Bitter gourd is also known as karela in India. A lot of tasty recipes are made from it. It is known for maintaining blood sugar in normal range in diabetes patient. Along with that it has lot of health benefits. What are they? What is right amount of bitter gourd to eat? What side effects, it can cause, if you eat in wrong amount or wrong way? Let’s discuss all of that in today’s article.
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Bitter gourd is a vegetable, which is antioxidants and fiber rich. It is very nutritious vegetable containing lot of vitamins and minerals. It helps in maintaining blood sugar in normal range. Along with that it has lot of other health benefits. Let’s discuss all of them in detail.
Health benefits of bitter gourd –
There are lot of health benefits of bitter gourd. They are as follow –
Helps in preventing major chronic diseases –
That it do through anti-oxidants present in it. Free radicals are formed on catabolism of food. When they keep on collecting in body, they lead to development of chronic diseases in body. So, their timely flushing out of body, is necessary to stop the inflammatory process. When inflammation is prevented timely, so do the chronic diseases prevented timely. Anti-oxidants helps in timely flushing of these toxic free radicals out of body.
Fiber rich –
Bitter gourd is rich in fiber. Fiber helps in preventing constipation and maintains healthy digestion.
Helps in weight loss –
Bitter gourd is low in calorie and rich in fiber. Fiber prevents binge hunger. That prevents desire for excessive intake of calorie rich food. Fiber do it by creating feeling full feeling after eat. Because of that full feeling, desire for binge eating does not come. That helps in maintaining weight in normal range by preventing excessive calorie intake by preventing binge eating of calorie rich food. And, fiber is present in good amount in bitter gourd.
Helps in maintaining blood sugar in normal range –
That it is able to do, due to compounds like charantin and polyphenol peptide-p, which do the function similar to insulin.
Helps in maintaining good skin health and good eyesight –
Because of vitamin A present in it. Vitamin A do the function of maintaining good skin health as well as maintaining good eye sight. And vitamin A is present in good amount in bitter gourd.
Helps in maintaining and strengthen immune system in optimum working mode –
Vitamin C is needed for proper functioning of immune system. It is also needed for timely repair of white blood cells of immune system for strengthening of immune system. And vitamin C is present in good amount in bitter gourd.
Natural blood purifier –
That it do by flushing out toxic free radicals out of body. This work it does through anti-oxidants like beta-carotene, which are present in good amount in bitter gourd.
Helps in maintaining cholesterol in normal range –
That it do, by reducing bad cholesterol named LDL cholesterol. This function it does through anti-oxidants present in it.
Helps in maintaining optimum functioning of liver –
That it do by maintaining optimum functioning of liver enzymes. That it do by flushing out toxic free radicals out of body, through anti-oxidants present in it.
Right amount to eat –
If you consume bitter gourd in right amount, then it has lot of health benefits. But, if you consume it in excess amount, then it do harms. So, what is that right amount to eat or drink it’s juice? So, that right amount is as follows –
- Bitter gourd juice amount – So, you can drink around 50ml of bitter gourd juice. But, if you drink more than it, then that harms.
- Cooked bitter gourd right amount – So, you can eat around ½ to 1 cup of cooked vegetable. If you eat more than it, then that harms.
Harms of eating bitter gourd in excess amount –
As, told above, if you consume bitter gourd in excess amount, then that harms. But, what are those harms? Those harms are as follow –
Gas in abdomen –
Bitter gourd is rich in fiber. When you consume bitter gourd in excess amount, then intake fiber present in it in excess amount. Fiber intake in excess amount, causes gas in abdomen.
Pain in abdomen –
Bitter gourd when eaten in excess amount, causes pain in abdomen, due to biochemical compounds cucurbitacin B and C.
Interferes with blood sugar level, if you are diabetic –
It decreases blood sugar level, very low, below normal levels.
Bitter gourd when consumed in right amount, then it helps in lowering blood sugar level in diabetes patient. But, when you eat bitter gourd or drink it’s juice in excess amount, then it lowers blood sugar level below normal range. Diabetes patients already take medicines to lower blood sugar level, along with that if you consume bitter gourd in excess amount, then that decrease blood sugar level too much low, below the normal range. Therefore, do not eat bitter gourd in excess amount. When bitter gourd eaten in less amount, it helps in lowering blood sugar level from high to low in diabetes patients. But, when bitter gourd is eaten in excess amount, then it lowers the blood sugar very much, below the normal range.
Irritate stomach lining –
When bitter gourd is eaten or it’s juice is drinked in excess amount, then it irritates stomach lining due to excess fiber intake.
Nausea and diarrhoea –
Bitter gourd when eaten in excess amount, it causes Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and sometimes gastrointestinal bleeding, due to cucurbitacin B and C, present in it. Therefore, eat bitter gourd in less amount to save yourself from these harms.
Toxicity –
Bitter gourd when eaten in excess amount, can cause toxicity, due to cucurbitacin B and C present in it.
Miscarriage, premature delivery, spotting or bleeding during pregnancy –
If you eat bitter gourd in excess amount, then it can cause miscarriage, premature delivery, spotting or bleeding during pregnancy. That it do, by stimulating uterine contractions due to certain compounds like phyto-esterogens present in it.
Gastric ulcers and kidney damage –
If you drink bitter gourd juice in excess amount, then it can cause gastric ulcers and kidney damage.
G6PD deficiency –
If you eat bitter gourd seeds in excess amount, then it can cause G6PD deficiency. That will further cause severe anaemia.
So, that was all regarding bitter gourd, but, Do you Suffer from - any of these 6 TYPES OF HAIR FALL?
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