Food as medicine bitter leaf
Called Bitter leaf in English, Vernonia amygdalina, is a leafy green plant of the daisy family that is of African origin. It has apposite leaf arrangement, with greyish brown tinted flaky bark, and can frow up 16 feet depending on the soil type it finds itself. Mainly used for culinary purposes, the biter leaf plant grows freely in both the western and Eastern parts of Africa and tastes very bitter as the name implies.
The Igbos of Nigeria call it Onugbu (olugbu, olubi), while the Yorubas call it Ewuro, it is also called shuwaka in Hausa, Ituna in Tiv, Oriwo in Edo, etidot in Efik,ndoleh in Cameroon, grawa in Amharic and Mululuza in Luganada, (a tribe in Uganda). Among the Igbo in Nigeria, it is used mainly for various types of soup like, Ofe Onugbu, ofe egusi, (melon soup) ofe ogbono to mention a few.
To make the above delicious soup types, the leaves are washed to reduce the bitter taste and then added to the choice broth. Depending on the type of broth, the onugbu can be left in the sun a bit to make it malleable before washing. This method leaves the leaves straight and less brittle after washing, and when used for ofe onugbu, the texture is bulkier and richer. At other times, they are dried for preservation and used during the dry season when bitter leaves are scarce. No wonder it is said that the average village man of Anambra extraction whose delicacy is ofe onugbu and akpu, (fermented cassava fufu) hardly suffers from any serious ailment on account of constantan ingestion of bitter leaf.
Again, in most homes these days the leaves are added to vegetable salads as part of the greens, while others add a leave or two to their smoothies. The good thing is that as far as these homes are concerned, they are just savouring a good mix of green veggies but, consciously or unconsciously, the addition of bitter leaf helps induce and maintain healthy bile flow which aids digestion.
Apart from the food usages, the bitter leaf plant also serves a home remedy for several disorders. While growing up, we understood onugbu to be a cure-it-all herb as it was commonplace to hear one’s grandmother prescribe it for every ailment. If it was fever, “oh, take bitter leaf, the gut must be dirty”, when it is headache or stomach-ache, “oh take four leaves of bitter leaf, add a pinch of salt, it must be constipation”, toothache o, “take bitter leaf twigs as chewing stick, they are good for the gum and can prevent scurvy”. Bitter leaf to the rescue for every complaint!
Beyond the old wife’s tale of the cure-it-all bitter leaf, research has proven that the leaf is very effective in the management of many illnesses. This is premised on the theory that most diseases start from an unhealthy the GI tract and bitter leaf is said to contain a lot of therapeutic properties useful in detoxifying and maintaining the health of the gut and other organs of the body like kidney and liver naturally without chemicals.
For instance, in most African countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Gambia, Tanzania, the cold brew of the plant is used as treatment for malaria, intestinal parasites, diarrhoea and stomach upset. It has also been recorded that in the wild, animals like the chimpanzee eat it when suffering from certain parasitic infections.
The Vanguard online of June 11,2020, quoting Dr Sanusi Idowu of Prince and Princess Hospital, in its article, “Bitter Leaf: Why you should take advantage of this herb”, says that, “Bitter leaf is a natural gift from God just like honey, with high medicinal properties and some of its benefits are, its ability to aid up metabolism in order to help one lose weight as a result of nutrients like zinc, iron, fiber, carbohydrate contained in it.”
Idowu was further quoted to have said that “he always advises his patients with diabetes and piles to take a glass of bitter leaf water, at least once every day”
Concerning the bitter leaf extract or juice, drinking it might not give the best of tastes since the mere touching of the leaves makes one’s hands bitter to the taste for a long time. However, most families have keyed in, making it a mandatory wellness drink most times in their homes. The extraction is done by plucking the quantity desired, washing up properly with salty water and rinsing in a clean water thereafter. Then it is either washed the traditional way by rubbing them together in between the hands or pounding in a mortar. Another method is by chopping and blending with a kitchen blender. Either way chosen, the contents is sieved with either a meshy cloth or tea sieve, into glass cups for drinking.
Some people prepare large quantities and save in the refrigerator for later consumption, so long as it its finished within 3 days or longer if it is in the deep freezer. Actually, in some wellness stores, bitter leaf juice is always conspicuously displayed on the shelves and most people patronise them.
The truth of the matter here is whether the taste is unpleasant or bitter, this magical leaf has been proven to be very medicinal and therapeutic in the management or possible cure of certain health conditions such as obesity, Cancers, High Blood Pressure, Abdominal Issues, Fertility challenges and high cholesterol
Furthermore, researchers claim that bitter leaf is useful for the maintenance of health, prevention and treatment of various diseases. According to Ogbanda G Echem & L.G Kabari, in their treatise on, “Heavy Metal Content in Bitter leaf ( Veronia Amygdalina) Grown Along Traffic Routes In Port Harcout”, December 2013 , “Some principal chemical constituents found in bitter leaf herb are a class of compounds called steroid glycosides- type vernoniosides B1 – these chemical substances possess a potent anti-parasitic, anti-tumour, and bactericidal effect”. The bitter leaf is mainly employed as an agent in treating schistosomiasis, which is a disease caused by parasitic worms. It is also useful in the treatment of diarrhoea and general physical malaise”.
Recently our natural bitter leaf in the backyard and gardens of most homes has become the favorite of nature herbal manufactures so much that we now have Bitter leaf capsule supplements! Amazon, the online giant shop and Walmart, one of the biggest retail outlets in North America, sell the supplement for between $40 to $50 for packs of 60 capsules.
Amazon describes the supplement as,” EFFECTIVE DAILY DETOX – Detox and cleanse your body and jumpstart your metabolism to support healthy weight and promotes digestion, plus internal cleansing. Also Packed with nutrients, Magnesium, antioxidants, fiber, folate, vitamins C, A, and K1”.
To underscore the very important health intervention of this plant, Amazon also in addition to the capsule, sells the twigs and potted bitter leaf plant for people to plant in their gardens or flowerpots. They claim that, “Each plant is individually wrapped for protection and Ships within 2-3 days”.
It’s simply Amazing! Don’t forget, Bitter leaf is used for delicious soup dishes, for salads as part of the vegetable mix, for smoothies, as a healthy wellbeing drink and detoxifier and as add on to a concoction of Pawpaw, mango guava leaves and lemon grass
