Ivy Gourd – A Miraculous Vegetable

By : MaherBan | 0 Comments | On : November 30, 2015 | Category : Food and Nutrition News, Health Benefits of Vegetables, Health News, Vegetable News

Ivy Gourd – A Miraculous Vegetable

Ivy Gourd or Coccinia Grand is actually an exotic plant within the pumpkin family and is also a hostile climbing vine that may distributed rapidly over trees, shrubs, fences along with other supports. The clear white flesh of the fruit looks like the appearance as well as taste of the cucumber, showing numerous seeds which create a red color. The flesh is equally crispy as well as tasty in texture having a slightly bitter aftertaste.

Ivy gourd is also known as Gentleman’s Toes, Trindora, Kovakkai, Kovakka, Dondakkaya, Tondakayi, Vargoli, Tondli, parwel, kundru, kunduri etc. Ivy gourd is a tropical plant used in herbal medicine. Available in supplement form, extracts of the ivy gourd’s roots, fruit and leaves are said to offer a range of health benefits.

Ivy Gourd Nutrition

100 gm of Ivy Gourd has a number of essential nutrients:

• water                 : 93.5 g
• Protein              : 1.2 g
• Energy              : 75 kJ (18kcal)
• Fiber                 : 1.6 gHealth
• Fat                    : 0.1 g
• Iron                   : 1.4 mg
• Thiamin            : 0.07 mg
• Ascorbic acid   : 1.4 mg
• Riboflavin         : 0.08 mg
• Calcium            : 40 mg
• Niacin               : 0.7 mg
• Phosphorous   :30 mg

The plant, which is native to parts of Africa and Asia, including India, has been widely used as a medicinal herb. The leaves, root and stem are all used in the preparation of folk medicines. They have immense usages in everyday life from food to medicines, as they are rich in nutritious elements.

Health Benefits of Ivy Gourd

An Effective “Natural” Insulin

Correct insulin levels are absolutely crucial to blood sugar level health. That’s because insulin gathers sugar from the blood and carries it to cells where it serves as their energy source. Consuming ivy gourd boosts your body’s sugar metabolism, because this plant is just as effective as biologically generated insulin at transporting sugar to your cells. According to most practitioners of ayurvedic medicine and naturopathy, the consumption of ivy gourd leaf, ivy gourd juice and ivy gourd extract benefits Diabetics. Therefore it is of excellent assistance to the diabetic patients and is also strongly suggested for them.

Possess Laxative Properties

This vegetable improves the bowel movements of the body because it has the laxative qualities, which are resulted due to the existence of vitamin A and beta-carotene in the vegetable. With this property it also cures Gonorrhea.

Treats Infections

Some researchers found that ivy gourd extract could work quite effectively as an antibiotic against certain common bacterial infections like E coli and other bacterial strains that can also cause urinary tract infections. It is an excellent cure for an array of skin infections like Leprosy, Psoriasis and Scabies.

Protects against Cancer

Regular intake of ivy gourd can even help to prevent Cancer. While there is no clinical evidence to support this claim, consuming ivy gourd may help to some extent as it is a rich source of antioxidants that help to protect against free radical damage to cells and DNA. Ivy gourd is rich in beta-carotene, which can reduce the risk of breast cancer in women before menopause.

Cure Allergy Problems

Kovakkai is known to have anti-histamine properties which helps in preventing and curing allergy problems. It can also be used to treat certain respiratory conditions like Asthma and Bronchitis. Researchers observed that the fruit extract had an anaphylactic and antihistaminic potential that could make it useful in the treatment of Asthma and certain allergies.

Prevents Constipation

According to some sources, including ivy gourd in your diet can help to relieve some digestive problems like Constipation. They are rich in fiber which helps in the digestion of food and allow easy bowel movement.

Cures Jaundice

In 30 ml of fresh Ivy Gourd leaves juice, mix 50 gms of curd made from buffalo (which has a male calf) milk. Cosume this mixture everyday for atleast a week and by maintaining required diet, all types of Jaundice will be cured.

Cures Menstrual Pain

Mix Ivy Gourd leaves juice, black mustards powder (3-5 gms), garlic juice (1 spoon) and prepare a small mustard ball. Take 2-3 such ball 3 times a day after breakfast, lunch and dinner with water. This will remove Menstrual Pain on 2nd day itself.

Cures Scalp Pimples

Extract juice from Ivy Gourd leaves without mixing water and let few small sea shells (green colored) soak in them for 3 days. On 4th day, take them out and burn them on coal. Take this ash and mix cow butter to make a paste. Applying this paste on scalp, is an ayurvedic remedy to cure scalp pimples.

Ivy gourd has many important activities. It is an …

• Anti-inflammatory
• Antioxidant
• Anti-mutagenic
• Anti-diabetic
• Anti-bacterial
• Anti-protozoal
• Anti-ulcer
• Hepato-protective
• Expectorant
• Analgesic