Weeds & Seeds Swap

This is a wonderful picture of Papaya fruit, clustered on the tree.

Papaya, (Carica papaya) is a small tree that grows in tropical climates. It may also be called a papaw or melon tree. Historically the leaves AND fruit were used medicinally, but for our purposes, anything that I will be sharing in this post will be related to the fruit.

The fruit of the Papaya tree is rich with an enzyme that aids in digestion, papain. As we age, the need for digestive enzymes increases, and they are necessary to break down the food so that the nutrients are in such a form a to be filtered into the blood stream and throughout the body.

In the tropics, this is a favorite breakfast food. It is a great companion to Pineapple which also contains digestive enzymes.

What does Science tell us:

Papain is a mixture of proteolytic enzymes that have a broad spectrum of activity. This wide range of activity accounts for the use of papain for digestive disorders, particularly those associated with protein-rich foods. Papain hydrolyzes not only proteins, but small pepticides, amides and some esters. It also aids in digestion of carbohydrates and fats, and has been shown to be active over a wide pH range (not destroyed in high acid conditions). If you would like the studies, click here and me know and I’ll send them.

Personally, I LOVE papaya fruit when it is readily available, and use a chewable Papaya that contains mint after meals when the fruit is not as easy to come by.

Some sources of Papaya:

Papaya Mint Chewable
Anti-Gas Formula
Stomach Comfort

Thanks for reading, and have a great day!