ARAU: Two undergraduates from an Indonesian varsity have developed an innovative way of preventing diabetes, by using rambutan seeds.
The two, are Feni Juita Sari and Marleni, both 18, from the Fakultas Ilmu Kesehatan, Universiti Ubudiyah in Banda Acheh, who have successfully produced a drink using the rambutan seeds.
According to Feni Juita, the innovation began with traditional medicine obtained from an area in Banda Acheh named Gayo Lues, where the villagers used dried rambutan seeds.
"We usually look at rambutan seeds as something without any value and just discard it.
"However, through the study we have undertaken, based on the health practices by the folks in Gayo Lues, we found that the rambutan seeds contained a lot of benefits in the prevention of diabetes," she said after the closing ceremony of the 'International Engineering Invention and Innovation Exhibition' in University Malaysia Perlis, Pauh, here yesterday.
Feni Juita noted that to produce the drink, the rambutan seeds will be chopped to tiny pieces before being dried for two to three days until the colour turns a shade of blackish yellow.
"The seeds are then blended into powder and drank with hot water. It should be consumed once or thrice a day before a meal.
"This therapy has to be done according to the sugar consumption needs of a person," she said.
Feni Juita explained that rambutan seeds were not poisonous and contained carbohydrates, fats and protein, which are able to fulfil the nutritional needs of each person's body.
"A study carried out found that rambutan seeds have between 30 and 43 per cent of pure fats, fibre, starch and stearic acid.
"The chemical composition in this rambutan seed is able to reduce sugar levels in the blood," she added.
Her partner Marleni also chipped in and said rambutan seeds are commonly used in alternative medicine to normalise sugar levels in the blood.
"This innovation has earned national attention, where several medical experts from Jakarta are carrying out a research and development on the technology before it is commercialised," she said.
UNIMAP Vice-Chancellor Datuk Prof Kamarudin Hussin, meanwhile, said the innovations produced in this programme were very encouraging, where 457 products were developed by 600 participants from the primary and secondary levels, as well as local and foreign tertiary institutions, showcasing their capabilities as young inventors in producing products beneficial to the society.
"The networking between schools and universities, notably in the field of research and development, has successfully brought the innovation to a level where industry players and the goverment would take an interest and commercialise these products," he said.
Kamarudin added that UNIMAP has also shone in the area of engineering innovation, where they have managed to develop 100 products, with three of those, including one in construction engineering already at commercialisation level.