Pomegranate

One of the things that never ceases to amaze me as an herbalist is how much I don’t know. I remember a fellow herbalist, Ed Smith, founder of HerbPharm, saying that with all the valuable plants in the world, you’ll never run out of things to learn as an herbalist, and I’m constantly validating that in my own experience. I mention this because I thought writing about pomegranate as a remedy would be fairly straightforward, but I was shocked at how much more there was to learn about this plant as I started gathering material. 

I knew some of the benefits of pomegranate juice or arils (the small parts of the fruit that contain the juice and encase the seeds), but I had no idea how valuable other parts of the plant were. For instance, the rind that I’ve been discarding when I eat pomegranates is a valuable herbal remedy that I need to start using. And that’s just the start. So, let’s dive into the benefits of this valuable food and medicine, beginning with the juice and arils, the parts most people are familiar with.

The Health-Promoting Properties of Pomegranate

There has been a lot of research done on pomegranate in recent decades, primarily because of its antioxidant benefits. Pomegranate is rich in antioxidants known as punicalagins and punicalins, which are more potent than those found in red wine or green tea. Largely due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, research suggests pomegranate can be helpful for cardiovascular, brain, and structural health.

In the cardiovascular system, regular consumption of pomegranate can help reduce arterial plaque buildup, improve heart blood flow to the heart, and reduce blood pressure. The nitrates and antioxidants it contains also help with exercise performance by aiding blood flow.

Pomegranate also helps to reduce levels of C-reactive protein, a marker for chronic inflammation. This anti-inflammatory action may also help reduce inflammation and pain in people who suffer from both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. There is also some evidence that pomegranate may help reduce cancer risk and have neuroprotective effects. 

Pomegranates have traditionally been associated with love and reproductive health. The large fruits, containing many seeds, are associated with fertility. Pomegranate may have benefits for both prostate and breast health, but these and most of the other benefits listed above are based on research on various extracts and not necessarily on just eating the arils or juice. So, while pomegranate fruit and juice are obviously healthy, don’t expect miraculous health benefits from consuming them.

Pomegranate as Medicine

While the juice is high in antioxidants, some of the best medicinal parts of the pomegranate are the seeds and the rind. The seeds are inside the arils, so when you express the juice, the seeds are left behind. Pomegranate extracts, often found in herbal supplements, are typically derived from the seeds and rind, which contain higher concentrations of many of the health-promoting compounds found in pomegranate than the juice. 

The dried seeds and seed powder have been used in Ayurveda and Unani traditional medicine for conditions such as burning urination, acid reflux, fever, excessive thirst, cardiac weakness, chest pain, and jaundice. The rind is a traditional Chinese medicine, which I’ll talk about in a moment. But the point is that the whole fruit, not just the juice, has the best potential for providing the health benefits listed above. The seeds and rind are also the most antimicrobial parts and can be used to help fight gum infections (gingivitis). 

Pomegranate Rind (Shi Liu Pi)

The Chinese remedy Shi Liu Pi is the dried outer rind of the ripe pomegranate fruit. The rind is dried for use in decoctions, baked and powdered for use in pills, and charred if it is being used to stop bleeding. The remedy is sour and astringent with a warming nature and enters the stomach and large intestine channels.

The remedy is used for diarrhea and intestinal parasites. As is the case with most TCM remedies, it is combined with other herbs for these purposes. The peelings contain alkaloids that appear to paralyze tapeworms and roundworms, helping to eliminate them. It is also used for amoebic dysentery and heavy menstrual bleeding.

Pomegranate rind has a high level of antioxidant polyphenols and anti-inflammatory and cardiovascular-supporting punicalagins. It is also a moderate source of ellagic acid. Ellagic acid has therapeutic effects against colon, breast, prostate, and skin cancer. It may also be helpful for weight loss. Pomegranate rind also contains flavonoids and tannins.

Pomegranate Flower Essence

As suggested earlier, pomegranate is associated with fertility. The fruit arises from a large inferior ovary that swells with an abundance of dark reddish arils containing the seeds. In the Greek tradition, pomegranate is associated with the cycle of the seasons. The story is that Hades, the God of the underworld, kidnaps Persephone, the daughter of Demeter, who rules all plant life. Her mother rescues her, but because Persephone has eaten six pomegranate seeds, she must spend six months in Hades each year. Pomegranates are also found in Biblical symbolism and are used to represent fruitfulness, blessing, and prosperity.

The flower essence of pomegranate is primarily a remedy for women. It has a wide variety of uses, but they tend to center around psychological balance. Women who identify primarily as mothers often undergo a difficult transition as their children grow up and leave home. As women enter menopause and lose their fertility they may also have an emotional crisis. Women in modern society may have conflict simply because they are torn between home and career or because they never had any children. The remedy helps women make choices regarding conception and mothering, or about deciding to focus on a career instead of a family. 

Human beings are naturally creative, and my father taught me that all creative energy, both procreative (reproductive) and artistic, arises from the reproductive glands. So a woman who is struggling with changes in life or balancing her roles with family and career can benefit from pomegranate flower essence. It can also help a mature woman turn her feminine nurturing energy into a different kind of service than in the broader world.

Using Pomegranate 

I grew pomegranates when I lived in Leeds, Utah, and we have a bushy pomegranate tree on our new property in California. We harvested about a dozen fruits last fall after we moved in, and I removed the arils from the rind and ate them mixed with plain whole-milk yogurt. I’ve also made a salad that’s popular in Southern Utah, where I used to live, made with apples, pecans, and pomegranate arils. You simply toss them all together with a little whipped cream. I think you get more health benefits from eating the whole arils than from drinking the juice, although I’ve purchased and consumed the juice, too.

This year, however, I plan to save the rinds and dry them, rather than throw them away. My wife told me that her grandmother used to dry them and powder them in a coffee grinder as a remedy for digestive upset and diarrhea. You can also use them to make tea. 

You’ll also find various pomegranate extracts in antioxidant formulas, formulas for the prostate, and products that aid circulation and cardiovascular health. Since I’ve barely touched on the many ways you can use this remedy, I encourage you to learn more by checking out some of the resources below.

Suggested References

• Pomegranate (White Rabbit Institute of Healing)
• Pomegranate Peel Tea: 20 Benefits, Side Effects & How to Make It
• Pomegranate Peel: A Natural Remedy for Various Ailments
• Shi Liu Pi – Pomegranate Rind – Pericarpium Granati
• Shi Liu Pi Pomegranate rind
• Food as Medicine Update: Pomegranate (Punica granatum, Lythraceae)