Water chestnut belongs to the genus water chestnut. Also known as water chestnut, water chestnut and water chestnut, it is sweet, cool and nontoxic. It is the fruit of water chestnut. The skin of water chestnut is crisp and delicious. After cooking, you can peel it and eat it, or cook porridge. Because "Ling" sounds like "Ling", which means "smart and clever". In Xiaoshan, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, it has been given a new meaning. Every year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, when Hong Ling matures, it will be regarded as a begging sacrifice for Tanabata by local people. Because its pulp is shaped like a heart, it is considered to symbolize the heart-to-heart relationship between lovers. Water chestnut peels its shell like a heart.

In Jiangmen, Guangdong, water chestnut is also a must-have snack for Taishan people to celebrate Tanabata on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. Do you know the benefits of eating water chestnut?

The benefits of eating water chestnut

1. Enhance immunity

Water chestnut is rich in carbohydrates, protein, vitamin B, vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium and other nutrients, and its nutritional value is equivalent to that of starch nuts. It is regarded as the fruit of health preservation and the best medicated diet for autumn tonic. Regular consumption can help us supplement nutrition and increase human resistance and immunity.

2. Spleen and stomach

055-79000 records that water chestnut "can replenish spleen and stomach, strengthen legs and knees, and strengthen tendons and qi". Water chestnut has a high starch content, tastes like chestnuts after cooking, is easy to digest and absorb, is a good tonic, and has the function of regulating the spleen and stomach.

3. Lose weight and keep fit.

According to medical records, water chestnut "supplements the five internal organs, strengthens the body and is not hungry." The so-called light body, that is, it has the effect of losing weight and bodybuilding. Because water chestnut is low in calories and rich in dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals, it can promote gastrointestinal peristalsis and help digestion. Taking it as a staple food can not only be eaten, but also reduce weight and shape.

4. Anti-cancer

It has long been reported in Japan that the Compendium of Materia Medica says that water chestnut has a certain anti-cancer effect. This is because water chestnut contains an anticancer substance called AH- 13, which can effectively inhibit the degeneration and tissue proliferation of cancer cells and phagocytize cancer cells, especially in preventing digestive system cancer.

Clearing heat and quenching thirst

Water chestnut tastes similar to lotus root. Raw water chestnut is sweet and cool. Proper consumption can clear away heat and relieve summer heat and prevent autumn dryness. However, after cooking, the taste changed. Warm in nature, it has the function of strengthening spleen and benefiting qi.