Lamang-ugat at butong gulay para sa mahabang buhay

butong gulay para sa mahabang buhay

MAHIRAP MAGKASAKIT. Pero may mga paraan naman upang maiwasan ang magkasakit. Maaari itong mag umpisa sa pagbabasa para sa karagdagan o tamang kaalaman.

Marami sa mga pagkain ang may dietary fiber. Bukod sa madaling matagpuan sa ating paligid, ang mga pagkaing ito ay mabibili s a mababang halaga katulad ng mga lamang-ugat gaya ng ube, gabi, tugi, patatas, kamote at kamoteng kahoy. Kasama rin sa mga pagkaing ito ang mga butong gulay tulad ng munggo, mani, buto ng sitaw, patani, gisantes, soya beans at marami pang iba.

Ang mga lamang-ugat at butong gulay ay mainam na pagkunan ng dietary fiber. Ito ay nakatutulong upang maiwasan ang diabetes mellitus, sakit sa puso at kanser.

Ayon sa pag-aaral na isinagawa ng Food and Nutrition Research Institute ng Kagawaran ng Agham at Teknolohiya (FNRI-DOST), ang mga butong gulay at lamang-ugat ay nakatutulong upang mapanatili ang timbang at maiwasan ang diabetes mellitus.

Ang viscosity at fibrous structure ng mga lamang-ugat at butong gulay ay nagpapabagal ng pagtunaw at release ng glucose sa ating dugo. Ang prosesong ito ang nagpapanatili ng ating blood glucose sa normal na kalagayan. Dahil din sa mabagal na release ng glucose, ito ay hindi naiimbak sa ating katawan, kung kaya napananatili nito ang normal na timbang ng isang tao.

Dahil rin sa dami ng dietary fiber ng lamang-ugat at butong gulay, ito ay madaling makapagpabusog, dahilan upang mas kaunti na lamang ang kainin.

Ang FNRI-DOST ay nagsagawa rin ng pag-aaral tungkol sa glucose response o glycemic index (GI) ng mga lamang-ugat at butong gulay para sa normal at diabetikong mga tao. Ayon sa resulta ng pag-aaral, ang lamang–ugat at butong gulay ay may mababang GI. Ang mga pagkaing may mababang GI ay mahalaga sa tamang pagcontrol at management ng diabetes mellitus at napapanatili nito ang normal na timbang ng tao.

Sa paanong paraan maiiwasan ang sakit sa puso sa pamamagitan ng lamang-ugat at butong gulay? Dahil sa taglay nitong dietary fiber, nakakatulong ito upang maiwasan ang re-absorption ng bile acids sa atay. Ang bile acids ay nagiging cholesterol sa atay at napupunta sa dugo kung kaya dumadami ang serum cholesterol na maaaring maging plaques na bumabara sa mga ugat sa katawan.

Ano naman ang posibleng papel na ginagampanan ng mga lamang-ugat at butong gulay upang maiwasan ang kanser? Ang taglay na dietary fiber ng mga lamang-ugat at butong gulay ay nagiging short chain fatty acid (SCFA) sa malaking bituka o colon. Ang SCFA ay humahalo sa mga toxins na nasa colon at ito ay sumasama sa dumi. Kapag hindi naalis sa katawan ang toxins ay namumuo bilang tumor at nagiging kanser.

Kaya dapat kumain ng mga lamang-ugat at butong gulay araw-araw upang humaba ang buhay. Para sa malusog at masayang pamumuhay, mas mainam na sundin ang mang-limang mensahe ng Nutritional Guidelines for Filipinos, na nagsasabing “Kumain ng maraming gulay, prutas at lamang –ugat.”

Written by: Josefina T. Gonzales

Source: www.dost.gov.ph

Philippines: Malunggay Congress to promote vegetables as source of food and energy

The first Malunggay Congress to be held next week as the country celebrates the 4th National Biotechnology Week will discuss the vallue of the vegetable as food and as a renewable energy source. Malunggay, dubbed by Department of Agriculture-Biotechnology Program Office (DA-BPO) director Alicia Ilaga as the “power gulay,” is also known as a key element in the campaign to reduce malnutrition nationwide, particularly now that up to 40 percent of our people have experienced hunger in the past six months.

As the central focus of the Congress, to be held at the Institute of Small Scale Industries (ISSI) at UP Diliman tomorow, malunggay is seen as appropriate food for more than 20 million Filipinos who consider themselves poor and hungry. Ilaga said malunggay is needed by lactating mothers since it has a high calcium content, which is necessary to produce milk.

She added that malunggay has seven times the Vitamin C in orange, four times the calcium in milk, four times the Vitamin A in carrots, three times the potassium in banana, and three fourth the iron in pechay. Malunggay is a host to many nutrients that are beneficial to the body, Ilaga stressed.

Studies show that every 100 grams of pod contain 2.5 grams protein, 0.1 grams fat, 8.5 grams carbohydrate, 4.8 grams fiber, and minerals such as Calcium (30 milligrams), Phosphorus (110 milligrams), and Iron (5.3 milligrams).

Leaves (per 100 grams) contain 7.5 grams water, 6.7 grams protein, 1.7 g fat, 14.3 g total carbohydrate, 0.9 grams fiber, 2.3 grams ash, and minerals, Calcium (440 mg), Phosphorus (70 mg), Iron (7 mg), Copper (110 ?g) and Vitamin A, and Vitamin C. The leaves also contain different amino acids and estrogenic substances, including the anti-tumor compound, sitosterol, and a pectinesterase.

Water, protein and fiber can be found in the seed kernel (70.74% of seed). The seed oil contains 9.3% palmitic, 7.4% stearic, 8.6% behenic, and 65.7% oleic acids among the fatty acids. Malunggay contains the phytochemical niaziminin, which is found to have molecular components that can prevent the development of cancer cells, a study undertaken in 1992 discovered, and it is correlated with inhibitory ability against superoxide generation.

The first naturally-occuring thiocarbamates, novel hypotensive agents such as niazinin A, niazinin B, niazimicin and niaziminin A and B were isolated from malunggay, Ilaga stressed. Malunggay is being used as a too to combat malnutrition among infants and mothers alike. Three international non-government organizations—Trees for Life, Church World Service and Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization—have preached malunggay as the “natural food for the tropics.”

Leaves can be eaten fresh, cooked, or stored as dried powder for many months without refrigeration, and reportedly without loss of nutritional value. Moringa is especially promising as a food source in the tropics because the tree is in full leaf at the end of the dry season when other foods are typically scarce, Ilaga said.

Source: pia.gov.ph

Healing powers of spices

A SPICE is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for the purpose of flavoring, and sometimes as a preservative by killing or preventing the growth of harmful bacteria.

In the Philippines, the two most popular spices are garlic and onion. The other two known spices are tomato and ginger. But these four are not only good for flavoring your bland foods; they have also healing powers.

Garlic, for instance, has been hailed as “nature’s herbal wonder drug.” In the past, it was said to strengthen the heart; protect against the plague; cure colds, athlete’s foot, toothache, and snakebite; repel vampires and demons; grow hair; stimulate sexual performance; and rid the dog of fleas.

Today, scientists all over the world are examining the folklore’s claims of garlic’s benefits. But the therapeutic qualities of garlic are nothing new. Sanskrit records reveal that garlic remedies were pressed into service in India 5,000 years ago, while Chinese medicine has recognized garlic’s powers for over 3,000 years.

Even Louis Pasteur, who discovered penicillin, recognized the anti-bacterial powers of garlic back in 1858.ÿ During World War I, surgeons regularly used garlic juice to stop wounds turning septic.

So, what is it about garlic that makes it such a boon to our health? When cloves are chewed, crushed or cut, they release a sulphur-bearing compound called allicin — the chemical that gives garlic its pungent aroma. And it’s the allicin that scientists have discovered is the magic ingredient thought to be responsible for garlic’s therapeutic qualities.

“Allicin is the remarkable agent that fights bacteria,” points out the editors of ‘Super Life, Super Health.’ “It seems to even fight some infections that are normally resistant to antibiotics.’ But allicin is unstable and sensitive to heat,” the editors remind. “Cook the garlic lightly, if at all, and always mince it to release the most allicin.”

In 2007, a news story from the British Broadcasting Corporation reported that garlic may prevent and fight the common cold. “Garlic can actually kill germs and clear up your cold symptoms rapidly,” says Dr. Elson Haas, the author of ‘Staying Healthy with the Seasons.’ He recommends two to three oil-free capsules three times a day.

If you have sore throat, load up yourself with garlic. “When a sore throat is caused by a virus infection, as opposed to bacteria, eating garlic can bring quicker relief,” suggests Dr Yu-Yan Hey, a nutrition professor who researches on the healing properties of garlic.

Onions are found in a bewildering array of recipes and preparations spanning almost the totality of the world’s cultures. When eaten raw, onions may irritate the stomach. When that happens, milk is reportedly effective in neutralizing the effects.

Ancient Greek athletes consumed large quantities of onions because they felt it would “lighten the balance of the blood.” When Rome conquered Greece, the Roman gladiators were rubbed down with the onion to “firm up the muscles.”

In many parts of the world, onions are used to heal blisters and boils. In the United States, products that contain onion extract are used in the treatment of topical scars; some studies have found their action to be ineffective, while others found that they may act as an anti-inflammatory.

Onions may be especially beneficial for women, who are at increased risk for osteoporosis as they go through menopause, by destroying osteoclasts so that they do not break down bone.

In Georgia, where the Vidalia onion is grown, the rate of stomach cancer is 50 percent less than other parts of the nation. Extract of onion inhibits blood clotting. Onion reduces high cholesterol levels, and is said to stimulate the immune system. In people with diabetes, onion use lowers the fasting glucose level. Onion improves glucose tolerance and lowers insulin levels.

One bad thing about onions is that they can irritate your eyes. However, eye irritation can be avoided by cutting onions under running water or submerged in a basin of water. Rinsing the onion and leaving it wet while chopping may also be effective. Another way to avoid irritation is by not cutting off the root of the onion, or by doing it last, as the root of the onion has a higher concentration of enzymes.

Tomatoes are now eaten freely throughout the world, and their consumption is believed to benefit the heart among other things. They contain lycopene, one of the most powerful natural antioxidants, which, especially when tomatoes are cooked, has been found to help prevent prostate cancer.

Tomato extract branded as Lycomato is now also being promoted for treatment of high blood pressure. Lycopene has also been show to improve the skin’s ability to protect against harmful ultraviolet rays.

Dr. C. C. Thakur in his book Introduction to Ayurveda has said that it improves the digestive system and cures chronic diseases of the stomach. It is a blood purifier, cures anemia, piles, liver troubles and chronic fever.

“Everything good is found in ginger,” so goes a popular Indian proverb. Ginger has been used medicinally in Asia for millennia. In China, for instance, a drink made with sliced ginger cooked in sweetened water or a cola is used as a folk medicine for common cold. In India, ginger is applied as a paste to the temples to relieve headache.

The ancient Greeks welcomed the arrival of ginger and quickly put it to good use as a digestive aid. To lighten the load of a big meal placed on the digestive system, the Greeks would end an evening of fabulous fasting by eating some ginger wrapped in bread. Eventually, this practice evolved into the world’s first cookie gingerbread.

A study showed that taking two to four capsules of dried ginger before traveling in a car, boat, plane, or trains prevented motion sickness in 90 percent of the people who participated in the study.

“To combat travel sickness, take a quarter of a teaspoon of powdered ginger or a one centimeter slice of fresh root ginger at least 20 minutes before you get in the car or board a ferry,” suggests an article which appeared in Reader’s Digest.

The Minnesota-based Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research recommends ginger for nausea and vomiting. It instructs, “To prevent nausea after surgery, ginger has been given as one gram by mouth one hour before surgery. For chemotherapy-induced nausea, capsules of ginger root powder have been given orally one gram per day for 5 days, starting on the first day of chemotherapy.”

Written by: Henrylito D. Tacio

Source: www.philstar.com.ph

Ube shows promise as cure for hypertension

se as cure for hypertension, Yam

Yam (ube) contains a substance that shows some potentials as a cure for hypertension.

The substance has been named PhilRootcrops Protein-1 (PRP-1) by the Visayas State University (VSU), whose research has discovered the root crop’s medicinal properties.

It can safely be used as a hypertensive drug, Dr. Edgardo Tulin of the VSU-PhilRootcrops said.

Dr. Tulin said PRP-1 is a naturally-derived angiotension-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitor from yam. ACE inhibitors are proteins that are commercially important for the treatment of hypertension.

He said the yield of PRP-1 from crude protein extracts of yam roots was 364 milligrams per 100 grams of tubers.

PRP-1 can also be purified from cooked yam tubers and was still able to include proliferation of bone marrow cells and spleen cells, he added. Spleen is an organ near the stomach or intestine of most vertebrates.

Dr. Tulin observed that PRP-1 was not allergenic to mice, suggesting that it can be administered safely without worry of having an allergic response.

“No observable morphological changes in the internal organs of the test animals were observed for both acute and chronic toxicity studies. Hence, PRP-1 can be used safely as a potential hypertensive drug,” he said.

Dr. Tulin said that the promising activity of PRP-1 is an opportunity to create natural drugs from widely cultivated crops in the country.

He concluded: “It is a natural protein that could safely be produced and could be readily available, particularly in the developing countries. PRP-1 has great potential for treatment against hypertension and, additionally, this protein has an essential role in metabolic regulation, particularly in glucose metabolism.”

Written by: Rudy Fernandez

Source: www.philstar.com.ph

Alugbati

Basella alba Linn.

Basella lucida Linn.

Basella cordifolia Lam.

Local names: Alugbati (Bis.); arogbati (Bik.); dundula (Sul.); grana (Tag.); ilaibakir (Ilk.); libato (Tag.); Malabar nightshade (Eng.); Lo k?uei (Chinese.).

Alugbati is found in settled areas, in hedges, old cultivated areas, etc., throughout the Philippines. It is certainly not a native of the Archipelago but is of prehistoric introduction. It occurs also in tropical Asia, Africa and Malaya, often cultivated.

This is a succulent, branched, smooth, twining, herbaceous vine, reaching a length of several meters. The stems are green or purplish. The leaves are somewhat fleshy, ovate or heart-shaped, 5 to 12 centimeters in length, stalked, tapering to a pointed tip, and cordate at the base. The spikes are axillary, solitary, and 5 to 29 centimeters in length. The flowers are pink, and about 4 millimeters long. The fruit is fleshy, stalkless, ovoid or nearly spherical, 5 to 6 millimeters in length, and purple when mature.

Alugbati is a very common and popular leafy vegetable, which is much used in stews and, which makes good substitute for spinach. The cultivated varieties, both the green and the purple, are superior to the wild ones. It is cultivated extensively by Chinese gardeners and is on sale in Manila markets throughout the year. The young shoots, including both the leaves and the stems are eaten.

The plant is mucilaginous when cooked. Mara????reports that it is an excellent source of calcium and iron and that it has the high roughage value characteristic of leafy vegetables. According to Hermano and Hermano and Sepulveda, it is a good source of vitamin A and an excellent one of vitamins B and C.

Read reports that the leaves contain saponin, vitamins A3 and B3; and the fruit, mucilage and iron.

According to Guerrero the roots are employed as a rubefacient, and as a poultice to reduce local swellings; the sap is used to anoint any part of the body affected by acne in order to diminish the irritation. According to Nadkarni, and Kirtikar and Basu, its action is demulcent and diuretic. Stuart adds that it is emollient.

In India Nadkarni reports that it makes a wholesome and a most easily digested spinach and acts as a mild laxative. The leaves are reduced to a pulp and applied to boils, ulcers and abscesses to hasten suppuration. The juice of the leaves, together with sugar candy, is useful in catarrhal affections of children. It is administered with much benefit in gonorrhea and balanitis. The leaf-juice, thoroughly rubbed and mixed with butter, is a soothing and cooling application for burns and scalds. The mucilaginous liquid obtained from the leaves and tender stalks of this plant is a popular remedy for habitual headaches. Stuart states that the fruit is used as rouge for the cheeks and lips of ladies, and also as a dye. De Grosourdy says that in the Antilles the leaves are considered good maturatives as cataplasm. A decoction of the leaves is a good laxative for pregnant women and children.

Reference: www.bpi.da.gov.ph

Photo courtesy of www.stuartxchange.org

Sweet Sorghum: A Smart Biofuel Crop

s: Biofuel Crop, Smart Biofuel crop, Sweet Sorghum Philippines. Sweet Sorghum

In these days of soaring food prices worldwide, imagine a crop that provides food, livestock feed and biofuel. It grows in dry conditions, tolerates heat, salt and waterlogging and provides steady income for poor farmers. Sweet sorghum, a plant that grows to a height of 8 to 12 feet and looks like corn but with the grain on top rather than on the side of the plant, has all these qualities.

“Sweet sorghum provides an opportunity for developing countries to re-direct oil money that used to go overseas back into their own rural economies,” says Dr. William Dar, director general of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), one of 15 allied centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).

“We consider sweet sorghum an ideal ‘smart crop’ because it produces food as well as fuel,” Dr. Dar adds. “With proper management, smallholder farmers can improve their incomes by 20 percent compared to alternative crops in dry areas in India.”

In partnership with Rusni Distilleries and 791 farmers in Andhra Pradesh, India, ICRISAT helped to build and operate the world’s first commercial bioethanol plant, which began operations in June 2007. Locally produced sweet sorghum is used as feedstock.

The process is simple. To produce ethanol, the sorghum stalks are crushed, yielding sweet juice that is fermented and distilled to obtain bioethanol, a clean burning fuel with a high octane rating.

The grain can be used for food, chicken or cattle feed. Yet if it has been damaged by disease, no problem – it can also be used to make bioethanol, protecting farm incomes that would otherwise be lost.

The crushed stalks, called bagasse, can be burned to provide energy for the distillery. However, research by ICRISAT’s sister center, the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), has found that the bagasse value can be doubled if it is compacted in nutritious blocks and fed to cattle.

Similar public-private-farmer partnership projects with ICRISAT, local industries and farmers are also underway in the Philippines, Mexico, Mozambique and Kenya, as countries search for alternative fuels.

India intends to use a 10-percent ethanol blend to save an estimated 80 million liters (21 million gallons) of gasoline each year to ease the country’s growing need for gasoline and to reduce carbon emissions.

Advantages

Sweet sorghum in India costs $1.74 to produce a gallon of ethanol, compared with $2.19 for sugarcane and $2.12 for corn.

It has high positive energy balance, producing about eight units of energy for every unit of energy invested in its cultivation and production, roughly equivalent to sugarcane but four times more than for corn. Only 0.8 unit of energy is produced in fossil fuel production for every unit invested.

In the United States, the diversion of corn to bioethanol uses has contributed to increasing food prices. Since food-quality grain of sweet sorghum is not used in ethanol production, and is not in high demand in the global food market, it has little impact on food prices and food security.

Sweet sorghum hybrids have almost equal yields of grain as from grain sorghum hybrids and significantly higher stalk yields, so “food production would not be forfeited by switching from regular sorghum to sweet sorghum,” says ICRISAT sorghum breeder Dr. Belum Reddy. Improved sweet sorghum technology could even raise sorghum grain production significantly.

It is also easier and cheaper to grow sweet sorghum than other biofuel crops in India. Sweet sorghum grows on “free” rainwater, whereas sugarcane requires costly irrigation. Sweet sorghum is also more water-efficient: sugarcane consumes two and a half units of water to produce one unit of ethanol, whereas sweet sorghum produces one unit of ethanol from one unit of water.

Some recent reports have raised concerns that the cultivation of certain biofuel crops produces more greenhouse gases than is being saved. This is less likely to be the case for sweet sorghum, although research is needed to assess this carefully. Sweet sorghum is grown on already-farmed drylands that are low in carbon storage capacity, so the issue of clearing rainforest, of great concern for oil palm and sugarcane, does not apply.

Sweet sorghum will not replace sugarcane in parts of the developing world where those crops are well established, emphasizes Dr. Reddy. However, the need for irrigation and high rainfall makes it difficult to expand sugarcane production without moving into ecologically sensitive areas like rainforests.

Sunday, May 11 2008 (http://www.philstar.com)

Katuray

Katuray: Sesbania grandiflora

Botany
A tree, 5 to 12 meters high. Leaves are pinnate, 20-30 cm long with 20 to 40 pairs of leaflets which are 2.5 to 3.5 cm long. Flowers are white, 7-9 cm long. Pods are linear, 20-60 cm long, 7 to 8 mm wide, pendulous and curved, containing many seeds.

Distribution
In settled areas, at low and medium altitudes.

Constituents and characteristics
Bark contains tannin and gum.
Bark is very astringent.
Flowers are emollient and laxative.
Leaves are aperient, diuretic, laxative.

Parts used and preparation
Root, flowers, bark, leaves.

Uses:
Culinary
Often planted for its edible flowers and pods.
The large white or pink flowers are edible, eaten raw or steamed; makes for an excellent salad.
Young pods are eaten like string beans.
Excellent source of calcium, fair source of iron, good source of vitamin B.
Folkloric
Juice of the root, mixed with honey, used as an expectorant.
Decoction of the bark used for hemoptysis.
Infusion of the bark given for smallpox and other eruptive fevers.
Juice of leaves and flowers used for nasal catarrh and headaches.
Others
Produces a clear gum making a good substitute for gum arabic.

Availability
Cultivated and wildcrafted.

Source: www.stuartexchange.org