Bitter Melon And Diabetes

Bitter Melon, a vegetable scientifically known as Momordica charantia Linn, is eaten by billions of people worldwide. This wrinkly green vegetable with a distinctive bitter taste is nature’s way of bringing hope to millions of diabetics worldwide. It has a long history of use not only as a food but also as a hypoglycemic agent (one that lowers blood glucose levels). I particularly like this veggie sauted in egg, or as a tea drink. Nutritional analysis shows that bitter melon is iron-rich, has twice the amount of beta carotene in broccoli, and twice the calcium content of spinach. It also contains Vitamins B1, B2, B3 and C, phosphorous and fiber.

Worldwide, bitter melon or bitter gourd is accepted by medical practitioners as a strong anti-diabetic alternative. Researchers extracted from the fruits and seeds it’s active principle, Polypeptide-p, a plant insulin. This plant insulin, when administered to diabetics, has less side effects than insulin obtained from the pancreas of animals. In countries where the killing of animals is prohibited, the bitter melon, is the alternative.

In India, doctors are so confident of bitter melon that they dispense it in some of the most modern hospitals as a cure for diabetes. Bitter melon has twice the potassium of bananas, and is proven to increase the number of beta cells(cells that produce insulin), in the pancreas. Indians also use it as a tonic, an emetic, a laxative and a cure for skin diseases.

In China and Southeast Asia, bitter melon has been in use for centuries as an anti-tumor and anti-infection agent. Studies in Hongkong showed that specific protein extracts in bitter melon or it’s seed are useful in the treatment of cancer and HIV infection. The Chinese also use it for cases of gastroenteritis, tumors and viral infections. In fact, bitter melon may be the only medicinal plant with a fan club. In the United States, patients who have gone from HIV-positive to HIV-negative through the sole use of bitter melon as a treatment, have put up a club called The Bitter Melon Therapy Group.