Ash gourd or Benincasa hispid, is a unique melon eaten mostly in India and China. It is often cubed and added to soups in Asian cooking. However, the Yogis of India have long regarded ash gourd as one of the most naturally energizing foods due to its high quotient of what Yogic science refers to as “prana”, or vital life energy.
Nutritional Content
Ash gourd comprises 96% water and is very low in calories, fat, protein, and carbs. Yet, it remains rich in fiber and provides small amounts of various nutrients.
One 3.5-ounce (100-gram) portion of raw ash gourd offers
- Calories: 13
- Protein: less than 1 gram
- Carbs: 3 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Fat: less than 1 gram
- Vitamin C: 14% of the Daily Value (DV)
- Riboflavin: 8% DV
- Zinc: 6% DV
It also contains smaller amounts of iron, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, and manganese, as well as various other B vitamins. Still, these amounts typically don’t exceed 3% of the nutrients’ DVs
In addition to vitamin C, It is a good source of flavonoids and carotenes, two antioxidants believed to help protect your body against cell damage and certain conditions like type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
What does Ash Gourd look like?
Immature ash gourd is coated in fine hairs which disappear as the gourd ripens. The exterior color can vary from dark green to pale gray. Mature gourds are coated in distinctive white ash. This powdery coating is where the melon derives its other common name, “ash gourd”. The shape of the gourd can also vary between round and oblong.
Health Benefits Of Ash Gourd
1. May improve digestion
Ash gourd’s low calorie, high fiber, and high water contents may help improve your digestion and promote a healthy body weight. For instance, research suggests that low-calorie, water-dense foods like ash gourd may help people lose weight. It is a good source of soluble fiber. This type of fiber forms a gel-like substance in your gut, which slows your digestion and helps promote feelings of fullness.
2. Sharpness of Mind
Just drink one glass of ash gourd juice in the morning and you will see a tremendous amount of coolness in the body, while at the same time it brings alertness into you. Daily consumption of ash gourd greatly enhances your intellectual capabilities. Especially children must drink ash gourd juice.
If you drink it for one week, you will notice a distinct change in the sharpness of your mind. This is very highly pranic. Every day, if you drink a glass of ash gourd juice in the morning, you will see it will do wonders for your intellect. Your intellect will be very sharp and it brings energy without agitation in the system. Daily consumption of ash gourd will do miracles for you.
3. Increased Energy
Consumption of ash gourd brings an enormous amount of energy, at the same time it keeps your nerves very calm. If you drink coffee, it gives you energy with agitation. If you drink a glass of ash gourd, it gives you an enormous amount of energy and still keeps you calm.
4. Augments Heart Function
Having negligible cholesterol content, ash gourd can be safely consumed in the diet regularly for promoting heart health. The boiled vegetable can be effortlessly added to many standard homemade Indian dishes, as it improves the circulation of blood to and from the heart, ensuring optimal functioning of cardiac muscles.
5. Detoxifies The Kidneys
Ash gourd stimulates the normal elimination of body wastes via the excretory system in the body. It boosts the secretion of fluids within the kidneys, promptly getting rid of accumulated toxins and at the same time, guaranteeing proper hydration of the internal organs in the body. This juice supports the routine tasks of kidneys and bladder.
6. Aids In Weight Loss
All the water-dense vegetables, low calorie, and low carb fruits and vegetables are the best natural remedies for healthy weight loss. If you are working to lose weight, add ash gourd in your low-calorie diet like a juice or stew with many nutrients and low carbs.
More than losing weight, ash gourd has often said to help manage the weight. It treats anorexia in underweight people and helps them get a healthy weight and boost metabolism. The dietary fiber in ash gourd gives a feeling of fullness that keeps a person away from cravings and helps in fat burning rapidly.
7. Helps Stop Internal Bleeding
It is naturally an anticoagulant, so it helps in controlling bleeding. Though it is often used to stop external bleeding, the gourd can also prevent internal bleeding effectively. On regular consumption, It can stop the nose bleeding that occurs in summer.
Internal bleeding in the kidney causes conditions like Haematuria, i.e., blood in urine, bleeding due to piles, ulcers, and other various internal bleeding that can be controlled by this juice. This fresh juice mixed with lemon or amla juice gives rapid relief from haematuria and piles.
8. Constipation, Piles, Boils
The anti-inflammatory and cooling effect of ash gourd juice helps to cool down the body. Those who have excess heat in the body can drink this juice daily to reduce the heat and health problems caused by body heat such as constipation, piles, and piles.
Benefits of Ash Gourd Juice For Skin and Hair
It has cosmetic uses for the face and hair. Ash gourd juice with lemon or other hydrating and nutritious compounds can remove dark spots in the face and bring a glow to your skin.
This juice can be applied to the scalp and hair to remove and prevent dandruff. You can use this hair pack and wash the hair with the usual shampoo. You can even add the ash gourd seeds to your regular coconut oil for hair.
1. Tackles Excessive Dandruff
It has powerful chemical constituents that can remove dandruff and lower the flakiness’s development on the scalp. It protects the hair follicles from fungus and dirt that causes dandruff.
Its gel can be used to treat scalp itchiness and dry hair on regular usage. The gel can gradually restore the health and shine of the dull hair.
Seeds and peels boiled with coconut oil can be applied to hair that prohibits scalp dryness and dandruff, thereby promoting hair growth.
2. Promotes Hair Growth
Ash gourd has a multitude of vitamins and minerals which provide nourishment and vigor to the hair strands. Moreover, when applied as a gel, it penetrates deep into the layers of the scalp and protects follicles, thereby maintaining the thickness and stability of hair.
3. Naturally Moisturizes Skin
Ash gourd has innate content of the smoothening or emollient Vitamin E, which also has antioxidant properties. The gel extract from the vegetable, when applied on sunburns and rashes, pacifies the aggravated and dried-up regions of the skin, leaving it soft and completely moisturized.
4. Combats Skin Infections
The extract made from ash gourd leaves possesses astringent properties that aid in neutralizing the severely infected and flamed spots in the skin. The extract can also be given to treat boils, abscesses, and carbuncles on the skin due to fungal infections, allergies, pollution, and the sun heat.
How to Prepare Ash Gourd Gel At Home
Ingredient
Ash Gourd – 1 (medium-sized)
Process
Peel off the ash gourd and cut it into two halves. Remove the seeds and take out a soft inner flush. Grind it to a smooth paste without using water and take it as a viscous gel. Apply the gel on the scalp and hair, leave it for 30 minutes, and wash the gel off the scalp using regular shampoo. Dry the hair. Do it once a month.
Effect
It has antifungal and moisturizing properties that work as a balm and soothe the scalp and removes dandruff. Use this homemade organic hair gel to treat flaking scalp and nourish it.
Ways to eat ash gourd
Ash gourd is a popular part of Asian cuisine.
The fruit is most often cubed, boiled, and eaten on its own or added to soups and stews. It can also be baked, fried, candied, or simply peeled and added to salads, or eaten raw similarly to how you’d eat a sliced cucumber.
It can likewise be used to make candy, jam, ketchup, cakes, ice cream, or a sweet Indian delicacy known as petha. It’s also a popular addition to juices and smoothies.
How To Make Juice At Home
This juice is known for its many benefits. You can easily make it at home.
Method of preparation of juice
- To make juice, firstly take white Ash Gourd.
- Peel it and take out all the seeds.
- After removing all the seeds, cut them into small pieces.
- Put these pieces in a juicer and mix.
- Now take the utensil and put the cotton cloth on it.
- Now pour the juice on the cloth and with the help of cotton cloth take out all the juice.
- After removing all the juice, pour it into the glass and it is ready to drink.
Also read: Ginger Water: Benefits Of Raw Ginger In Empty Stomach
Its Side Effects
- Obese people should use it for a limited duration, in small amounts.
- It increases phlegm, so it is not ideal to use in winter and if there is any cold, asthma, or bronchitis.
- However, it is very useful in the period after tuberculosis. It improves weight.
- If it is in the form of a dessert, it is not ideal during indigestion.