Medicinal herbs are the best alternatives when it comes to effective remedies for preventing several diseases. The herbs find a lot of medicinal applications within India and other Asian countries. Giloy (heart leaved moonseed) might be one to consider.
Unknown to many, Giloy is a climbing shrub and perhaps one of the most essential herbs in the field of Ayurveda. It is a popular traditional herb for supporting overall wellness. What is known to the world is that it has magical effects in treating infections, fever, and diabetes.
Here's a blog to learn more about what giloy is and why Ayurveda professionals usually refer to it as Nature's Healer.
What is Giloy?
Giloy (heart leaved moonseed) is a climbing herb that requires support from another tree. While it is a native of India, you can also find it in some parts of China and tropical regions of Africa and Australia.
The traditional Ayurveda texts and scriptures consider this one of the most essential herbs for treating various health conditions. You will often hear it being referred to as guduchi giloy or amrita across India. Sanskrit translates 'guduchi' to protector of the whole body and 'amrita' to immortality.
Ancient people explored the benefits of giloy in treating the following conditions:
The stem portion of giloy is known for its properties like:
- Antidiabetic
- Antiarthritic
- Immunomodulatory
- Anti-inflammatory
- Antispasmodic
- Antioxidant
- Antistress
- Antiallergic
What Nutritional Value Does Giloy Add
Giloy, a medicinal plant, is held for its nutritional benefits that contribute to health and wellness. The following is its breakdown in terms of important nutrition values:
Constituent | Value |
Protein | 4.13% |
Fat | 3.12% |
Fibre | 16.19% |
Moisture | 17.69% |
Ash | 12.01% |
Neutral Detergent Fibre (NDF) | 37.90% |
Acid Detergent Fibre (ADF) | 34.65% |
NDF is the structural components of plants and ADF includes the least digestible parts such as cellulose and lignin. The plant's steroidal compounds add skin health, wound healing and cardiovascular health to the list of giloy benefits.
Potential Giloy Benefits You Should Check Out
Giloy (heart leaved moonseed) is famous for treating heart issues, especially those suffering from diabetes.
Berberine is one of the key alkaloids found in giloy and has abundant potential for reducing blood sugars. It works on the same principle as your metformin tablet. It is also beneficial in lowering your harmful cholesterol levels and blood pressure.
1. Benefits to Your Immune System
One of the key giloy benefits is its impact on the immune system health. The antioxidant properties of giloy guards your immune cells from oxidative damage. Nevertheless, it also improves your overall immune health by protecting it against allergies. Certain compounds in giloy alleviate your immune response to bacteria and other foreign pathogens.
2. Best For Your Digestive Health
If your digestive health is not doing well, giloy has much to do. From improving your bowel movements to reducing the buildup of acidity, giloy benefits your digestive system in many ways.
3. Stress Reliever
It also has a lot of adaptogenic properties. So, giloy offers a helping hand in calming down your nerves and reducing your stress.
4. Addresses Your Chronic Fever
Giloy (heart leaved moonseed) is naturally antipyretic and anti-inflammatory. Thus, it offers tremendous benefits in addressing your chronic fever. The herb boosts your platelet counts during dengue or malaria fever.
5. Beneficial to Skin Health
The giloy stem offers numerous benefits to your skin. The antioxidants present in giloy address your free radicals. This improves the overall health of your skin and promotes the regeneration of healthy skin cells.
How Should You Use Giloy?
Giloy (heart leaved moonseed) is available in capsule or pill form. As the manufacturer differs, you should consult your doctor and read the labels thoroughly before consuming giloy.
Giloy is also available in dried giloy powder, juice, or tincture. All you need to do to use it is mix it with recommended water levels.
Takeaway
Ayurveda has been vouching for the use of giloy (heart leaved moonseed) for ages. Out of the hundreds of giloy uses, it is highly recommended for supporting the health of your immune system, fighting off your fever symptoms, or maintaining healthy blood sugar and pressure levels. Unfortunately, there is quite a low number of research done in this direction to offer a literature review on how beneficial giloy is to humans. While many have benefited from its regular use, we recommend you consult your doctor before starting it.