause poisoning, so everyone can eat them with confidence.