The Baobab Tree
A pillar in the health status of the The Gambia

The Gambia is blessed with many natural resources. One of such resources is the baobab tree. It can normally be seen towering above storey buildings, as if trying to establish its supremacy and wealth of cures.

It is perhaps, most famous for the juice made from the pulp called Icey buuy, which literally translated into “baobab ice”. The pulp is one of the richest sources of vitamin C on this planet. 1 gram of baobab puld contains nearly 6 times more vitamin C than 1 a similar amount of an orange. Twenty grams of baobab pulp provides the daily requirement of vitamin C for humans.

Even though the food sellers who sell this concoction in and around Gambian schools are doing so purely out of profit, they are, inadvertently, helping to prevent vitamin C deficiency amongst Gambian children!

The bark of the baobab tree has, amongst other uses, one very important medicinal use. It contains certain flavonols, and is used as a treatment for fever. Indeed, it is being marketed in Europe under the trade name ‘cortex cael cedra’ as a treatment for fever.

The seedcake, as well as the shells from the fruit, are a useful stockfeed, being high in protein, calcium, vitamin B1 and vitamin C.

Baobab juice is being marketed commercially in the Gambia. But this is mostly in the form of small and medium scale enterprises. Perhaps a large scale company should be set up by interested investors to market this and other natives drinks to the point that we would export some of our produce. This has been attempted in the past during the days of the Gambia Produce Marketing Board (GPMB). Such a venture is needed now more than ever, considering the health impact of the foreign, sugary and fizzy drinks that are so easily available in the Gambia.

Disclaimer: References values used in this article are solely intended for the purpose of health education and not for diagnostic purposes. Reference values differ in people from different races and countries. And they even differ from one laboratory to another. They all, however, fall within a certain range. Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is solely intended for the purpose of general information and health education. It should not be used for diagnostic purposes or for the treatment of patients. Each diabetic individual has unique features best known by his/her physician.