Superfood Spotlight: Bitter Melon

What You Need To Know: Also called bitter gourd or balsam pear, bitter melon looks more like a quirky rainforest creature than super-powered produce! This unique warty-skinned superfood grows on tropical vines native Asia, South America and Africa. It is rich in vitamins, minerals and other healthy compounds that can improve your health for the better.

Why You Should Try It: Bitter melon is particularly rich in vitamin A, vitamin C and folate, as well as potassium: a mineral vital to kidney health. It’s also packed with phytochemicals that not only affect how your body stores energy and lower blood sugar levels, but may even prevent against cancer tumors from resurfacing. Both the fruit and the seed can be used to make medicine, and are stellar at treating stomach and intestinal issues ranging from colitis to GI distress to worms. Topically, it has been used for centuries to treat deep skin wounds.

Let’s Get Together: Bitter melon is becoming more and more widely available in specialty food stores and farmer’s markets nation-wide. To take advantage of bitter melon via supplement form, visit your local health food store or try Himalaya Pure Herbs’ bitter melon capsules. Bitter melon may interact with certain medications, so as always, contact your health practitioner to determine what is best for your body’s unique chemistry.