Grapes are a type of fruit with a wide variety of species and high nutritional value. Grapes of different colors have their own unique health benefits. Recently, an article has been popular online, discussing a 110-year-old person with the surname Ding, born in the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty. The article suggests that their long-standing love for grapes is closely related to their longevity.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), grapes are believed to nourish qi and blood, strengthen muscles and bones, and promote urination. They are primarily used to treat conditions such as qi and blood deficiency, lung deficiency with coughing, palpitations and night sweats, rheumatism and arthralgia, strangury, and edema. The "Yao Xing Lun" records that grapes can "remove water accumulation in the intestines, regulate the middle jiao to treat strangury, and promote urination." The "Dian Nan Ben Cao" states that grapes can "greatly nourish qi and blood, relax muscles and activate collaterals, and can be taken as a medicinal wine to treat collapse of yin and yang, as well as night sweats and deficiency syndromes. The juice can treat coughs." The "Bai Cao Jing" also points out that they "treat dampness and pain in muscles and bones. They are very effective at promoting urination and removing edema all over the body." The "Sui Xi Ju Yin Shi Pu" further records that grapes can "tonify qi, nourish kidney fluid, benefit liver yin, strengthen muscles and bones, quench thirst, and prevent miscarriage."
Modern research indicates that grapes can prevent blood clot formation, lower human serum cholesterol levels, and reduce platelet aggregation, playing a certain role in preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
Different colored grapes have their own unique nutritional characteristics
1. Purple grapes are rich in anthocyanins, which can beautify the skin and fight aging.
2. Black grapes are better at nourishing yin and kidneys, with a more prominent effect in darkening hair.
3. Red grapes contain reverse transcriptase, which can soften blood vessels, invigorate blood, and resolve stasis, preventing blood clots. Patients with cardiovascular diseases are advised to eat more. Reverse transcriptase is most abundant in the skin of red grapes, so it's best to eat them with the skin. Green grapes focus on clearing heat and detoxifying. White grapes have the effect of toning lung qi and moistening the lungs, making them very suitable for people with coughs or respiratory diseases.
Overall, grapes are suitable for patients with coronary heart disease, fatty liver, cancer, nephritis, hypertension, edema, as well as those who are overly fatigued, physically tired, or emaciated. Raisins have higher sugar and iron content than fresh grapes, making them suitable for children, pregnant women, and patients with anemia. Diabetics, those with yin deficiency and internal heat, insufficient body fluids, and obese individuals should avoid or not eat too many grapes.
The Benefits of Grapes
Nutritional Components of Grapes. Grapes are not only delicious but also highly nutritious. The sugar content in mature berries can be as high as 10%-30%, primarily glucose. The various fruit acids in grapes aid digestion, and eating an appropriate amount of grapes can strengthen the spleen and stomach. Grapes contain minerals such as calcium, potassium, phosphorus, and iron, as well as various B vitamins (B1, B2, B6), vitamin C, and vitamin P. They also contain many amino acids essential for the human body. Regular consumption of grapes is highly beneficial for neurasthenia and excessive fatigue.
Research has found that grapes are more effective than aspirin in preventing blood clot formation. They can also lower human serum cholesterol levels and reduce platelet aggregation, playing a certain role in preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Consuming a moderate amount of fresh grapes daily not only reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases but is also particularly beneficial for the health of patients with ischemic heart disease and atherosclerotic heart disease. The flavonoids in fresh grapes can "cleanse" the blood and prevent the formation of cholesterol plaques. The darker the grapes, the more flavonoids they contain. However, eating the grape skins and seeds together provides even better protection for the heart.
Medicinal Value of Grapes
In TCM, grapes are considered neutral in nature with a sweet and sour taste. They enter the lung, spleen, and kidney meridians and have the effects of nourishing qi and blood, benefiting the liver and kidneys, promoting the production of body fluids, strengthening muscles and bones, stopping coughs and relieving restlessness, tonifying qi and blood, and promoting urination. The resveratrol in grape skins and the proanthocyanidins in grape seeds are higher in concentration than in other parts of the grape and most other fruit trees. They possess extremely high medicinal value and have become globally important commercial products that are both nutritional and medicinal.
Economic Value of Grapes
Wine is the most important processed product made from grapes. Due to its cultural connotations, wine has become a high-end consumer product. In China, its consumption is rising sharply. Additionally, newly developed grape seed oil is used abroad as a high-grade nutritional oil for infants and the elderly, and as a premium health oil for people working at high altitudes or in aviation, gaining significant attention worldwide. Compared to other fruits, grape products are much more diverse.
According to life needs, storage and transportation requirements for processed products, and nutritional and health benefits, grapes are also processed into common products such as raisins, grape juice, grape seed beverages, and grape seed oil.
People Who Should Not Eat Grapes
1. Diabetics
Grapes contain a large amount of fructose, which can easily lead to high blood sugar levels for people with diabetes. Therefore, diabetics should usually avoid eating grapes. Eating too many grapes can also easily lead to diabetes in healthy individuals.
2. Patients with Diarrhea
People who frequently have diarrhea should eat fewer grapes, as grapes aid digestion. Eating grapes when you have diarrhea can worsen the symptoms. Therefore, it's best for those with diarrhea to eat fewer grapes.
3. People with a Weak Spleen and Stomach (Spleen and Stomach Cold Deficiency)
Many people have a weak constitution with symptoms of a cold-deficient spleen and stomach. In this case, it's best not to eat fresh grapes, as it can easily lead to a decline in physical constitution and trigger an invasion of cold pathogens. If you need to supplement vitamins and amino acids, it's better to use other fruits. In the past, people would eat grapes with their skins on. However, nowadays, concerns about pesticides and other chemicals have made many people wary of fruit safety, so they spit out the grape skins. While this seems safer, it is a pity from a nutritional perspective, as it wastes the beneficial substances in the grape skin: resveratrol, tannic acid, and anthocyanins.
Why is Grape Skin a Treasure? Resveratrol in grape skin can help lower blood lipids and enhance immunity. Tannic acid can fight allergies, delay aging, and also has immune-boosting and preventive effects on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Anthocyanins have strong antioxidant properties, can fight mutations, and protect the cardiovascular system.
Making Homemade Red Wine
Wine Recipe
Ingredients
Grapes, white sugar, a sealed jar, gauze.
Method
1. Place grapes and white sugar in a jar at a 3:1 ratio and crush them by hand. It's best to crush them until they are basically watery, except for the skins and seeds.
2. Seal the jar tightly and let it sit in a cool, dry place for about 20 days.
3. Finally, use gauze to filter out the skins and seeds, and it's ready to drink. (Actually, you don't have to filter it).
Tip
The jar and all utensils must not come into contact with oil, otherwise it will spoil. Do not open the jar during the 20-day fermentation period.
In conclusion: The above is an introduction to the benefits of grapes. Through the information provided, I believe everyone now understands the nutritional value of grapes and the reason why the 110-year-old elder loves them. So, please feel free to eat more grapes in your daily life. Of course, there are taboos associated with eating grapes, so please pay attention to them.
Self-made wine