Health Benefits and Nutritional Value of Utazi (Gongronema Latifolium), Utazi and Fibroids.
COMMON NAMES
Botanical Name: Gongronema Latifolium
Igbo: Utazi
Yoruba: Arokeke
It can either be consumed as a vegetable or serve as a herb for medicinal purposes. Utazi plant is highly medicinal in nature, which suggests why its health benefits cannot be overemphasized. Researchers agree that the fundamental ingredients used for medicinal purposes are stored in the various parts of the Gongronema latifolium plant such as; the fruits, seeds, leaves, root and bark.
Health Benefits of Utazi
Gongronema latifolium is highly medicinal in nature, study and research have proven that utazi has both:
analgesic (relieves pain) ,
antimicrobial,
antibacterial,
anti-ulcer, an ulcer patient can take utazi.
anti-cancer,
anti-malaria,
remove intestinal worms,
protects the liver,
improves digestion,
Treats constipation,
Treatment of diarrhoea,
lowers blood cholesterol,
controls blood pressure (good for hypertensives) ,
relieves symptoms of colds and the flu,
anti-sickling (good for persons living with sickle cell anemia),
anti-oxidant (reduces stress) ,
anti-asthmatic (perfect for reducing episodes of asthma),
anti-pyretic (relieves fever),
Normoglycemic (lowers and stabilizes blood sugar in diabetics) and
anti-inflammatory properties,
Boosts both male and female fertility. #Utazi boost ovulation
Other Health Benefits of Gongronema latifolium
1. People suffering from asthma can chew utazi leaves or macerated roots to help relieve them from wheezing.
2. The Gongronema latifolium leaves can be macerated in alcohol and used for the treatment of viral hepatitis and bilharzia.
3. Sierra Leone infuses the arokeke stems with lime juice before drinking it and this acts as a purgative to treat stomach ache and abdominal colic.
4. Breastfeeding/lactating mothers can use Gongronema Latifolium to control their body weight as well as maintain a healthy body system.
5..The utazi latex from the fruits can be applied on the teeth that are affected by dental caries.
UTAZI LEAF AND FERTILITY
Its health benefits are numerous but we are going to be focusing on its fertility boosting capabilities for both male and female.
There are different approaches to solving fertility problem and using Utazi leaves is one of them.
Women with infertility problems should boil Utazi leaves with some lime juice, honey and drink one glass of it on a daily basis during their period days. Men can also use Utazi leaves for sperm count treatment. For this, take a ½ bottle of lime juice and mix it with honey. One shot of this drink twice per day will be enough. The effect of this treatment may not be as quick as you might like. But be patient and this natural medicine will surely help you.
A recent scientific study has revealed that using Utazi leaves in our diets helps to increase the effectiveness of reproductive hormones and help to raise/treat low sperm count including boosting sperm quality and thickness.
So if you want to boost your fertility and be healthier – eat some Gongronema latifolium leaves on a daily basis. The fresh leaves can be chewed or used as an extract for a drink.
🍀Utazi leaf and pregnancy – Can utazi leaf cause miscarriage?
A question, which bothers most young woman is whether utazi good for pregnant woman especially as it relates to causing miscarriage. Just like the case with other spices, pregnant women should be careful with consuming #utazi leaves, since there are little or no researches on its safety in pregnancy especially as it relates to birth defects in unborn babies and miscarriage. Nevertheless, arokeke leaves are widely used to treat abdominal pain and control body weight after childbirth. To be on a safe side, avoid utazi during pregnancy.
Can utazi leaf cure infection?
No. It is not an antibiotic so you cannot use #utazi leaf to cure any form of infection….go to the hospital and see a doctor if you have yeast Infection….or something worse.
🍀🍀 Nutritional benefits🍀🍀
Utazi is rich in proteins, fatty acids, and amino acids. These properties make them an excellent food supplement, perfect for usage in food production and everyday cooking. The Gongronema latifolium fruits can be used to cook soup, which can be eaten as a laxative. Gongronema latifolium leaves are widely used for spicing food, especially if we talk about national dishes like nkwobi, abacha, ugba, as well as porridges and soups.
Utazi leaf and Fibroids
This is what I culled from a facebook post on how Utazi and uziza helps treat and shrink fibroids 👇
“UTAZI, AJU MBAISE , LIME ORANGE, GINGER, TURMERIC, GARLIC, UHOKIRIUHO, UZIZA SEED, UDA, OPETE OR BUSH SUGARCANE THE AMAZING REMEDIES FOR SHRINKING FIBROIDS FLAT TUMMY.
PREPARATION: get utazi leaves, wash and blend ,
filter the water up to 1 and half liters of water, get agu mbaise 2 big size,sour sop leaves, get 30 lime oranges, cut and squeeze the water out. Put lime water in a bottle add lime back 4 liters of water and boil it for 30 minutes blend ginger, garlic turmeric.Put in a plate and get bush sugarcane stick peel the back pound or blend it filter the water up to 4liters of water now mix every remedies together take half cup it 2 times daily for 21day you can put it inside refrigerator not freezer”.
However, this is not scientifically backed or proven. Utazi has not been shown by any study to be helpful in treating fibroids…. Please see a medical doctor if you have this condition.
©NIMEDHEALTH
