Terminalia Bellirica

Baheda, the dried fruit of a tall Indian forest tree, one of the three fruits of triphala, traditionally used in Ayurveda for the throat, chest and digestion.

Terminalia bellirica is a large deciduous tree of Indian and South-East Asian forests. Its round, grey-brown fruits, known as bibhitaki or baheda, are dried and powdered, and they form triphala together with amla and haritaki.

Ayurveda uses bibhitaki for coughs, the throat and voice, digestion and the eyes, and as part of triphala for regularity. The fruit is rich in gallic acid, ellagic acid and other tannins. A systematic review found antioxidant, liver-protective and lipid-lowering activity, mostly in laboratory and animal studies, with little research in people.

• Throat and chest
• Digestive health
• Triphala fruit