Manage diabetes with bitter melon
May 29, 2011
BITTER melon (akalera) also known as Ampalaya, or bitter gourd is considered the safest fruit, in as far as food and medicine are concerned. Unlike the past, today the plant is predominantly grown in Africa and East Africa.
By Viqué-Ocean Kahinju
BITTER melon (akalera) also known as Ampalaya, or bitter gourd is considered the safest fruit, in as far as food and medicine are concerned. Unlike the past, today the plant is predominantly grown in Africa and East Africa.
Uganda is actually growing the fruit on a large scale, explains Dr. James O’Mara, a botanist and herbalist in Kampala.
“Like any other herbs, it has been discovered that bitter melon, as a vegetable, has significant healing elements,†he adds.
“The plant has unique and strong curative properties that help check several ailments, among them diabetics and removal of toxins from the body,†he adds.
Bitter melon is made up of a mixture of flavonoids and alkaloids which aids the pancreas produce insulin that controls blood sugar levels. “Bitter melon has natural insulin,†O’Mara stresses. “Bitter melon also helps stimulate the liver to secrete bile juice that is essential for the metabolism of body fat,†he adds.
Bitter melon is high in dietary fibre and is a perfect source of vitamins and minerals that help the body stay healthy. The vitamins include A, B, B1, B2 B3, and C,
The minerals are iron, sodium, copper, folic acid, zinc, phosphorous and calcium. The fruit has no traces of fat, cholesterol, or sugars.
According to O’Mara, the iron content in bitter melon doubles that in broccoli and spinach, while the potassium content is twice that in bananas.
Because it is low in calories and has no trace of cholesterol and sugars, bitter melon is recommended for weight management. O’Mara says the fruit’s seeds, leaves and stems are equally important to boost health.
“The fruit’s leaves, for example, can check colds and cough, and are utilised in the treatment of skin diseases and sterility in women.
And because of its bitter taste, bitter melon stimulates digestion and can be effective in relieving pain in the upper gut (the stomach, oesophagitis or duodenum). It also helps guard against constipation because it is an effective digestive agent that functions by stimulating the secretion of gastric juices.
To get the best out of the bitter melon, the fruit and its leaves can both be juiced and drank, advises O’Mara.
On the other hand, Dr. Damalie Gusenga, a nutritionist at Ebenezer Health Centre in Kampala, says the fruit helps alleviate ailments such as rheumatism, spleen and liver diseases, high blood pressure, gout and illnesses that cause defective metabolism of uric acid thus causing arthritis and acute pain, especially in the smaller bones of the feet.
Other benefits
Helps to disinfect and heal cuts, wounds and burns
Helps deal with poor appetite
Helps in the treatment of intestinal worms and diarrhoea
Checks some cancers
Enhances the body’s resistance to infections
Serves as an effective antioxidant, antibacterial and antipyretic (fever-reducing) agent.
BITTER melon (akalera) also known as Ampalaya, or bitter gourd is considered the safest fruit, in as far as food and medicine are concerned. Unlike the past, today the plant is predominantly grown in Africa and East Africa.
Uganda is actually growing the fruit on a large scale, explains Dr. James O’Mara, a botanist and herbalist in Kampala.
“Like any other herbs, it has been discovered that bitter melon, as a vegetable, has significant healing elements,†he adds.
“The plant has unique and strong curative properties that help check several ailments, among them diabetics and removal of toxins from the body,†he adds.
Bitter melon is made up of a mixture of flavonoids and alkaloids which aids the pancreas produce insulin that controls blood sugar levels. “Bitter melon has natural insulin,†O’Mara stresses. “Bitter melon also helps stimulate the liver to secrete bile juice that is essential for the metabolism of body fat,†he adds.
Bitter melon is high in dietary fibre and is a perfect source of vitamins and minerals that help the body stay healthy. The vitamins include A, B, B1, B2 B3, and C,
The minerals are iron, sodium, copper, folic acid, zinc, phosphorous and calcium. The fruit has no traces of fat, cholesterol, or sugars.
According to O’Mara, the iron content in bitter melon doubles that in broccoli and spinach, while the potassium content is twice that in bananas.
Because it is low in calories and has no trace of cholesterol and sugars, bitter melon is recommended for weight management. O’Mara says the fruit’s seeds, leaves and stems are equally important to boost health.
“The fruit’s leaves, for example, can check colds and cough, and are utilised in the treatment of skin diseases and sterility in women.
And because of its bitter taste, bitter melon stimulates digestion and can be effective in relieving pain in the upper gut (the stomach, oesophagitis or duodenum). It also helps guard against constipation because it is an effective digestive agent that functions by stimulating the secretion of gastric juices.
To get the best out of the bitter melon, the fruit and its leaves can both be juiced and drank, advises O’Mara.
On the other hand, Dr. Damalie Gusenga, a nutritionist at Ebenezer Health Centre in Kampala, says the fruit helps alleviate ailments such as rheumatism, spleen and liver diseases, high blood pressure, gout and illnesses that cause defective metabolism of uric acid thus causing arthritis and acute pain, especially in the smaller bones of the feet.
Other benefits
Helps to disinfect and heal cuts, wounds and burns
Helps deal with poor appetite
Helps in the treatment of intestinal worms and diarrhoea
Checks some cancers
Enhances the body’s resistance to infections
Serves as an effective antioxidant, antibacterial and antipyretic (fever-reducing) agent.