The New Complete Book of Food
Canning. Canned figs contain slightly less vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin than
fresh figs, and no active ficin.Medical Uses and/or Benefits
Iron supplementation. Dried figs are an excellent source of iron.
As a laxative. Figs are a good source of the indigestible food fiber lignin. Cells whose walls
are highly lignified retain water and, since they are impossible to digest, help bulk up the
stool. In addition, ficin has some laxative effects. Together, the lignin and the ficin make figs
(particularly dried figs) an efficient laxative food.
Lower risk of stroke. Potassium lowers blood pressure. According to new data from the
Harvard University Health Professionals Study, a long-running survey of male doctors, a diet
rich in high-potassium foods such as bananas may also reduce the risk of stroke. The men
who ate the most potassium-rich foods (an average nine servings a day) had 38 percent fewer
strokes than men who ate the least (less than four servings a day).Adverse Effects Associated with This Food
Sulfite allergies. See How other kinds of processing affect this food.Food/Drug Interactions
MAO inhibitors. Monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors are drugs used as antidepressants
or antihypertensives. They inhibit the action of natural enzymes that break down tyramine,
a nitrogen compound formed when proteins are metabolized, so it can be eliminated from
the body. Tyramine is a pressor amine, a chemical that constricts blood vessels and raises
blood pressure. If you eat a food rich in one of these chemicals while you are taking an MAO
inhibitor, the pressor amines cannot be eliminated from your body, and the result may be a
hypertensive crisis (sustained elevated blood pressure). There has been one report of such a
reaction in a patient who ate canned figs while taking an MAO inhibitor.