Pimento relieves colic, flatulence and other digestive disorders. Long used as a flavoring and scenting agent, it is an aromatic stimulant and carminative to the gastro-intestinal tract. Pimento is a natural source of beta-carotene and other important nutrients and acts as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory.
PLANT DESCRIPTION:
Native to the Caribbean Islands (most notably Jamaica) and South and Central America. Pimento is an evergreen tree that grows to a height of fifty feet. It is a tender, aromatic tree with thin, oblong, leathery leaves and small, white flowers that bloom in the spring and summer. The flowers are followed by the dark brown berries that are so important in herbal medicines and cuisines, and the tree thrives in rich, well-drained, sandy soil in sun at a minimum of fifty-nine degrees Fahrenheit.
HISTORY:
Pimento was discovered growing in Jamaica by early Spanish explorers who were impressed with the taste and aroma of the leaves and berries, and it has been in continuous production there since about 1509. Because Pimento resembles peppercorns, it was named pimenta by the Portuguese and pimienta by the Spanish – both meaning pepper
Used mainly as a spice and condiment. Pimento was in great demand as a soothing anesthetic in baths to relieve sore muscles and made a stimulating spice plaster to relieve rheumatism and neuralgia. At the end of the nineteenth century, it became fashionable to have umbrellas and walking sticks made of pimento, leading to strict enforcement of controls that saved the young trees from disappearing altogether.
Pimento, with its flavor of cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg, has always been an important spice and condiment and was added to mulled wine and curry, among other dishes. It has also been used widely to improve the flavor of commercial medicines. The main constituents of Pimento are the volatile oils found in its seeds and phenol eugenol (which doubtless gives it its clove-like odor). Some of the other constituents include a fixed oil (bonastre), tannin, gum, resin, malic and gallic acids, lignin, and it is also a natural source of beta-carotene and other important nutrients.
MEDICAL USES:
Pimento is an aromatic stimulant and carminative for the gastro-intestinal tract. As such, it has been helpful in treating diarrhea and also helps to correct flatulent indigestion and the “griping” tendencies (sharp pains and grumbling in the bowels) often associated with the use of laxatives.
As a pungent, warming herb, Pimento has a tonic effect on the digestive system, improving digestive disorders, such as dyspepsia, colic and indigestion, and is also known to pep up a sluggish appetite.