Table of contents:
- What are the benefits of bitter melon for health?
- 1. Control blood sugar
- 2. Increase immunity
- 3. Maintain eye health
- 4. Relieves asthma
- 5. Treating skin problems
- 6. Helps treat HIV and Herpes
- 7. Improve bone health and wound healing
- 8. Improve digestive health
Pare or Momordica charantia often a complementary fruit when serving dumplings. Its bitter taste makes many people dislike it. However, did you know that bitter melon has many health benefits? Read on for this article to find out the various benefits of bitter melon.
What are the benefits of bitter melon for health?
Pare contains various vitamins, such as vitamins A. C, E, B1, B2, B3, B9. In addition, bitter melon also contains minerals such as potassium, calcium, zinc, magnesium, phosphorus and iron, and contains antioxidants such as phenols and flavonoids.
The nutrients in it make bitter melon a fruit that is rich in benefits. Here are the various benefits of bitter melon for your body's health.
1. Control blood sugar
Pare has properties that function like insulin, which helps carry glucose into cells for energy. Due to these properties, bitter melon can help lower blood sugar.
Consumption of bitter melon can help your cells get glucose for food. In addition, bitter melon is also able to prevent the buildup of glucose in the blood and transfer it to the liver, muscle and fat tissue.
Even so, bitter melon is not an approved treatment or drug for prediabetes or diabetes, although there is research that it can manage blood sugar.
2. Increase immunity
Pare contains abundant antioxidants, one of which is vitamin C. Antioxidants form a defense against foreign objects that will damage the body. Antioxidants attack free radicals in the body and eliminate other harmful compounds that can cause a number of diseases.
3. Maintain eye health
Pare contains flavonoids such as α-carotene, β-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, which can improve the health of your eyes. So, another benefit of bitter melon is that it can improve vision, especially at night, and slow down macular degeneration.
These compounds play a role in fighting the effects of aging, eliminating free radicals and reactive oxygen species that can cause many complications.
4. Relieves asthma
Pare can help reduce symptoms caused by certain respiratory conditions such as asthma, bronchitis, and hay fever.
Pare has antihistamine, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral properties, which makes it an ideal food addition to maintaining respiratory health.
5. Treating skin problems
Traditional Chinese medicine has used bitter melon as a treatment for skin problems.
The anti-fungal and antibacterial compounds present in bitter melon fight many skin infections including ringworm, scabies, and even psoriasis. Pare stops the activity of guanylate cyclase which can worsen psoriasis.
6. Helps treat HIV and Herpes
A study shows that the phytochemical composition of bitter melon can inhibit the activity of the human immunodeficiency virus. Pare has an additional effect in combination with AIDS treatment.
In addition, research has also shown that bitter melon, with its antiviral properties, can help treat patients with herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1), and prevent the spread of herpetic plaque to other people.
7. Improve bone health and wound healing
Pare also contains vitamin K, which is an important nutrient in regulating normal blood clotting. Vitamin K also helps spread calcium throughout the body, thereby increasing bone density and reducing the risk of fractures.
8. Improve digestive health
Although bitter melon is a low calorie fruit, this fruit is rich in fiber, vitamins and minerals. Dietary fiber aids good digestion and the smooth peristalsis of food and waste through the digestive system. So that pare is good for relieving indigestion and preventing constipation.
In addition, the high content of charantin can help increase your glucose uptake and glycogen synthesis, which can help you lose excess weight by reducing the storage of fat cells.
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