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Litchi noun female ॰ [Chinese Lichu, Luchu] An evergreen tree and its fruit which is very tender to eat. Special — its leaves are small; The fruits grow in bunches and are very beautiful to see. On the peel, eruptions emerge from the rash. The pulp sticks to the seed like a white kholi, but leaves very soon and separates. This tree came from China and grows more in Bengal and Bihar.
History
In ancient times of China, the king of Tang dynasty was the beloved fruit of Zhuang Zong. He was brought to the king by the fast-moving horse, as he only flourished in the province of South China. Lychee was first described by Pierre Sonnarratt in the west (1748–1814), after his return from a trip to South China. It was brought to Réunion Island in 1764 by Joseph François de Palma and later came to Madagascar and became its main producer.
It has an evergreen tree of medium height, up to 15–20 m, alternating pinnate leaves, about 15–25 cm. Are long. The new Pallavas are bright copper and come green to full size. The flowers are small greenish-white or yellowish-white, which is 30 cm long. They are placed on a long panicle. Its fruit is drupe type, 3-4 cm. And 3 cm in diameter. Its peel ranges from pink-red to maroon, which is inedible and easily removed. Inside it is a sweet, milky white pulp, vitamin C rich, a little bit of grapefruit, thick layer covering its single, brown, smooth nuts like seeds. This seed is oval in size of 2X1.5 and is inedible. Its fruits ripen from [[July]] about three months after flowering in October. It has two sub-castes: -
The cultivation of litchi first began in South China around the first century.
- Lychee is an important source of vitamin C and potassium.
- The fruit called Rambutan has a pulpy taste and a litchi like appearance.
- The litchi can be broken only after full ripening because the ripening of the fruit of litchi stops after breaking from the tree.
Litchi always grows on fresh tall trees. The fruits of litchi hanging in large clumps of dark red color are formed between dense green leaves. These trees are found abundantly in the warm or temperate regions where litchi gets enough heat to ripen. Litchi cultivation starting in South China in the first century has spread to Thailand, Bangladesh, North India, South Africa, Hawaii and Florida today. The climate of these regions has been found suitable for litchi.
It is a fruit of small size and thin but with small, thick and soft thorn-filled peel. Its skin is first red in color and when cooked well becomes slightly darker. It has a very soft transparent to white colored pearl-like pulp which is delicious and healthy. There is a big dark brown seed inside this pulp which is not useful for eating.
Another fruit called Rambutan has the appearance, taste and qualities of litchi. But its size is slightly larger and there are fibers on its peel. Due to these fibers, it was called Rambutan in the Malaysian language. Rambutan means Baal in their language. It is a fruit of Southeast Asia and requires relatively high heat and moisture.
It is customary to eat litchi with sorbet, fruitslaw and ice cream, but in China it is included with many non-vegetarian dishes. Lychee has an important place in Chinese culture. It is considered to be important in the plate of fruits and dry fruits of New Year. It is considered a symbol of close family relations.
Farming and use
They are grown in abundance in South China, as well as in Southeast Asia especially Thailand, Laos, Cambodian Vietnam Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Southern Japan, Taiwan. And now it is also grown in California, Hawaii and Florida. Some very delicious fruits are cultivated in Dehradun. Chief among them is lychee. Litchi cultivation has been practiced in Dehradun since 1790. Initially, litchi cultivation was not as popular among the people here. But after 1980 its popularity started gaining momentum. After this, there were at least a dozen litchi trees in every garden in Dehradun. Dehradun became a major producer of litchi around the 1980s. This delicious fruit is cultivated on about 4500 hectares of land in Vikas Nagar, Narayanpur, Vasant Vihar, Raipur, Kalugarh, Rajpur Road and Dalanwala area of Dehradun. But now the cultivation of litchi has come down drastically. Now litchi is cultivated only on 3080 hectares of land.
Lychee seeds sprout, including its main root (about three months old)
picture
A common seed (left) and a small seed
Lychees are sold fresh in Vietnam, Chinese and South Asian markets and also in supermarkets around the world. Even after keeping it in refrigeration, its taste does not change, yes the color turns on some brownness.
Hundreds of children died due to eating litchi
The reason behind the mysterious deaths of hundreds of people has been known in recent years in Muzaffarpur, Bihar. This disease, infamous in the name of skin disease among the local people, kills many children in May-June every year. The joint efforts of scientists of India and America have shown that this disease is caused due to over-eating litchi on an empty stomach.
The results of this research, which lasted for nearly 3 years, were published in the science journal Lancet Global. According to the scientists, litchi contains a toxic substance called hypoglycerin A and methylanescyclopropylglycine. In 2014, 390 children were admitted to two hospitals after the same disease, out of which 122 died. Exactly similar cases were seen in Malda in West Bengal.
Examination of blood and urine of most of the children admitted in the hospital revealed that they contained quantities of these elements. Most of the children did not have food in the evening and consumed large amounts of litchi in the morning. In such a situation, the effect of these elements is more fatal. Doctors have advised the children of the area to eat limited amount of litchi and take food before that.
Fever fever
Fever fever ie AES affects the main nervous system of the body i.e. the nervous system. Especially, it proves fatal for children.
Symptoms of hot fever
It starts with high fever. Body cramps are felt. The nervous functions of the body are interrupted. Mental disorientation is felt. The child becomes unconscious, seizures begin. Panic is felt, in some cases the sufferer goes into a coma. If treatment is not received on time, the victim dies.
Is litchi responsible?
A few years ago a research report was published by the Medical Journal named 'The Lancet'. This report was published after research that lasted for about 3 years. It was said that the naturally occurring substances in lychee called hypoglycin A and methylenecyclopropylglycine (MPCG) are not beneficial for the body. Actually, because of this, there is a hindrance in the formation of fatty acid metabolism in the body. Due to this, blood-sugar goes to low level and brain problems start. Seizures begin.
How the risk of fever flushed with litchi?
This report said that if the level of blood sugar in the body is reduced due to not eating dinner and eating litchi on an empty stomach in the morning, then the risk of acute encephalitis syndrome AES increases manifold. It was said that during summer, there is a lot of litchi production in Muzaffarpur and surrounding areas of Bihar. In such a situation, the children of poor families, who are already malnourished, do not eat food at night and instead of having breakfast in the morning, start eating litchi on an empty stomach. This causes the body's blood sugar level to drop suddenly and there is a risk of disease.
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