Okra and Diabetes
Okra, commonly referred to as lady’s finger, has been found by multiple in vitro and in vivo studies to be a potent blood glucose-lowering (anti-diabetic) food. Okra has been used traditionally as an alternative treatment for diabetes and it is thought that this effect of okra is due to the presence of a large amount of soluble dietary fiber, which retards glucose absorption from the gastrointestinal tract.
Okra and Cancer
Okra has also demonstrated action against breast cancer cells in preliminary lab studies.
Okra and Depression
Amazing new research has proved that okra may also have the ability to fight one of the chronic illnesses of our time: Depression.
It’s been known that healthy diet improves mood since some fruits and vegetables were reported to have mood-elevating antioxidants such as flavonoids and quercetin. Because of okra’s high antioxidant content, yet no known records of antidepressant ability, the researchers from Mazandaran University of Medical Science examined its effect in elevating mood.
The researchers drew extracts from the seeds and leaves as they often contain the highest concentrations of antioxidants. As expected, the extracts were found to contain 58 – 68 mg of gallic acid equivalents per gram, the same levels of antioxidants as extracts of blackberry and blueberry, the most powerful of all fruits and berries.
After standard tests on diabetic mice, the results showed that okra seed extracts acted as a powerful mood-elevating agent that when in high dosage (750 mg of 10:1 seed extract per kg bodyweight) performed as effective as the anti-depression drug imipramine. But even in lower dose (250 mg/kg), the extract already manifested a significant mood boost. The positive mood effect is attributed to high total phenol and flavonoid contents of okra extracts.
The difficulties and complications related to diabetes put diabetes sufferers at greater risk of developing depression. Also, it is thought that having depression may increase one’s risk for diabetes or worsen diabetes symptoms. Studies have shown (unsurprisingly) that people with depression and diabetes suffer more severely than those with diabetes alone.
With the discovery of okra’s powerful anti-depressive action, people with diabetes have a significant likelihood of handling depression and gaining control over their blood levels at the same time. Eating the whole okra contains fiber which is essential for regulating blood sugar and lowering cholesterol levels. It also contains nearly 10% of recommended levels of vitamin B6 and folic acid. Even without diabetes, munching on okra is a far healthier option for having that “happy hormone” than binging on sweets.
