Bitter Melon
Bitter
melon, also known as bitter gourd or ampalaya, is a unique vegetable-fruit that
can be used as food or medicine.
It
is the edible part of the plant Momordica Charantia, which is a vine of the
Cucurbitaceae family and is considered the most bitter among all fruits and
vegetables.
The
plant grow well in tropical and subtropical regions, in South America, Asia,
parts of Africa, and the Caribbean.
The
bitter melon or ampalaya itself grows off the vine as a green, oblong-shaped
fruit with a distinct gourd-like exterior bumps - though its size, texture and
bitterness vary between the different regions in which it grows - and is rich
in vital vitamins and minerals.
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| Bitter Melon or Ampalaya |
How does it affect diabetes?
Besides
to being a food ingredient, bitter melon has also long been used as an herbal medicine
for a range of illnesses, including type 2 diabetes.
It
contains at least three active substances with anti-diabetic properties,
including charantin, which has been confirmed to have a blood glucose-lowering
effect, vicine and an insulin-like compound known as polypeptide-p.
These
substances either work individually or together to help decrease blood sugar
levels.
It
is also known that bitter melon contains a lectin that reduces blood
glucose concentrations by acting on peripheral tissues and suppressing appetite
- similar to the effects of insulin.
This
lectin is believed to be a key factor behind the hypoglycemic effect
that progresses after eating bitter melon.
Other health benefits
Bitter
melon is used in traditional medicine for:
- Burns
- Colic
- Fever
- Skin conditions
- Chronic cough
- Painful menstruation
It
is likewise used to heal wounds, assist childbirth and, in parts of Asia and Africa,
prevent or treat malaria and viral diseases such as chicken pox and measles.
Moreover,
researchers say they have found out that an extract from bitter melon can kill
breast cancer cells and prevent them from growing and spreading.
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