Knowledge Sharing

Organic food is hot.  Super foods such as pomegranate, bilberry, avocado…are even hotter!

Most consumers take organic food mainly because they feel that such foods are chemical and pesticides free.  That’s certainly the ultimate goal of organic farming.  The reality is, even with many certified organic products, pesticides may still be used.  It may not be synthetic pesticides which are disallowed in any organic farming.  Many organic farming practices do use organic pesticides such as Rotenone.  It is not necessary all organic matters are perfectly safe.  For example, rotenone is one that has high toxicity to fish and aquatic creatures.  It also has some toxicity towards mammals including humans. 

Earlier human took food in its raw natural form.  We then learn farming by making selections.  The last two centuries saw a dramatic shift from farming to industrial production.  The result is that we are moving further and further away from natural food.  Modern science helped us to breakdown the original raw food and tried to find individual nutrients that we now believe to be essential to life and health: carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals…the discoveries and high yield production methods may have helped human to feed itself well.  But modern chronicle illness started to stalk us increasingly.  Late last century, scientist started to wonder if our approach of industrial farming and food production; selective nutrient enrichment are responsible for those illness. Nutritionist and scientist now promote whole, organic or naturally grown food more than ever.

As we find more and more advanced method in farming and food production, what we lost most in our diet is phytochemicals, which are plant or fruit derived chemical compounds.  Phytochemicals now are believed to be able to significantly reduce the risk of diseases, probably due to polyphenol antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.  Common food rich in Phytonutrients are tomato, broccoli, garlic, flaxseed, blueberry (and bilberry), beans and peas, pomegranate…

Researches have fond that the potency of Phytonutrients in cultivated plants are far lower than those grown in the wild.  Wildly grown plants and fruits have stronger aroma, taste and often more bitter.  This stronger taste is mostly due to the increased content of Phytonutrients. Many of these components are produced as part of the plant’s own immune system. They protect the plant from insect damage and disease. The more nourished the plant is with the proper trace elements in the soil, the stronger the plant’s immunity to weather and other environmental hazards.  Modern cultivation, in contrast, has the plants well taken care of: covers to shield them from extreme weather; pesticides to protect them from infections and insets; chemical fertilizers to help them grow faster in a shorter time.  The result is higher yield but the plants are weaker as the plants themselves no longer need to strengthen its own immune system to survive.  They lack phytochemicals.  When we ingest those produces, we get less Phytonutrients.

The most nutritious food is still from those wildly grown.  

A typical Chinese medical hall would surely sell Bird’s Nest and Ginseng!  You are likely to see a few antique looking Ginseng prominently displayed with a price tag that is many times higher than those in the glass jar.  If you ask why the vast differences, the shop owner would proudly announce that those expensive Ginseng are WILDLY GROWN.  Yes, wildly grown Ginseng is indeed far more expensive than those cultivated in plastic wrapped green house.  The reason?  Wildly grown Ginseng is believed to be far more potent in delivering the true benefits.

In fact, that does not only apply to Ginseng.  It applies to all herbs and foods, even to animals and seafood.  We all know that Kampung Chicken is tastier; a Japanese will never agree that beef from intensive farming in US can be as great as Kobe beef.  Many may not yet know: the quantity and quality of Omega-3 from farmed Salmon is far different from Salmon grown in the wild. 

Yes, we can’t turn back and live on wildly grown food only as we have too many on the planet to be fed now.  However, this reality should not stop us from searching for better, more nutritious food, especially when one wants to make food as part of his or her holistic approach to better health.

If you take food simply for the enjoyment of the taste and to fill the stomach, you don’t have to bother how the food was produced.  It does not matter if it is organic or not.  However, if you are paying good money after specific benefit a food that is known to be able to provide, you should know more on how the food was produced.  It is certainly better to take it organic.  It is best to take it wildly grown if they are available. 

Pomegranate is believed to have been cultivated by the ancient Persians in the region of modern Iran.  Today, pomegranate fruit grown in Iran and countries around the Mediterranean Sea and Caucasus mountains are still considered the finest.  Pomegranate spread from Persian Gulf eastward along the ancient trade routes.  China is now one of the largest producer of pomegranate fruits.  Pomegranate was introduced to Europe (initially Spain) when Islam was at its renaissance in fifteen century.  The Spanish colonizers brought the fruit to other continents as Spanish ships sailed to the Americas.

You do see pomegranate trees and fruits in gardens and nurseries in Singapore.  They are more commonly known as “Red Flowers” among older folks.  The Chinese name is Shi Liu (石榴).  The spices we see here is rather small in both the tree and the fruit.  They are not really suitable as edible fruits.  There are more than 600 varieties of pomegranates throughout the world.  Those fit for human consumption are much larger, about the size of a big red apple. 

Speaking about apple, some Biblical theorists actually suggest that apple was not what Eve offered to Adam in the Garden of Eden.  It was pomegranate!  In many culture, pomegranate is a symbol of fertility. If the population of the world today is anything of an indication of the fertility power from pomegranate, this theory could be very well true!

Pomegranates figure in many religious paintings by the likes of Sandro Botticelli and Leonardo da Vinci, often in the hands of Virgin Mary or the infant Jesus. The fruit, broken or bursting open, is a symbol of the fullness of his suffering and resurrection. In fact, pomegranate was cited as a desired food and a symbol of beauty in the Bible.  For example, in Song of Solomon 4:3, it reads “Your lips are like a ribbon of scarlet. Oh, how beautiful your mouth! Your cheeks behind your veil are like pomegranate halves-lovely and delicious”. 

Prophet Mohammed is said to have praised pomegranate for its nutritional and spiritual values, and have encouraged his followers to eat the fruit as a means of purifying their body of envy and hatred. 

The Arab Bedouins wedding prominently feature pomegranates: a ripe fruit is split open by the groom as he and his bride enter their home. Abundant arils ensure that the couple who eat them will have many children.

In Buddhism, pomegranate is one of the three Blessed Fruits of Buddhism, along with Citrus and Peach. 

In Hinduism, Lord Ganesha's image appears in many from - 32 of them.  Of that, 6 of them appear with pomegranate.

All the legends have made pomegranate a mystical fruit with magic but unsaid powers.  Many members may not have noticed that three royal colleges, the Royal College of Midwives, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Royal College of Physicians, all feature the pomegranate in their Crest!

It is no wonder that the power of pomegranate has finally court the attention of modern scientists.  Various researches have been done in different part of the world.  It has been commonly recognized that pomegranate fruit and juice are packed with antioxidants – the agents the body uses to protect itself against cell damage. Good natural sources of antioxidants include red win, tomato, green tea, blueberries…but now scientists believe that pomegranates, which are a rich source of antioxidant compounds called polyphenols, could be even better. Researches have pin pointed a few direct beneficiaries of pomegranate intake: reduced cholesterol level; reduced plaques in arteries; lowering high blood pressure; prevent or reduce tumors in organs such as prostate…pomegranate’s high Folic Acid contents also make it an ideal supplement for woman for pregnancy and even skin beatification.

Notwithstanding the researches on pomegranate are at the earlier stage and the results are not necessarily conclusive, the initial results are already exciting to health conscious consumers.  Pomegranate juice has become the new celebrity in US, UK and some other countries.  After all, there is no harm to drink this juice that has been treasured for thousands years by our ancestors.  Moreover, the juice has a unique balanced taste of sweet and sour – likely to be fantastic for tropical Singapore.