Did you know that eating the wild rose apple, commonly known as jamun can help in controlling diabetes? Or that bittergourd or karela can help in lowering your sugar levels? Yes, these are not figments of our imagination, but tried and tested facts. So the next time you lunge for those enticing jamuns or eat karelas, keep this in mind.
1. Jamun (Rose Apple or Java Plum)
This blackish, violet-coloured juicy berry is found throughout India, particularly in the rainy season. Did you know that jamun is a good source of Vitamin C, and is also rich in calcium and phosphorous? What’s more, jamun is considered a traditional medicine that helps in controlling diabetes.
The Role of Jamun in Diabetes
Jamun is considered as a traditional medicine that helps in controlling diabetes. Specifically, jamun has an action on the pancreas, the main organ responsible for causing diabetes. The fruit, the seeds and even the juice of the jamun all play an important role in the treatment of diabetes. The jamun seeds contain a type of glucose called Jamboline, which checks the conversion of starch into sugar in cases of increased production of glucose, the main culprit responsible for your high sugar levels.
How to Take
Dry the seeds and powder them finely. Mix three grams of the powder in water and take in at least 3-4 times a day. Even the principles of Ayurveda use the inner bark of the tree in treating diabetes. The white coloured ash of the dried and burnt bark is pounded, strained and bottled. The patient should be given this ash along with water on an empty stomach in the morning and twice later in the day. An intake of this miracle fruit in this form will help control diabetes.
2. Karela (Bitter Gourd)
You either love it or hate it. That’s karela or bitter gourd, a common vegetable found extensively all over the country. Apart from being a delicacy (stuffed karelas or fried karelas), bitter gourd has some amazing medicinal properties. It is a laxative, is anti-bilious and is highly beneficial in the treatment of blood disorders. In fact, karela is also used in the native medicines of Asia and Africa.
The Role of Karela in Diabetes
Like jamun, karela too is used as a medicine for diabetes. Studies by British doctors have proved that bitter gourd contains a hypoglycemic or insulin-like principle, which is beneficial in lowering the blood and urine sugar levels. Therefore, karela is a must in a diabetic diet.
How to Take
It’s the juice of the vegetable that’s important in diabetes. For good results, the diabetic should take in the juice of at least four or five karelas every morning on an empty stomach. This helps in controlling sugar levels. In addition, you can also add the powdered seeds of the karela to your food. Or boil small pieces of the bitter gourd in water and drink the decoction. For those who run miles away from karela, it might be a bitter pill to swallow. But the benefits will more than make up for the bitterness.
So remember if you are suffering from diabetes, make sure that you eat plenty of jamuns – remember they are found mostly during the rainy season – and say yes to karela.
