Ampalaya and Its Benefits

Bitter melon

Food

Description

Momordica charantia is a tropical and subtropical vine of the family Cucurbitaceae, widely grown in Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean for its edible fruit. Its many varieties differ substantially in the shape and bitterness of the fruit.  source:Wikipedia

Scientific name: Momordica charantia

Family: Cucurbitaceae

Order: Cucurbitales

Kingdom: Plantae

Ampalaya Bitter Melon (Momordica charantia) also known as Bitter Melon is a tropical and subtropical vine of the family Cucurbitaceae, widely grown in the Amazon, Carribean, South east Asia such as Philippines for its edible fruit. Ampalaya or bitter melon also known as bitter gourd as the name implies has a bitter taste due to the presence of momordicin, and is believed to be among the most bitter of all vegetables.

What diseases can ampalaya cure?


It has been traditionally used to treat diabetes. Bitter melon contains a chemical that acts like insulin to help reduce blood sugar levels. People commonly use bitter melon for diabetes, osteoarthritis, athletic performance, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.
The leaf juice is supposedly a good antitussive (i.e., it stops cough), antipyretic (i.e., for fever), purgative and anthelmintic (i.e., against roundworms). Ampalaya is also used to treat sterility in women and it can supposedly alleviate liver problems. Ampalaya is used as a herbal remedy to protect the liver from damage due to intake of alcohol and other harmful substances. Skin problems. Ampalaya is crushed or rubbed over the skin to alleviate symptoms of psoriasis, ringworm, athlete's foot, wounds, burns and ulcers.

Ampalaya herbal tea. Decoction of tea may be prepared from the powdered Ampalaya or Bitter Melon leaves, seeds and flower.


Ampalaya herbal tea or decoction
Cut or crush a cup of Ampalaya seeds, leaves and flowers
Steep in 4 cups of boiling water for 10 to 15 minutes
Let it cool and strain
drink a cup three times a day.

Ampalaya herbal tea is good to last for one day. Make new Ampalaya herbal tea as needed.

Dried ampalaya leaves, flowers and seeds are more potent, use at half dosage.

Ampalaya or Bitter Melon Juice. 

Ampalaya Bitter melon leaves and fruit (without the seeds) are pounded and juiced to extract concentrated juice. The juice can be taken at a spoonful for adults while teaspoonful for chilren. Ampalaya bitter melon juice can also be added to other plesant tasting juice for drinking. Dosage is 1 tablespoon 2 times a day until symptoms improve.

Benefits of Ampalaya for the Hair

1. It helps reduce hair fall naturally.
2. It gets rid of dandruff.
3. It can give you shiny hair.
4. It helps treating split ends.
5. It can combat dry and itchy scalp.
6. It helps straighten rough and tangled hair.
7. It can prevent oily hair.
8. It helps treating premature grey hair.

Start including this bitter yet healthy beneficial vegetable to your diet, you'll surely achieve these hair benefits.

• For shiny hair you can mix a cup of fresh bitter gourd juice with yoghurt and apply on your hair. Wash off after sometime.

• For Dandruff, you can prepare a hair pack by mixing bitter gourd juice and cumin seeds. Regular usage of this pack will rid you of dandruff within a month.

• For split ends, you can apply raw bitter gourd juice to your split ends and then comb gently. This should be done twice a week to get rid of split ends.

• For Dry and Itchy scalp, you can rub a fresh piece of bitter gourd on it and massage your scalp in a circular motion. Then, rinse off with clear water. To combat the itchiness, you can prepare a hair pack by mixing bitter gourd juice with either avocado or banana and apply it on your scalp. This should be used at least once a week to get rid of an itchy scalp.

• For Hair Loss, Bitter gourd juice helps in reducing hair fall naturally. All you need to do is mix bitter gourd juice with a dash of sugar and use this paste on your hair to get good results

• For rough and tangled hair, you can pour a cup of bitter gourd juice and allow it to soak for 10 to 15 minutes. Then rinse off your hair. This will help smoothen your hair texture and make it soft and shiny.

• For grey hair, Bitter gourd can also treat premature greying of hair. You can apply freshly squeezed bitter gourd juice on your grey strands. Doing this once in every ten days will reduce the grey hair growth.

• For oily hair, you should first limit the consumption of oily food. You can apply a mixture of bitter gourd juice and apple cider vinegar to remove the excess oil from your hair.

Counter indications:

When under medications for diabetes, hypertension, heart problems, etc., Taking Ampalaya in medicinal dosages may counter-act or aggravate its effectiveness. It is advised to consult your doctor before using this herb.

Pregnancy and Breast feeding. There is a study that suggests the abortive action of Momordica charantia in large doses during pregnancy. It is recommended to avoid its use more than what is found in food.