Did you know carob has both astringent and laxative properties?

Yes, you read that right. It may sound like a paradox, but scientific studies have shown that, depending on the part chosen (seeds or pulp) and the fruit's stage of ripeness, carob can have beneficial effects against gastrointestinal disorders such as diarrhoea and constipation.

Specifically, carob seed flour, thanks to its ability to absorb large amounts of water, is used as a natural remedy in the treatment of diarrhoea.

Gastrointestinal disorders such as diarrhoea can in fact also be caused by bacteria foreign to our body. In his study, Guggenbichler (1) explains how a 2% carob solution is able to block the adhesion of the E. coli bacterium to certain cells of the intestinal epithelium.

According to other studies, moreover, gastrointestinal infections caused by enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) are often the cause of secretory diarrhoea in children under 5 years of age. In this regard, treatment with leaf extracts of Ceratonia siliqua L. can inhibit the proliferation of E. coli in a manner similar to the action of a synthetic bactericidal antibiotic.

And what about constipation? For this disorder too, it has been shown that aqueous extracts of ripe carob pulp help speed up the gastrointestinal transit process, acting as a natural laxative.

It is important to stress how the carob's stage of ripeness plays a fundamental role in resolving these disorders. If the aqueous extracts in fact come from an unripe carob, they end up performing, on the contrary, a mainly astringent action in the gastrointestinal tract.

References

1. Guggenbichler JP. Adherence of enterobacteria in infantile diarrhoea and its prevention. Infection. 1983; 11:239–242. doi: 10.1007/BF01641209.