Mastic

Other Names: Lentisco, Lentisk, Mastich, Mastika, Mastiha, Μαστίχα, damla sakızı, Mastix, Mata Charneca, Pistacia lentiscus, Arabic gum, Yemen gum, tears of Chios
Mastic is a resin obtained from the mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus), a small tree cultivated on the Greek island of Chios but also available throughout the Middle East. The resin produced by the tree is been used for medecin.

Special Precautions of Mastic

• Pregnancy and breast-feeding: Not enough is known about the use of mastic during pregnancy and breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and avoid use.
• Allergy to Schinus terebinthifolious and other Pistacia species: People who are allergic to these plants might also be allergic to mastic tree.

The benefits of Mastic are

Mastic has been used as a medicine since antiquity and is still used in traditional folk medicine of the Middle East. In ancient Greece, it was given as a remedy for snakebite, and, in India and Persia, it was used to fill dental cavities. The first-century Greek physician Pedanius Dioscorides mentions the healing properties of mastic in his book De Materia Medica. Hippocrates wrote that the mastic is good for prevention of digestive problems and colds, and Galenus suggested that mastic was useful for bronchitis and for improving the condition of the blood. In medieval times, mastic was highly valued by sultans' harems as a breath freshener and a tooth whitener. Mastic contains antioxidants and also has antibacterial and antifungal properties

• Stomach and intestinal ulcers : A Nottingham University study published in the New England Journal of Medicine claims that mastic can cure peptic ulcers by killing Helicobacter pylori bacteria.[5] Other studies have indicated that mastic has only a modest ability to eliminate H. pylori but have also suggested that refining mastic by removing the polymer poly-β-myrcene may make the active components, particularly isomasticadienolic acid, more available and effective.
• Breathing problems.
• Muscle aches.
• Bacterial and fungal infections.
• Tooth Decay and gingivitis: Mastic may also have some value in preventing tooth decay and gingivitis as chewing mastic reduces oral bacteria.
• Cholesterol : One study found that high consumption of Chios mastic powder results in decreased levels of total serum cholesterol, LDL, total cholesterol/HDL ratio, lipoprotein (a), apolipoprotein A-1, apolipoprotein B, ALT, AST, and GGT.
• Repelling insects.
• Improving blood circulation.
• Cuts, when applied to the skin.