Health Benefits of Tori/Turai (Ridge Gourd)

Health Benefits of Tori/Turai (Ridge Gourd)

The Ridge Gourd is an extremely popular vegetable in the African, Asian and the Arabic countries. It is also known by other names such as loofah, luffa, turai, turiya, tori etc. It is a dark green, ridged vegetable having white pulp with white seeds embedded in spongy flesh. All species of ridge gourd/loofah are edible, but they must be consumed before they mature, or else they will be too woody and fibrous to eat.

It has assumed the reputation of the most tasteless vegetable to eat among children. But despite of the fact that it doesn't taste very good, it has many health benefits such as:

• A nutrition powerhouse: Ridge gourd is loaded with nutrients such as dietary fiber, vitamin C, riboflavin, zinc, thiamin, iron and magnesium. It is also low in fat and calories.
• An ideal weight loss food: Being low in saturated fat and cholesterol and high in dietary fiber, it becomes the ideal choice for anyone who wishes to lose some weight quickly. It also has a very high water content, making it a very low calorie vegetable (only 60 calories in 100 gm of cooked ridge gourd).
• Cure for jaundice: The juice prepared from ridge gourd is a natural remedy for jaundice. The juice can be prepared by pounding the bitter ridge gourd and squeezing it through a cloth. You can also eat powder made from bitter ridge gourd seeds and dry crusts when curing jaundice.
• Blood purifier: Because of its blood purifying properties, it helps to purify, restore and nourish liver protecting it from alcohol intoxication.
• Lowers blood sugar level: It contains insulin-like peptides, alkaloids and charantin, which help to lower blood and urine sugar levels without altering blood insulin levels.
• Good for stomach: Cellulose in ridge gourd helps to overcome constipation and also aids in curing piles.
• Skin care: When ridge gourd/loofah is allowed to mature and dry on the vine, it can be harvested as a sponge. Everything (skin and seeds) is removed from them except for the main network. Loofah sponge has been used traditionally as an exfoliating product when bathing. They are very good for removing dead skin cells leaving the skin smooth and conditioned. They can also help stimulate the skin thus making it healthier and more vibrant. The blood purifying properties make sure that you stay away from pimples and acne. Loofah sponge can also help control body and foot odor.
  Loofah sponge, being a natural fiber, will attract the growth of mold and microorganisms if not cared for properly. It is therefore important to keep loofah sponge clean by making sure you rinse out all soaps or salt residues and allow it to air dry after use.
• Strengthens immune system: A glass of Ridge gourd juice mixed with other healthy vegetables in the morning can help to strengthen your immune system against any infection.

Coming to the difficult part, how to make your children eat it?

There are various delicious preparations of ridge gourd that are available on the internet. The best one is to make pakodas out of it and let's face it kids love pakodas. You can make it as an evening snack.

There are various other preparations as well that you can try your cooking skills on.

---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA

[Source: LMHSPL, dtd Oct10]

Health Benefits of Lauki (Bottle Gourd)

Health Benefits of Lauki (Bottle Gourd)

Undoubtedly we all hate when our mom force us to have bottle gourd (lauki/ghiya) in our platter. But did you know that they are one of the favorite vegetables in Indian cuisine and has numerous health benefits. Though, this vegetable is disliked by the children and young people, old people consume it for its benefits in maintaining the good body and good health.

Bottle gourd (a.k.a Lageneria vulgaris) is one of the earliest vegetables cultivated by man, believed to be originated in Africa. It is yellowish-green in color and has white pulp with white seeds embedded in the spongy flesh. It is also known by other names such as bottle squash, white gourd, calabash gourd, lauki, doodhi and ghiya. It belongs to Cucurbitaceae family and is now widely cultivated throughout the tropics, especially India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, China, tropical Africa and South America.

Bottle Gourd has many properties that are valued in traditional healing. Here are a few of them:

• Low in Calories and Fat: The bottle gourd is low in fat (just 0.1 gm in 100 gm edible portion) and calories (15 calories in 100 gm) yet high in dietary fiber. It is comprised of 96% water and provides multiple vitamins (vitamin C and some B vitamins) and minerals (iron, sodium, potassium, and trace elements). If you are on a low calorie diet eating bottle gourd is an excellent addition to your diet.
• Cooling effect: As bottle gourd is mostly made of water, cooked bottle gourd is not only easy to digest but also contains cooling, calming and diuretic properties. A glass of bottle gourd juice taken in the morning can help prevent heat stroke during summers and cool the body.
• Aids against constipation: Bottle gourd, being a good source of fiber content and easy to digest, tremendously helps in curing digestion related disorders like constipation, flatulence and piles.
• Urinary disorders: Include a glass of fresh bottle gourd juice mixed with a teaspoon of lime juice in your daily diet. It serves as an alkaline mixture that cures the burning sensation in the urinary passage because of high acid content in urine.
• Aids weight loss: Being low in calories and fat, and high in fiber and water makes bottle gourd an excellent food (both in cooked and juice form) to include in your diet when you are trying to maintain or lose weight. Consumption of bottle gourd juice on an empty stomach, first thing in the morning, helps to curb your hunger pangs.
• Premature graying hair: According to Ayurveda, drinking a glass of bottle gourd juice in the morning daily can be very useful for treating graying hair.
• Beneficial for skin: Bottle gourd is also good for the condition of your skin. You can include it in natural form for internal cleansing of your skin. It helps to protect against various types of skin infections. It also helps to prevent from condition of acne and other breakouts on your skin.
• Insomnia: Mixture of bottle gourd juice a sesame oil acts as an effective medicine for insomnia. The cooked leaves of bottle gourd are also beneficial in the treatment of insomnia. The cooked leaves of bottle gourd taken as a vegetable are also beneficial in the treatment of insomnia.
• Revitalizes the body: A glass of bottle gourd juice is a valuable medicine for excessive thirst due to severe diarrhea, diabetes and excessive use of fatty or fried foods. It also prevents excessive loss of sodium, quenches thirst and helps in preventing fatigue.
• Other ailments: Bottle gourd also has the capacity to cure disorders like toothaches, jaundice and inflammation of kidneys.

Bottle gourd is an excellent way to supplement your diet as well as fend off and treat disease.

---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA

[Source: LMT, dtd July10]

Health Benefits of Karela (Bitter Gourd)

Health Benefits of Karela (Bitter Gourd)

Bitter melon (Karela) is a valuable herb gifted to us by Mother Nature. It is one of the healthiest vegetables known to man. Apart from being eaten mainly as vegetable, it is particularly reputed as a folk medicine due to its therapeutic properties. Although the bitter taste can turn you away, but it can really improve your health.

Bitter gourd looks like a hideous, light green cucumber and it tastes very bitter. There are two varieties of this vegetable. It is mostly found in tropical parts of the world, including Africa, Asia and South America.

It has numerous vital vitamins and minerals including vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin C, Iron, Calcium, Phosphorous, Copper and Potassium. There are many health reasons why you should take this bitter vegetable seriously. Here are a few:

• Diabetes: The bitter gourd is particularly used as a remedy for diabetes because of its hypoglycemic action. It contains insulin-like peptides, alkaloids and charantin, all of which act together to lower blood and urine sugar levels without increasing blood insulin levels. These compounds activate a protein called AMPK, which is well known for regulating fuel metabolism and enabling glucose uptake, processes which are impaired in diabetics. You can take the juice of 4-5 bitter gourds every morning on an empty stomach, add seeds in powdered form to food or prepare a decoction by boiling the pieces of this fruit in water. If you are taking  medications to lower your blood sugar, adding bitter gourd might make your blood sugar drop too low. Monitor your blood sugar carefully.
• Blood Purification: It has blood-purifying properties. As a result, the juice is used in the treatment of blood disorders like blood boils and itching due to blood poisoning. Have it little by little on an empty stomach daily, in 4-6 months you will see enhancement in your state.
• Piles: Fresh juice of bitter gourd is good for patients suffering from piles. Take a mixture of bitter melon juice and buttermilk every morning for about a month and you will see an improvement. A paste of the roots of bitter gourd plant can also be applied over piles to get a favorable result.
• Good for stomach: It contains cellulose which is a very good source of fiber thus preventing constipation. It also good digestive agent and helps in stimulating the secretion of gastric juices. This can be very helpful for people with dyspepsia. However, sometimes it may worsen heartburn and ulcers.
• Aids weight loss: It stimulates liver for secretion of bile juices that are very essential for metabolism of fats. Thus, if you want to have a perfect, slim figure, then bitter gourd can help you.
• Eye care: It has high amount of beta-carotene that helps alleviate eye problems and improving eyesight.
• Alcoholism: It is an antidote for alcohol intoxication, and helps purify, restore and nourish liver. Its juice is also beneficial in the treatment of a bad hangover.
• Cholera: Fresh juice of leaves of bitter gourd is also a useful medication in early stages of cholera.
• Immune booster: A glass of bitter gourd juice in the morning can help to strengthen your immune system and increase your body's fighting power against infection. Researchers hypothesize that bitter melon is as an immunomodulator. One clinical trial found limited evidence that bitter melon might improve immune cell function in people with cancer.
• Skin care: Bitter gourd is also effective in treating skin diseases or skin infections, eczema and psoriasis. It also helps in keeping the skin free from blemishes and keeps the skin glowing. The blood purifying properties make sure that you don't get acne.
• HIV: Laboratory tests suggest that compounds in bitter melon might be effective for treating HIV infection. In one preliminary clinical trial, an enema form of a bitter melon extract showed some benefits in people infected with HIV. However, more research is necessary before this could be recommended.

In fact, its extracts are already sold as pills as well and it is being marketed as a blood sugar level reducing medicine. But rather than going for an indirect method of intake why not try to eat some amount of Karela in the form of vegetable/soup/curry in your diets, to get all the benefits.

Although there are several health benefits of including bitter gourd in your diet, it is not recommended to take it in excess amounts as it can lead to abdominal pain and diarrhea. Also, pregnant women are also advised against having bitter gourd.

---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA

 Amateur Society for Human Aid
(a Non-profit Philanthropic Organisation)



[Source: LMT, dtd Jun10]

Note down of Child Helpline No

Child Hepline in India - 1098


---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA

Pl check Wastage of Food

Please CHECK WASTAGE OF FOOD

If you have a function/party at your home and food gets wasted, don't hesitate to call 1098 - Its not a Joke, This is the number of Child helpline.

They will come and collect the food. Please circulate this message which can help feed many children.
AND LETS TRY TO HELP our INDIA BE A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE IN.
Please Save Our Mother Nature for "OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS"


---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA

Contact No of Eye Bank

Contact No of Sankara Nethralaya Eye Bank & Eye Donation


Special phone number for Eye bank and Eye donation: 04428281919 and 04428271616 (Sankara Nethralaya Eye Bank).

For More information about how to donate eyes plz visit these sites. http://ruraleye.org/

 
---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA

Free Education/Hostel for Handicapped/Physically Challenged Children

     
Free Education and Free hostel for Handicapped/Physically Challenged children.
Contact:- 9842062501 & 9894067506.


---Issued in Public Interest by NGO ASHA