Impressive health benefits of bitter gourd A series of PresentationByMr. Allah Dad Khan former Director General Agriculture Extension Department KP Province and Visiting Professor the University of Agriculture Peshawar allahdad52@gmail.com

4. What is Bitter gourd ?
Bitter gourd or Karela is also known as the bitter
melon, bitter squash and etc has been named as
such because of its bitter taste however, it is very
healthy and nutritious. It is cultivated in the tropical
and subtropical regions (Asia, Africa and etc) of the
world and belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family. It was
first originated in the Indian subcontinent and started
cultivating in the China and other countries of the
world during the 14th century. It is very effective and
simply found vegetable known for its antidiabetic
(insulin like) and hypoglycemic properties. It contains
more than 32 types of the active constituents (like
Gaba, lutein, zeaxanthin, lycopene and etc) including
vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.

5. Bitter Gourd is Also Bitter
Melon
Bitter melon, also known as ‘Karela’ in Hindi,
‘Kakarakaya‘ in Telugu, ‘Pavakkai‘ in Tamil,
‘Pavakka‘ in Malayalam, ‘Hagalkai‘ in
Kannada, ‘Karela‘ in Gujarati, ‘Karle‘ in
Marathi, and ‘Korola‘ in Bengali can be
consumed in various ways like drinking its
juice, pickle or using it in recipes.

9. 1. Bitter gourd Lowers Down
Blood Sugar Level
It helps in preventing
from the diabetes
mellitus as it contains
a hypoglycemic
compound means
plant insulin which
lowers down the
blood and urine sugar
level.

10. 2.Bitter Gourd Maintains Insulin
Level
It helps in improving the
glucose tolerance
without any marked
increase in the blood
insulin level.
It contains a polypeptide
compound called
Gurmarin which acts as
a bovine insulin in the
body thus regulates the
blood sugar level
among diabetics.

11. 3. Bitter Gourd Improves Glucose
Utilization
It has antihyperglycemic
property due to the
availability of charantin
and momordicin which
helps in enhancing the
peripheral glucose
utilization and
increasing serum
protein levels.

12. 4. Bitter Gourd Protects from
Diabetic Complications
It provides help in
protecting from the
diabetic complications
by reducing the
harmful effects of free
radicals.

13. 5. Bitter Gourd Stimulates
Pancreas
Eating karela on
regular basis
stimulates the
pancreas to secrete
more insulin thus
beneficial for diabetic
people.

14. 6. Bitter Gourd Cures
Diabetes
Taking karela powder
(dried in shadow) with
honey or water helps
in curing diabetes.
Drinking its fresh juice
on daily basis also
help.

15. 7. Bitter Gourd Treats Blood
Disorders
It is very good for
treating the blood
disorders such as blood
boil, itching and etc
caused due to the
toxemia. Taking the
bitter gourd juice and
lime juice with empty
stomach regularly helps
in overcoming the
problem of blood
disorder.

16. 8.Bitter Gourd Removes Toxins
from Blood
It has blood cleansing
property and provides
relief from the toxemia
by removing toxins
from blood if 2 tsf of
the karela juice is
taken daily.

17. 9. Bitter GourdTreats Cholera
It also helps in
treating the cholera if
bitter gourd leaves
juice is taken with
white onion juice and
lime juice.

18. 10. Bitter Gourd Treats Pile
Taking 3 tsf of the
bitter gourd leaves
juice by mixing with a
glass of buttermilk in
the early morning with
empty stomach helps
in treating the piles
problem.

19. 11. Bitter Gourd Treats Respiratory
Disorders
It helps in relieving
and treating various
respiratory disorders
like bronchitis,
difficulty in respiration,
asthma, pharyngitis
and etc if bitter gourd
juice is taken with
honey (diluted with
water) regularly.

20. 12. Bitter Gourd Cleanses
Liver
It also cleanses the
liver (major body
organ) and prevents
from the liver
disorders including
jaundice.

21. 13. Bitter Gourd Cures Ear
Pain
Applying its fresh
juice or leaves juice
(luke warm) to the ear
helps in curing ear
pain

22. 14. Bitter Gourd Treats Psoriasis
and Fungal Infections
It provides relief from
the psoriasis as well
as helps in treating
various fungal
infections (ringworm,
athletes feet and etc)
if consumed on
regular basis.

23. 15. Bitter Gourd Improves Skin
Health
It improves the skin
health if karela juice is
taken with lemon juice
on empty stomach.

24. 16. Bitter GourdNourishes
Skin
It is a good source of
vitamins, minerals,
dietary fibers and
other healthy
nutrients which helps
in nourishing the skin.

25. 17. Bitter Gourd Natural Liver
Detoxifier
It is a good liver
detoxifier and
hepatoprotective in
nature helps in
activating the liver
enzymes like
glutathione s-
transferase, catalase,
glutathione peroxidase
and etc to prevent from
the toxicity.

26. 18.Treats Hangover
Problem
It provides help in
treating the hangover
problem and protects
liver from the side
effects of alcohol by
nourishing the liver.

27. 19. Bitter Gourd Treats
Hepatotoxicity
It is a very effective
home remedy to treat
the alcohol induced
hepatotoxicity.

28. 20. Bitter Gourd Improves Body
Metabolism
Its antioxidant nature
flushes out the body
system and improves
the metabolism which
helps in managing the
body weight.

29. 21. Bitter Gourd Contains Low
Calorie
It is very low in
calories and high in
dietary fibers which
tend to reduce the
extra body weight.

30. 22. Bitter Gourd Makes Hair Shiny
It provides natural
shine and color to the
hair if applied the
mixture bitter gourd
juice and yoghurt to
the hair.

31. 23. Bitter Gourd Relieves Dandruff
It provides instant
relief from the
problem of dandruff if
the mixture of bitter
gourd juice and cumin
seeds is applied to
the hair.

32. 24. Bitter Gourd Relieves Dry and
Itchy Scalp
It provides relief from
the problem of dry
and itchy scalp if the
scalp is massaged
properly with karela
juice or the mixture of
bitter gourd juice and
banana is applied to
the scalp.

33. 25. Bitter Gourd Prevents
Premature Hair Greying
• It reduces hair fall
and prevents
premature graying
of the hair by
providing better
nourishment

34. 26. Bitter Gourd Improves Body
Stamina
It helps in enhancing
the body energy level
and stamina if
consumed properly
and regularly.

35. 27. Bitter Gourd Regulates Brain
Functioning
• It helps in managing
the sleeping
disorders, treating
eye problems and
improving eyesight
among human
beings.

36. 28. Bitter Gourd Relieves Gout
Symptoms
It helps in relieving
from the symptoms of
the gout as it has
cleansing effect on
the liver, toxic blood
and etc by improving
the oxygenated blood
circulation all over the
body

37. 29.Bitter Gourd Makes Skin
Smooth
It makes skin smooth
and bright by
protecting from
wrinkles and other
symptoms of ageing
process

38. 30.Bitter Gourd Prevents from UV
Rays
It also acts as a
protecting veil against
ultraviolet rays of the
sun.

39. 31.Bitter Gourd Fights Age Related
Ailments
• Its vitamin C
availability makes it
a powerful
antioxidant which
helps in fighting the
age related
ailments as well as
eliminating harmful
free radicals.

40. 32.Bitter Gourd Provides Required
Vitamin K
It is the good source
of vitamin K which
helps in strengthening
bone, blood clotting
mechanism and
boosting anti
inflammatory property.

41. 33.Bitter Gourd Improves
Eyesight
It contains high level
of beta-carotene
which helps in
improving eyesight
and alleviating eye
problems.

42. 34.Bitter Gourd Cures
Gastrointestinal Diseases
Its anthelmintic
property helps in
curing various
gastrointestinal
diseases.

43. 35.Bitter Gourd Prevents Age
Related Damage
It has antioxidant
property thus
prevents from age
related damage
caused due to free
radicals.

44. 36.Bitter Gourd Improves Lipid
Profiles
It is hypolipidemic in
nature helps in
improving the lipid
profiles and reducing
total cholesterol and
triglyceride levels.

45. 37.Bitter Gourd Promotes Wound
Healing
It helps in enhancing
the wound healing
process, treating
malaria and various
viral diseases
(measles, chicken
pox, herpes etc)

46. 38.Bitter Gourd Kill Cancer
Cells
It has some
compounds which
have ability to kill
cancer cells by
preventing the growth
and spread.

47. 39.Bitter Gourd Strengthens Body
Resistance
It is a natural immune
booster which
strengthens the body
immune system by
developing the
resistance against
various infection

48. 40.Bitter Gourd Improves
Digestion and Prevents Digestive
System Disorders
It helps in maintaining a
healthy and good
digestion, improves
metabolism as well as
provides relief from the
constipation,
hemorrhoids and other
digestive system
disorders by managing
the proper functioning
of digestive organs.

49. 41.Bitter Gourd Protects from
Infection and Allergies
It boosts the body
immune system
power and protects
from various
infections, diseases
and allergies.

50. 42.Bitter Gourd Regulates
Cholesterol Level
It helps in regulating
the bad cholesterol
level in the blood thus
prevents from the
disorders of high
cholesterol level.

51. 43.Bitter GourdTreats Worm
Infestation
Its bitter taste and
nature is very
effective against
worm infestation.

52. 44. Bitter Gourd Treats Urinary Tract
Problem
Juice of the bitter
gourd leaves is also
helpful in treating
urinary tract problems
by inducing the
proper flow of urine if
it is taken with a pinch
of Asafoetida.

53. 45.BitterGourdTreats Skin
Diseases
Juice of the karela
leaves helps in
treating skin diseases
if it is applied to the
affected area on the
skin.

54. 46.Bitter Gourd Relieves Intestinal Parasite
Problem
It provides relief from
the intestinal
parasites by removing
them from the
intestine if fresh
karela leaves juice is
taken with hot water.

55. Benefits of Bitter Gourd Seed

56. 47. Bitter Gourd Protects
from HIV and Cancer
• Karela seeds have a
very effective
compound called anti-
HIV-protein (MAP-30)
which has ability to
protect from the HIV
and cancer because
of the strong antiviral
and antitumor
properties.

57. 48. Bitter Gourd
Prevents Vomiting
It helps to check
vomiting problems
among kids if the
mixture of karela
seeds and black
pepper seeds is
taken.