Bitter Melon

Bitter Melon After My First Taste

I have always been open to and held a great respect for ancient medicines and traditions.  My major complaint about American Medicine is that it is orchestrated and promoted by profit hungry drug companies out to profit regardless of the required listing of damaging side effects.

I have been monitoring borderline high blood pressure and pre-diabetes for years. I finally, several years ago, allowed myself to be placed on low dosages of Lisinopril  and Metformin  after extensive discussion with a doctor I knew and really trusted.

I discovered that the medications were interfering with continued weight loss (140# to date over recent years).  2012 was the year I decided to stop all medication and to concentrate on losing more weight and exercising.  This year (2013) I returned to the Doctor for blood work……. feeling good and having dropped (slowly) 25#.  Blood indicators unchanged:(:(:(  Still pre-diabetic  and borderline high blood pressure.  So I returned to low dosages of the two medications.

This caused me to explore new action in a new direction.  I did a little research into Ayurvedic Medicine and made an appointment with a certified Ayurvedic practioner here in Vermont. I met with Kevin Clark this past Friday and left impressed with his assessment of me and my concerns!

Without boring you with details you may have no interest in! (Plenty of information available if you are interested in learning more)  I have Double Doshas and have both Kapha and Pitta Doshas as strong components of my being. Kapha Ayurvedic Body Types have bigger builds and bones and being too slender would not be healthy for my being. I am designed to be large and solid.  People with a Pitta Ayurvedic Body Type tend to have very sharp minds and intellect and I will not self assess this characteristic 🙂

Anyway that brings us to Bitter Melon. It was recommended, as a first step in my new journey of exploration, that I start using Bitter Melon . Chemicals in bitter melon have been suggested to lower glucose levels, improve glucose tolerance, and increase glucose absorption. Additionally, the chemicals promote the way in which liver and muscle glycogen works together, and promotes healthy glucose oxidation. These findings are particularly note-worthy for diabetes research.

I found it in the closest Asian Market to us in West Lebanon, NH, Yipings.

My first taste was last night as shown in my first picture in this post.  It was no where near as bitter as I was mentally prepared for it to be after comments I had heard and reading I had done!  I could eat it raw!  I will explore receipts for cooking with it.

AND

I am planning to grow Bitter Melon in our garden this year!

Just bought my Bitter Melon seeds

Reading indicates it can be difficult to germinate. Nicking and soaking the seed helps as does knowing that they can take up to 30 days to germinate.

Will keep you posted as the season progresses!

Just heard from Piney Creek Garden “I grow bitter melon every year, for quick germination, soak it over night, the next day crack both side ( I bite both sides a little bit just enough to crack) and put on the ground after the last frost. for indoor start in a pot with under a grow light 2 weeks before the last frost. mine germinate in more than week”

They included a picture of Bitter Melon growing in their 2012 Garden

Piney Creek Garden‘s Bitter Melon 2012