Scientific Name: Prunus avium
Bahasa Indonesia: Buah seri
Batak: No name
Basic Information: Prunus avium is commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry, or gean, and is a species of a flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae. This is a deciduous tree growing 15-32 meters tall. The bark is a smoothish, purplish-brown with horizontal grey-brown lenticels on young trees, becoming thick dark blackish-brown and fissured on old trees. The leaves are alternate, broat, and a matte or sub-shiny green above. The flowers are produced each spring and have five white petals, yellowish stamens, and a superior ovary. The fruit is a drupe about 1-2 cm in diameter and are bright red to dark purple when mature. Cherry trees originate from the Caspian-Black Sea region and Asia.
Health Benefits:
- Helps with Inflammation – high antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds help to reduce the risk of chronic disease and promote overall health.
- Boosts Exercise Recovery – consuming cherries, especially the tart cherry products like juice and powder may improve athletic performance and reduce exercise-induced muscle damage and soreness.
- Benefits Heart Health – high levels of potassium and polyphenol antioxidants have powerful heart-protective properties.
- Improves Symptoms of Arthritis and Gout – the anti-inflammatory properties of cherries may benefit those who suffer from arthritis and gout.
- Improves Sleep Quality – the anti-inflammatory compounds and melatonin found in cherries may help improve your quality of sleep.
- Protects Against Diabetes – cherries rank lower than many fruits on the glycemic index so they don’t trigger spikes or crashes in your blood sugar and insulin levels.
- Helps Reduce Cholesterol – drinking tart cherry juice is shown to help lower total cholesterol.
Fun Facts:
- There are seven different days that are considered a different national cherry dessert day. For example, January 3rd is National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day
- The word cherry comes from the French word “cerise,” which comes from the Latin words “cerasum” and “Cerasus,” the classical name of the modern city Giresun in Turkey
- Records indicate that cherries were a prized food in a region of China dating back to 600 BC, fit for royalty and cherished by locals
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prunus_avium
https://plantvillage.psu.edu/topics/cherry-including-sour/infos
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cherries-benefits#section7
