Guava fruit today is considered minor in terms of commercial world trade but is widely grown in the tropics, enriching the diet of hundreds of millions of people in the tropics of the world. Guava has spread widely throughout the tropics because it thrives in a variety of soils, propagates easily, and bears fruit relatively quickly. The fruits contain numerous seeds that can produce a mature fruit-bearing plant within four years. In the Guava is known for being one of the most popular therapeutic plants in the Philippines. It is used as an antiseptic, astringent and anthelminthic, and kills bacteria, fungi, and ameba. The fresh leaves of the plant are used to facilitate the healing of wounds and cuts and are also very effective for toothaches.



Consumers are aware of the term `antioxidant' -- they know they're important, they know that they're good for you and they know that you should eat foods that have more of them,'' says Ilene Smith, vice president and director of nutrition marketing for Ketchum, a public relations firm whose clients include California strawberry and almond growers.

The super-food reputation of the above-mentioned fruits and vegetables is based largely on their prodigious antioxidant activity.

Green tea medicine has shown to have even more health benefits than guava herbal medicine, and this is largely due to the catechins that are found in green tea. These catechins, otherwise known as polyphenols, have been shown in recent studies to fight viruses, slow aging, and have a beneficial effect on health in general. Green tea helps to reduce high blood pressure, lower blood sugar, and even fight cancer.

Herbal medicines are extracts from plants and flowers that are used to treat and prevent illness, and they have been used for a wide range of different conditions, including headaches, depression, PMS, and insomnia. Just make sure to remember that herbal medicine, although natural and basically completely safe, is still a form of medicine and so you have to use it with caution and follow recommended dosage instructions.

Unfortunately, guavas aren't popular in North America, except among immigrants. If you find them in a grocery store, it's probably an ethnic one, a Chinese or Indian store where you might find them labeled as "Gwawas."

Guava is successfully grown under tropical and subtropical climate. The quality of the fruits is better in areas having distinct winters therefore guava grown near Allahabad is famous for the best quality fruits. Although guava tolerates drought, protective irrigation facilities are required. It grows best with an annual rainfall around 1000 mm restricted between June and September.

Diarrhea and Dysentery: Guava is very rich in astringents (compounds those make your gums feel tighter and fresh after you chew guava leaves or eat a raw guava or use some toothpaste) which binds up loose bowels in diarrhea. These astringents are alkaline in nature and have disinfectant and anti-bacterial properties, thus help cure dysentery by inhibiting microbial growth and removing extra mucus from the intestines. Further, other nutrients in guava, such as vitamin-C, Carotenoids and potassium strengthens and tones up the digestive system and disinfect it. Guava is also beneficial in gastroenteritis due to reasons stated above.