When persimmon meets the intestinal tract

Many people have had this experience: after eating red, sweet soft persimmons , or sweet, sticky persimmon cakes covered with white persimmon frost, it feels like an invisible hand is massaging your belly, and then the "big song" will be more comfortable, achieving "poop freedom", which is very good for health! But do you know why this is the case?

Experts from the Institute of Economic Forestry of the Chinese Academy of Forestry and Beijing Forestry University worked together to solve the mystery: it turned out that the polysaccharide components of persimmon fruit made a major contribution.

Polysaccharides refer to carbohydrates formed by multiple monosaccharide molecules connected by glycosidic bonds. Familiar starch, pectin, cellulose, mannan, etc. are all polysaccharide components of plants. Polysaccharides are not the white sugar bought in supermarkets that everyone avoids! They are usually composed of dozens to thousands of monosaccharide molecules and have a large molecular weight. The polysaccharides in the fruits of different plants have different structures and compositions, and their physiological activities will also vary. For example, polysaccharides in the fruits of some plants may have physiological activities such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory, while polysaccharides in the fruits of other plants may have different physiological activities such as lowering blood sugar, lowering blood lipids, and regulating intestinal function. Persimmon polysaccharides have a very excellent effect in regulating intestinal function.

The polysaccharide content in persimmon fruit accounts for 12.55% of the fruit. When persimmon fruit enters the intestine, how does it act as a culture medium for bacterial flora and affect the intestinal "king"?

Taking the mouse experiment as an example, the intestinal flora is divided into beneficial bacteria such as lactic acid bacteria and bifidobacteria, harmful bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella, and neutral bacteria. After persimmon polysaccharide enters the intestine, it can first greatly promote the proliferation of beneficial bacteria , such as the relative abundance of intestinal lactobacilli from 0.3% to 1.6%; at the same time, it can significantly reduce the number of harmful bacteria , such as the relative abundance of green balloon bacteria from 0.4% to 0.2%. In other words, persimmon polysaccharide meets the "king" of the intestine, which can punish evil and promote good, eliminate violence and protect the good, maintain the ecological balance of the flora, and promote metabolic health! Help everyone achieve poop freedom!

Second, after being fermented by intestinal microorganisms, persimmon polysaccharides can produce a large amount of short-chain fatty acids, such as propionic acid and butyric acid. These short-chain fatty acids can make the intestines in a slightly acidic pH environment, effectively inhibit the growth of putrefactive bacteria , and thus improve the health of the body.

Third, persimmon polysaccharides can enhance the intestinal mucosal barrier function , reduce intestinal permeability, help prevent harmful substances from entering the blood circulation through the intestinal wall , and protect intestinal health. In the Japanese market, small bottles of hangover solution are made of persimmons! That's right, you can eat persimmons, drink persimmon juice and persimmon vinegar drinks before and after drinking to prevent alcohol from harming the human body!

(Written by: Fu Jianmin/Researcher at the Institute of Economic Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry; Edited by: Shi Wenshi)