Medicinal uses of Pepper fruits(Dennettia tripeta)(igbere)

Medicinal uses of Pepper fruits(Dennettia tripeta)(igbere)   

Nigeria researchers have shown that eating pepper fruits could decrease the risk of blindness caused by glaucoma. THE season is here again! Pepper fruit is in town. It comes with the rains. It is spicy and peppery. The young leaves are chewed on account of their pungent spicy taste. The fruits, green at first then turning red, ripen in April and May have a peppery spicy taste and are chewed for this property. The fruit is held to be a good source of vitamin. Botanically called Dennettia tripetala, pepper fruit belongs to the plant family Annonaceae. It is called ako in Edo, nkarika in Ibibio, mmimi in Igbo, and ata igbere in Yoruba. But Nigerian researchers have demonstrated how a meal rich in pepper fruit reduces the risk of glaucoma by stabilizing the Intra Ocular Pressure (IOP) of the eye. The study titled Effect of Dennettia tripetela Seed Intake on the Intra Ocular Pressure (IOP) of normtensive Emmetropic Nigerian Igbos, was authored by researchers at the Department of Optometry Abia State University, Uturu. IOP is the pressure within the eyeball as a result of the constant formation and drainage of the aqueous humour. It is the internal pressure of which allows the eye to hold on to its shape and function properly. Intraocular pressure is controlled primarily by the rate of secretion or rate of drainage of the aqueous humour. These will be building up pressure leading to increased risk of optic nerve damage, a pathological condition called glaucoma. Glaucoma is rated as the second leading cause of vision loss worldwide. It is also estimated that 66.8 million people are affected by glaucoma worldwide and 6.7 million are bilaterally blind because of the disease. It was said to affect individuals of all age groups but is more prevalent after the fourth decade of life.