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'Jamu' Penglipuran style
Untested: Many elderly Balinese believe cem cem can reduce blood pressure, however no research has been undertaken to prove the benefits
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span class="inline inline-center">Untested: Many elderly Balinese believe cem cem can reduce blood pressure, however no research has been undertaken to prove the benefits.
In the cool, forested upper reaches of Bangli regency lies the village of Penglipuran.
Best known for its bamboo shingled roofs and ancient Balinese architecture, the village is also a model town with its spotless streets, manicured gardens, dogs on leashes, trash bins every 30 meters or so and a warm welcome for visitors at each family gateway.
Upon arriving, guests are given a house number to visit, so all in the village share in the bounty of tourists.
'We all work together to keep the village clean. Once a month we hold a gotong royong [working together] session and clean up our village to keep it nice,' says local resident Ni Wayan Sumadi.
There is a gentle calm in the village, which is also home to an herbal drink that Balinese believes reduces blood pressure. Loloh cem cem, made from young cem cem leaves, has brought the village much fame, says Sumadi.
'My mom drinks loloh cem cem once a week, as it's good for your health. If you have a stomach problem, it will cool your stomach and stop constipation. But if it does not suit your body; it can have you running to the toilet,' Sumadi says.
Sumadi adds she does not know whether the belief that loloh cem cem reduces blood pressure is true or local myth.
However Komang Martini of Klungkung says elderly people from her region seek out the herbal remedy, that is fast becoming rare outside of Penglipuran.
'We believe cem cem is a Balinese type of jamu, an herbal health drink that is refreshing on a hot day. But it also reduces blood pressure, so we give it to our old people. When you get older, blood pressure often goes up, and we believe this helps,' says Komang.
Thrity-seven-year-old Martini says that cem cem trees are now scarce. 'People don't plant them anymore because the wood is no use for building or making statues. It's only the leaves that are useful.'
One of the earliest producers of cem cem outside of home use was Ibu Kunil, currently in her 60s. Her two daughters, Nengah and Nyoman, are the mainstays of the family business these days, turning our 300 liters of cem cem a day for use throughout southeastern Bali.
'There was a government program for women and they trained us on how to make cem cem,' Kunil says in Balinese, her daughter Nyoman translating. 'This was back in Pak 'Harto's [Soeharto] days. So from that I got the idea to make cem cem. I'd go around the village here with a bucket of the drink. In a day back then, I would sell three buckets and the business kept growing.'
Like other residents of the village, Kunil says she is not aware of any health benefits from consuming cem cem. 'I only make it and know that it gets rid of thirst on a hot day. The regent before did tests on cem cem they say, and said it was a healthy drink, but there was no information on blood pressure or other illness.'
At the family home industry on the outskirts of Penglipuran, Nengah is washing 20 kilograms of freshly grated coconut to be mixed with the cem cem overnight.
'I started helping mum make cem cem when I was a little kid,' Nengah says. 'I was about seven years old, and at that time I traveled with mum around the village on foot selling cem cem from a bucket carried on her head. These days we make the cem cem only. Ours is famous so that people come to us to buy. They say it's healthy and good for them, but I don't know of the health benefits. It's refreshing, I do know that.'
Separately, a pharmacist with Kimia Farma in Ubud, Ketut Mastrini, said he was aware of the local belief in cem cem's potential to reduce blood pressure.
'That cem cem can reduce blood pressure is a traditional belief, but there is no research to support this. As a pharmacist, I must say people should check with their doctors, as this is a traditional medicine and we don't know its efficacy,' says Mastrini.
Wayan Novita, a pharmacist's assistant with Apotek Biocare in Ubud, expressed a similar sentiment, saying that people should not mix their blood pressure medicine with cem cem.
'Locals believe cem cem can reduce blood pressure, but it can also cause diarrhea. Also, there is no research to prove cem cem aids in fighting hypertension. Mixing hypertension drugs and cem cem is not advised, as we don't know the contraindications,' says Novita.
' PHOTOS BY JB DJWAN
