Doris Obinna
Bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) is a vegetable used for preparing the popular bitter leaf soup. It is also known as Onugbu by Igbos, Shiwaka by Hausas and Ewuro by Yorubas in Nigeria.
Although this plant has been around for hundreds of years, only a few people know of its medicinal and healing properties.
Bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) as the name implies, is actually a bitter plant whose leaves, extracts, stems and barks are used for culinary, medicinal and curative purposes. Vitamins in Bitter leaf includes;vitamin A, vitamin C ,vitamin E, vitamin B1 and vitamin B2.
Apart from using it for cooking, bitter leaf is rarely used for any other thing because people are unaware of its miraculous health benefits, which includes:
It relieves stomach ache: Almost everybody knows this because it is a well-known remedy for stomachaches. All you need do is to chew the tender stem of the plant like a chewing stick and swallow the bitterness and the ache will stop within few minutes.
An alternative is to pound the fresh leaves in a mortar and press out the juice. Add a pinch of salt to three tablespoons of the undiluted juice and drink. You will experience relief in no time.
It fights prostate cancer: Research has shown that prostate cancer is common among men who are over forty years old. And one of its known symptoms is difficult and painful urination.
Bitter leaf, on the other hand, is very good for this ailment. It increases the flow of urine and reduces the pain, as well as regulates the spread of the cell. To fight prostate cancer with bitter leaf, simply squeeze the fresh leaves in water and take a glassful four times daily while you constantly go for a checkup. You’ll urinate frequently, but don’t worry about that because it is part of the cleansing process.
It fights pneumonia: Pneumonia is a lung inflammation disease caused by bacterial or viral infection, in which the air sacs fill with pus and may become solid. Inflammation may affect both lungs (double pneumonia) and only one (single pneumonia). However, the miraculous plant is powerful enough to combat this condition. And tackle it, squeeze the fresh leaves of the plant in water and take a glass-full thrice daily. Do not boil, just warm. And continue the medication for a month.
Insomnia: Insomnia is a condition that promotes habitual sleeplessness. And as funny as it may sound, there are a lot of people experiencing this condition. This group of people finds it impossible to sleep at night and no matter how hard they try, their effort is always met with wakefulness. However, studies have shown that bitter leaf extract has done wonders for those suffering from sleeplessness.
It enhances fertility: Studies have shown that bitter leaf boosts the chances of pregnancy among women who are finding it difficult to conceive. And this because the detoxification power of bitter leaf helps prevent the pollution of the antibodies that fight diseases as well as initiates tissue repair.