March 23rd, 2007 | admin

Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) has long been used in treating diabetes. New researches have also found the effectiveness of bitter gourd (also called bitter melon) in the treatment of psoriasis. Present researches explore whether it is beneficial in treating HIV. No concrete evidence is available till now in this direction.

Bitter gourd is used as a vegetable in India, other Asian countries, South Africa and South America. Just as the name suggests, it is too bitter for the tongue to handle. There are different preparations that diminish the bitter taste, the main technique among them is cooking in coconut oil and adding a lot of mashed coconut and onion.

Fruit is the main medicinal part. Other parts like leaves, vine and seeds are also used in specific occasions.