Indian gooseberry | Amla benefits, how to use and side effects. in unani medicines

What are the amla benefits, in English Indian gooseberry ( Emblica Officinalis)? How it is used for various health problems? What are the side effects? You will find all the answers and much more in this article.

What is Amla ( Indian gooseberry )?

 

Amla ( Indian gooseberry ) is a fruit of the tree which is 3 to 26 ft high. The fruit is yellowish green and spherical shape, with vertical stripes or furrows in it.

Taste of Amla is bitter, astringent and sour. Mostly seed is not used.

Amla ( Indian gooseberry ) can be found in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Myanmar.

Benefits and properties

There is a proverb in Punjab

" Advice of elders and eating Amla regularly will benefit you in the future! "

Following are the properties and benefits of Amla ( Indian gooseberry )

Nourishes the brain, heart, and stomach.
Astringent
Cool down the blood (Khoon) and bile ( Safraa )humor
Nourishes eyes
Nourishes and stop graying of hair.

How to use?

Now let us see how to use Amla ( Indian gooseberry) for various health problems.

For thirst, dysentery or loose motion

Due to its astringent property and cold temperament ( mizaj )  Amla ( Indian gooseberry) is very effective in loose motion and excessive thirst. And widely used in Unani medicine for these problems.

1.   After 15 minutes of meal eat 0.75 gm of dry Amla Powder and 0.25 gram of kaali harad ( black chebulic myrobalan ) Powder.

Black chebulic myrobalan ( kaali harad )
courtesy pixabay.com

2.   Now add one tablespoon of honey and one tablespoon of lemon juice in a glass of water and drink it.

3.  Use this remedy twice a day for a week. It will control your loose motion and excessive thirst both.

For strong memory & heart palpitations

If you want to nourish your brain and heart, control your anxiety and heart palpitations or improve your eyesight eat two amla muraba early in the morning daily.

Amla murabba
courtesy wikimedia 

For those who don't know what Amla muraba is?  it is an Amla ( Indian gooseberry )  preserved in sugar or honey syrup. You can find it easily in the market.

 

For enhancing eyesight

Amla ( Indian gooseberry ) is good for eyesight, either using externally or orally.

Externally or topically wash your eyes daily for 30 days with the following solution:

• Amla ( Indian gooseberry ) Powder 5grams
• Harad zard ( chebulic myrobalan ) Powder  5 grams
• Balila ( beleric myrobalan ) Powder 5 grams

Mix three of them in a bowl of water. Now with clean and fine cloth strain the solution. Wash your eyes with this strained solution.

You can also use Amla ( Indian gooseberry ) Powder orally for improving eyesight.

Add 2 to 4 teaspoons of Amla Powder in a glass of water.

Now add one tablespoon of honey in it and drink it.

Take this solution twice a day for better result.

For keeping hair strong and stop graying.

People are using Amla for hair care since ancient times especially in subcontinent south Asia. If the hair problem is not genetical or due to some other disease, most probably following Amla and coconut oil recipe will be magical.

15 grams of dry Amla or Amla Powder

75 ml of coconut oil

1. Pour coconut oil in a stainless steel pan and add Amla in it.
2. Put the pan at the stove with low heat.
3. keep stirring with intervals.
4. when oil become charred or brown stop heating it.
5.  strain the oil with fine cloth and store it in the glass jar or bottle.

Massage it on scalp and hair for 5 minutes. Leave it for a few hours or for the whole night. Then rinse it with warm water.

do this procedure thrice a week. It will stop premature graying and make hair strong and healthy
.

Drinking one tablespoon of Amla juice twice a day will also beneficial for hair.

Science view of Amla ( Indian gooseberry)

Not only in traditional medicine systems like Unani and Ayurveda but according to various scientific research and experiments health benefits of Amla are also proved. Let's see what science say about Amla.

Vitamin C source

Amla is the best source of vitamin C as compared to any other food in the world. It is tested and proven in many scientific research studies. So those people who have low vitamin C problem should use Amla regularly
.

Control cholesterol LDL and TG.

After various research studies on animals and humans, it is observed that Amla extracts reduce the triglycerides and LDL ( bad cholesterol) level in blood. It is also observed that Amla improves the HDL ( good cholesterol) level in blood.

Lowering the blood sugar levels

In a research study, it was found that Amla extract decreases the glucose level in blood. So it is very good supporting medicine for those type 2 diabetes patients who have a high level of sugar even with regular medicine.

Weight loss

As Amla control the sugar and cholesterol in the body, that's why it can be used to reduce weight. Many scientists believed that Amla can be very effective for obesity.

Side effects

There are pros and cons of everything, Amla is not the exception. Following are some side effects of Amla.

Constipation, colic, and acidity

Amla is very useful in all stomach and digestive system problems. But if it is used more than the recommended dosage, or excessively, it can cause problems like constipation, acidity and colic pain. It is preferable that Amla should be used after a meal, not at an empty stomach.

Low blood pressure and sugar levels

As we know Amla is good for high cholesterol and sugar. That's why it is not very good for people who have low blood pressure, low cholesterol and low sugar problems. Plus if you are taking any medication for lowering cholesterol or sugar, take Amla cautiously with these drugs.

Delay blood clotting

Amla is anticoagulant means it delays the blood clotting process. So if you have any bleeding disorder in which your blood is clotting slowly or using any medication which is anticoagulant, be careful to use amla. That's why it is recommended not to use amla, at least two weeks before any surgery.

Antidote / Musleh

To reduce the side effects of amla, use amla with honey or almond oil.

Dosage

Overdosage of amla can be harmful and low dosage won't be effective. so it is preferable to use amla at the right dosage. Which is 0.5 to 3 grams, depending on the age and physical condition of a person.

Alternative

You can find dried amla or amla powder easily in the market. But if it is not available in the market than you can use chebulic myrobalan ( haritaki/ harad) for stomach problems as an alternative.

Chebulic myrobalan ( haritaki / harad )

Temperament / Mizaj / Tasier

Temperament or mizaj of fresh amla is cold at level 1 and dry at level 1. The temperament of dry amla is cold at level 1 and dry at level 2.

Various names

Following are the different names of amla in popular languages

Botanical: Emblica Officinalis
English: Indian gooseberry  or emblic myrobalan
Urdu / Hindi: Amla or Anwla
Sanskrit: Amlaki
Persian / Arabic: Amlaj
Chinese: Yu gan zi