The Benefits and Effects of Ginkgo Nuts and the Correct Way to Eat Them

What are the benefits, effects and eating methods of ginkgo nuts? Ginkgo nuts generally refer to white nuts. In addition to starch, protein, fat and sugars, the nut kernel also contains vitamin C, riboflavin, carotene, calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium, magnesium and other trace elements, as well as ginkgolic acid, ginkgol, five-carbon polysaccharides, sterols and other components. It is nutritious and has good medical effects and dietary therapy benefits for tonifying lung qi, treating cough and asthma, stopping vaginal discharge and parasites, reducing urination, smoothing chapped wrinkles, protecting blood vessels, increasing blood flow, leukorrhea, white turbidity and other conditions. Let's look at the specific content below.

I. The Benefits of Ginkgo Nuts

According to the "Compendium of Materia Medica": white nuts "eaten cooked warm the lungs, tonify qi, stop panting and coughing, reduce urination, and stop white turbidity; eaten raw they reduce phlegm, disinfect and kill parasites."

In traditional Chinese medicine, ginkgo nuts are commonly used to treat bronchial asthma, chronic bronchitis, pulmonary tuberculosis, increased vaginal discharge, strangury with turbidity, spermatorrhea and other diseases. Modern medical research shows that white nuts contain ginkgolic acid, ginkgol, five-carbon polysaccharides, sterols and other components, and have the effects of clearing blood vessels, improving brain function, delaying brain aging, enhancing memory, and treating insufficient cerebral blood supply. The flavonoid glycosides and bilobalide in white nuts also have preventive and therapeutic effects on cerebral thrombosis, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary heart disease, arteriosclerosis and other diseases. Regular consumption of white nuts can also nourish yin, beautify the skin and resist aging, dilate microvessels, promote blood circulation, and make a person's skin and face rosy and spirited.

II. The Effects of Ginkgo Nuts

1. Delaying aging. Because ginkgo nuts are rich in vitamin C, riboflavin, carotene and others, they can resist oxidation, protect the integrity of cells, and delay aging.

2. Beauty and skin care. Because ginkgo nuts have an antioxidant effect, they can clear free radicals in the body, and the flavonoids they contain can prevent the formation and deposition of pigment in the dermis, achieving the effect of whitening and preventing dark spots. Some of the trace elements also have effects such as clearing oxygen free radicals and inhibiting melanin. Moreover, they can prevent the formation of wrinkles, improve the blood microcirculation of the skin, accelerate skin metabolism, and restore the skin's elasticity and rosiness.

3. Preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. They contain anti-platelet activating factor, which can prevent blood coagulation, improve blood circulation, and prevent the formation of blood clots. Flavonoids can dilate blood vessels, eliminate free radicals, prevent arteriosclerosis, prevent myocardial infarction and others, and improve human immunity.

4. Eliminating and killing bacteria. Ginkgo nuts have anti-allergic effects, anti-inflammatory and sterilizing functions, and anti-tumor effects, and have certain effects on the reproductive system, digestive system, urinary system and others.

III. Eating Methods of Ginkgo Nuts

1. White nut soup: use 7 white nuts every morning, crack them open and crush them, add a little white rock sugar or a little sesame oil, and take with boiling water. (Treats colds and coughs)

2. White nut congee: after the white rice congee is ready, crush the white nuts and put them into the pot, and add a little white sugar when drinking.

(Note: For both of the above ways of eating, do not peel off the thin skin adhering to the white nuts; crush and add them together. The outermost hard shell can be washed and boiled in water to drink, which can treat hypertension.)

3. Stir-fry over gentle heat and eat; they will naturally crack open. The taste is fragrant and sweet, with a slight bitterness. Using a microwave has the same effect, and those with salt and pepper are very delicious. Put the white nuts in a microwave-safe box with vent holes, on high power for two to three minutes; after the crackling, add a little salt and pepper and they are ready to eat, fragrant and glutinous.

4. Before eating white nuts, you can first dry-fry them in a pan for five minutes, peel off the outer shell and then boil them in water; gently stir in the boiling water with chopsticks, and the seed coat can be easily removed. The peeled ginkgo kernels can be stewed with pig trotters, chicken, duck, beef and others, or the white nuts can be boiled for ten minutes and then stir-fried with fresh pork, chicken, celtuce, Chinese cabbage and others. The ginkgo kernels are emerald green, crystal clear and have a fragrant, glutinous texture, making them a rare health food.

IV. Precautions for Eating Ginkgo Nuts

Note: Ginkgo nuts have a certain toxicity, so do not eat them raw, and do not eat them in large quantities. In white nut poisoning, poisoning symptoms occur 1-12 hours after eating white nuts.

The main symptoms are: nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, fever, cyanosis; in addition, there are obvious signs of damage to the central nervous system: headache, extreme fear, screaming, convulsions triggered by slight sounds and stimuli, loss of consciousness or coma. In severe cases, it can lead to respiratory paralysis and death; symptoms develop rapidly, and emergency rescue treatment is required.

Traditional Chinese medicine emergency treatment: ① 100 grams of raw licorice, decocted in water and taken. ② 50 grams of white nut shells, decocted in water and taken. ③ 30 grams of ginkgo bark, decocted in water and taken. ④ 0.3 grams of musk, taken with warm water.

V. Side Effects of Ginkgo Nuts

Although white nuts have so many benefits, eating them raw or in excess may cause food poisoning, because the white nut fruit contains ginkgolic acid and ginkgo toxin. Poisoning symptoms mostly occur 1-12 hours after eating white nuts; first there are digestive tract symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea and loss of appetite. Then there are nervous system symptoms such as restlessness, fearful strange cries, convulsions and rigidity of the limbs. Slight stimulation can cause twitching. In severe cases, the limbs gradually become weak, breathing becomes difficult, and even paralysis occurs.

White nut poisoning is more common in children, mostly caused by eating them raw or eating white nuts that have not been thoroughly cooked; the general poisoning dose is 10-50 nuts. Young children eating 5-10 raw nuts can cause white nut poisoning. White nuts that have been stir-fried or boiled are less likely to cause poisoning.

Rescue methods: gastric lavage, catharsis, taking egg white and activated charcoal, and symptomatic treatment: for example, for cyanosis of the skin, give oxygen or artificial respiration. For convulsions, give sedatives; in cases of coma, inhale ammonia water and inject stimulants.

Emergency rescue treatment is required.

Traditional Chinese medicine emergency treatment: ① 100 grams of raw licorice, decocted in water and taken. ② 50 grams of white nut shells, decocted in water and taken. ③ 30 grams of ginkgo bark, decocted in water and taken. ④ 0.3 grams of musk, taken with warm water.

V. Side Effects of Ginkgo Nuts

Although white nuts have so many benefits, eating them raw or in excess may cause food poisoning, because the white nut fruit contains ginkgolic acid and ginkgo toxin. Poisoning symptoms mostly occur 1-12 hours after eating white nuts; first there are digestive tract symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea and loss of appetite. Then there are nervous system symptoms such as restlessness, fearful strange cries, convulsions and rigidity of the limbs. Slight stimulation can cause twitching. In severe cases, the limbs gradually become weak, breathing becomes difficult, and even paralysis occurs.

White nut poisoning is more common in children, mostly caused by eating them raw or eating white nuts that have not been thoroughly cooked; the general poisoning dose is 10-50 nuts. Young children eating 5-10 raw nuts can cause white nut poisoning. White nuts that have been stir-fried or boiled are less likely to cause poisoning.

Rescue methods: gastric lavage, catharsis, taking egg white and activated charcoal, and symptomatic treatment: for example, for cyanosis of the skin, give oxygen or artificial respiration. For convulsions, give sedatives; in cases of coma, inhale ammonia water and inject stimulants.