SNAILS ARE OFTEN SEEN AS PESTS THAT ARE USEFUL

SNAILS ARE OFTEN SEEN AS PESTS THAT ARE USEFUL

 

 

This snail, or whose Latin name is Achatina Fulica, is a land snail belonging to the Achatinidae family. This snail originated from East Africa and has now spread to almost all corners of the world, as a result of being carried away in trade. It is estimated that it already existed in Indonesia around 1922.

In fact, the French state uses snails as raw material for cooking. Not only in France, but in Indonesia also use snails as a cooking ingredient.

Snails in Indonesia have different regional names. For example, areas in Central Java call this snail a snail, and West Java calls it a poison snail.

Snails are soft animals (Mollusca) which are rich sources of protein. This animal is a type of land snail which generally has a habit of living in damp places and is active at night (nocturnal). It also eats a variety of cultivated plants so it is called a pest.

Its habitat is in a country with a tropical climate. Wet conditions make it easy for snails to breed. It can also live wild in forests, plantations, or cultivated places.

Generally, they have a reddish brown shell along with a yellow vertical hue. However, the color of each species depends on environmental conditions or the type of food consumed.

 

The snail shell consists of three layers, namely, conchiolin, prismatic layer, and pearl.

At the top of the shell (visceral) it releases lime, resulting in 98 percent of the shell consisting of calcium carbonate (CaCO3).

Adult snails can exceed 20 centimeters in length, but are only about 5 to 10 centimeters on average. While the average weight is approximately 32 grams.

It uses the lower body (stomach) to walk. The snail breathes using the lungs, so it is entered into the order Pulmonata. Its lifespan can reach 10 years with an average life span of 5 to 7 years.

Nutritional Content in Snails

 

 

Not only useful as animal feed, snail meat can also be consumed by humans because it contains essential amino acids and protein.

The nutritional content contained in snails. 100 grams of pure snail meat, containing at least:

•     441 Calories

•     48.7 grams of protein

•     20.3 grams of fat

•     15.8 grams of carbohydrates

•     Tryptophan

•           Iron

•           Vitamin B12

•     Magnesium

Health Benefits of Snails

Although it is often considered a plant pest, it turns out that the snail has another useful side for humans, namely for health and beauty. Health benefits include:

1. Overcoming Skin Diseases

2. Helps Improve Moods

3. Build and Repair Muscle

4. Help Prevent Anemia

5. Good for the nervous system

6. Maintain Blood Pressure

7. Strengthens Bones and Teeth

8. Keeping Your Heart Rate Stable

9. Improve Body Nutrition

10. Overcoming Malnutrition

However, before consuming preparations from snails, make sure that the detoxification process and that the whole snail is completely clean. The most important thing is that in processing, the snails must also be cooked until they are completely cooked and safe for consumption.

Other Benefits Of Snails

Not only can the meat be eaten, the other snail parts are also nutritious.

1.   Snail mucus can be used to maintain healthy skin, especially facial skin.

Now, some skin care products have used snail mucus as the main ingredient. This is because the snail mucus can reduce acne to black spots.

2.   Heal wounds

The benefits of snail healing wounds can be obtained from the mucus.

For the type of wound itself, it is usually an incision wound, a wound after falling, and a burn. So, apart from being edible, the snail's disgusting slime can provide benefits.

3.   Joint Pain Medication

Whereas the shell contains chitin and mineral compounds such as calcium carbonate.

According to various sources, the shell is also useful as an alternative to glucosamine production for joint pain medications.

 

Cultivation of Snails

The snail or land snail, which is commonly found on banana tree trunks or in rice fields, is often considered a plant pest because it often damages rice fields and plantations. It turns out that snails have many benefits, especially for health. Indonesian people often underestimate snails and waste them. With its many disturbances to crops and also plantation areas, it is only natural that the snails are hated and eradicated by farmers, so that their harvest conditions do not decline. Even though now many people are looking for this slimy animal, for medicinal purposes. So that now snail farming has mushroomed. Cultivation is carried out so that the ecosystem is maintained and meets market demands for export.

 

 

 

RIVANY INDIRA PALUPI

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