• Plantains are bananas used for cooking.plantain image by TA Craft Photography from Fotolia.com
  
  Plantain fruit is a type of banana with less sugar than common bananas, and is often used for cooking. Although plantains are a fruit, they are generally prepared like other vegetables: stewed, fried, boiled, mashed or grilled. They are not eaten raw unless they are very ripe. Plantains are indigenous to Latin America, Africa and India, and are high in nutritional value. They provide several health benefits, from healing skin bruises to preventing ulcers.
  
  

External Benefits

• The fruit and peels of plantain and banana can be used to treat several skin ailments. To treat wrinkles, mash one quarter of a plantain and spread it over your face. Let it sit for 20 minutes; rinse your face with warm water and then splash with cold water. For the alleviation of skin allergies, mash a ripe plantain in milk and drink it between two and three times per day. Turn a plantain peel inside out and tape it to skin warts. Once the peel turns black, remove it and replace with a fresh peel. Over a few weeks, you should notice the warts healing. Plantain peels can also heal poison ivy; rub the plantain peel over the affected areas to experience a soothing, cooling relief. If you have a bruise, leave a plantain peel taped to the bruise overnight to help the bruise fade by morning.
  
  

Internal Benefits

• Plantains have high amounts of vitamin A, potassium and fiber, and are low in sodium. Eating bananas or plantains regularly is believed to ease the negative affects of gout, allergies, arthritis, kidney stones, anemia, urinary disorders and tuberculosis. If you are constipated, eating a plantain with dinner or a banana for dessert can help move your bowels. If you have diarrhea, boiling, mashing and eating a banana or a ripe plantain can help ease your stomach. Eating at least three bananas per day has been known to prevent ulcers and ease ulcer pain. Eating bananas and plantains also reduces heartburn.
  
  

Other Benefits

• Plantains contain tryptophan, a chemical found in certain foods that acts as a naturally-occurring mood enhancer. HealthGuidance.org suggests that eating plantains and bananas can help people who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Due to their considerable amounts of vitamins C, B6, B12 and A1, eating bananas and plantains can also help smokers kick the habit. The magnesium and potassium contained in plantains can assist the body in healing from symptoms of withdrawal.