GraviolaAnnona muricata

Did you know?

• The English name comes from the Dutch zuurzak, "sour sack", for the fruit's tangy flesh^{[5, 7]}.

• Soursop is the largest fruit of the whole custard-apple family and can weigh up to 10 pounds^{[4, 6, 7]}.

• Muricata comes from the Latin muricatus, "pointed", after the soft green spines that cover the fruit^[8].

• In Malaysia the fruit is durian belanda, the "Dutch durian", for its spiky skin^{[2, 3, 7]}. One Portuguese name, coração-de-rainha ("queen's heart"), suits a fruit that is often heart-shaped^{[2, 5, 10, 11]}.

• In the Philippines and elsewhere in the tropics, fresh leaves are tucked into pillowcases or scattered on the bed for a good night's sleep^{[3, 10]}.

• Scientists have identified 212 compounds in the plant, including about 46 acetogenins from the leaf alone^{[1, 2]}.

Origins and history

Graviola is a tree of the lowland tropics. It grows as a small, bushy evergreen up to about 30 feet tall, its glossy leaves give off a strong smell when crushed, and its yellow-green flowers^{[3, 8]} appear singly on woody stalks almost anywhere on the tree^{[4, 5]}. Its fruit is heart-shaped to oval and covered in soft, curved spines^{[2, 5]}. The Spanish chronicler Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo described it in 1526, and Spanish explorers went on to carry it across the tropical world^[5].

The fruit gave the tree most of its names: soursop in English, guanábana in Spanish, corossol in French, graviola in Brazilian Portuguese^[5]. Its white, custard-soft flesh is sweet and sour at once and is often compared to pineapple, mango or strawberry^[6]. It is still sold in markets across Latin America as juice, ice cream and sherbet^[4], boiled with sugar into the Indonesian sweet dodol sirsak^[3], and mixed with sugar and spirits in the Caribbean^[7], where the strained pulp is also blended with milk and sugar into a popular drink^{[5, 10]}.

Traditional uses

Clinical studies of graviola in people are still few^{[6, 9]}, but its traditional use is rich and remarkably consistent: wherever the tree grows, people have found the same gentle use for its leaf.

• A calming evening tea

  Across the Caribbean, Guyana, Haiti and West Africa, graviola leaf has traditionally been steeped in hot water and drunk as a relaxing tea to help people unwind before sleep.*^{[1, 8]}

• Restful nights

  In the Philippines the fresh leaves are laid in the bed or slipped into a pillowcase for a good night's sleep.^{[3, 10]}

• Immune support

  Graviola supports healthy immune function.*

• Antioxidant compounds

  The leaf provides naturally occurring antioxidant compounds.*

• Cellular health

  Graviola supports healthy cellular function.*

Plant compounds

Graviola leaf contains naturally occurring plant compounds called annonaceous acetogenins, a family of compounds characteristic of the custard-apple family; more than 120 have been recorded across the plant^[2]. The leaf also contains isoquinoline alkaloids, such as anonaine and reticuline, and phenolic compounds, including the flavonoids quercetin, kaempferol and rutin^{[1, 2, 3]}.