How to Extract Papain From Papaya

Papain is an enzyme found in the liquid of unripe papayas. In alternative medicine, it has been used to reduce inflammation and pain, and to speed up recovery of certain injuries, especially uncomplicated athletic injuries. Papain must be extracted before its potency reaches levels high enough to help with these conditions.

Things You'll Need

• Papaya
• Stainless steel razor blade
• Collection dish
• Box
• Stainless steel spoon
• Vacuum oven

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Instructions

• 1

  Cut the papaya from top to bottom with the razor blade. Make sure the cut is no more than 2mm deep.

• 2

  Hold the papaya over the collection dish and let the liquid drip out onto the dish. This should be done for a minimum of six minutes. Do not squeeze the papaya to get the liquid out.

• 3

  Place the collection dish into the vacuum oven. Set the vacuum oven to 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Let the liquid papain dry for five hours. You will know it is ready when it takes on a crumbly appearance.

• 4

  Transfer the dried papain into a box that has been lined with polyethylene. This can be done by gently scraping the dried papain from the collection dish with a stainless steel spoon.The box must have a lid, which should be as airtight as possible. The box should be stored in a cool, dry place.