Palm wine.

PALM WINE.

Palm wine is a common alcoholic drink in Africa.

It is tapped from various types of palm trees.

Freshly tapped palm wine is warm, frothy, milky and sweet.

Palm wine tapping is a lucrative profession for some people in the southwest region of Nigeria.

Palm wine can be drunk as freshly tapped, chilled or fermented.

Sweeteners could be added to enhance the flavour of palm wine.

It is served at meetings and important social functions such as marriage, coronation, naming ceremony and housewarming.

The popularity of palm wine is attested to by the existence of palm wine drinkers’ clubs in many tertiary institutions in the southwest region of Nigeria. Refined palm wine in labelled bottles is sold in many supermarkets in Nigeria.

Palm wine is nutritious and medicinal.

Among the health benefits of palm wine is its ability to reduce the risk of cancer by preventing an oxidation process that could damage cells in the body.

Palm wine enhances the growth of new body cells.

It also contains nutrients which help in nourishing the hair, nails and skin.

Vitamins B and C contents of palm wine help in building the connective tissues of the eye to prevent the formation of cataracts.

Some traditional healers soak herbs in bottled palm wine for the treatment of various types of diseases in Africa.