The benefits of eating loofah

Sponge gourd is a vegetable with high nutritional value and is indispensable in our lives. So what are the benefits of sponge gourd?

Loofah

It is the fresh and tender fruit of the herbaceous plants of the Cucurbitaceae family, loofah and Guangdong loofah. It is cultivated in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan and other places. It is picked in summer and autumn, the rough skin is scraped off, and it is washed and used fresh.

Flavor

Sweet in taste, cool in nature.

Element

This product contains protein, fat, carbohydrates, calcium, phosphorus, iron, vitamin B1, vitamin C, saponins, plant mucus, xylan gum, etc.

effect

Clears away heat and resolves phlegm, cools blood and detoxifies. Used for cough, asthma, whooping cough, mumps, pharyngitis, blood in urine and stool, etc.

[Bleeding in stool due to internal hemorrhoids] Cut 250 grams of fresh loofah into pieces, slice 200 grams of lean pork, add appropriate amount of water and cook into soup. After cooking, season with salt and serve as a dish.

[Whooping cough] Take 60 ml of fresh loofah juice (for children aged 3-6 years) and add appropriate amount of honey, twice a day.

[Preventing measles] Boil 100 grams of raw loofah in water and drink it twice a day for 3 days.

[Pharyngitis] Chop 1 piece of frosted loofah into small pieces and decoct it in water. Or mash the tender loofah into juice and take 1 tablespoon of juice 3 times a day.

[Mumps] Cut 1 old loofah into small pieces and stir-fry until slightly yellow, then grind into fine powder. Take 10 grams each time with boiled water, 3 times a day for 5 consecutive days.

[Lack of milk] 30 grams of loofah seeds, cooked with silver carp.

[Asthma] Cut 2 small raw loofahs, put them in a casserole and cook until soft. Take 150 ml of the concentrated juice, 3 times a day.

[Lung abscess, hernia pain, postpartum abdominal pain] Peel 2 old loofahs, dry them on a tile, grind them into powder, mix with rice wine, take 10 grams each time, 3 times a day.

It is not suitable for people with weak spleen and stomach or diarrhea.

[Family and Genus] It is the fresh and tender fruit of the loofah plant of the Cucurbitaceae family.

[Alias] Loofah, Tianluo, Miangua, Bugua, Tianluo melon.

[Nature and flavor and meridians] Cool in nature, sweet in taste; enters the lung and liver meridians.

[Effects and indications] Clears away heat and resolves phlegm, cools blood and detoxifies, relieves summer heat and relieves restlessness, and promotes blood circulation and activates collaterals. It is mainly used to treat fever, thirst, phlegm, asthma, cough, intestinal wind, hemorrhoids, sores, carbuncle, and women's milk retention.

[Nutritional ingredients] Every 100 grams contains 1.4-1.5 grams of protein, 0.1 grams of fat, 4.3-4.5 grams of carbohydrates, 0.3-0.5 grams of crude fiber, 0.5 grams of ash, 18-28 milligrams of calcium, 39-45 milligrams of phosphorus, and 0.03-

0.06 mg, niacin 0.3-0.5 mg, ascorbic acid 5-8 mg. In addition, it also contains saponins, bitter loofah, a lot of mucus, citrulline, etc.

【Dietary therapeutic effects】

1. Anti-scurvy: Loofah has a high content of vitamin C, containing 8 mg per 100 grams. It can be used to fight scurvy and prevent various vitamin C deficiencies.

2. Brain-enhancing and beauty-enhancing: Since loofah contains high levels of vitamin B1, it is beneficial to the brain development of children and the brain health of the elderly. The juice of the loofah vine has the special function of maintaining skin elasticity and can beautify and remove wrinkles.

3. Anti-virus, anti-allergic Sponge gourd extract (Lo43) has a significant preventive effect on Japanese encephalitis virus. Injecting Lo43 before infection with the virus can provide a protection rate of 60% to 80%. An anti-allergic substance, bryonic acid, is also extracted from the tissue culture medium of the sponge gourd, which has a strong anti-allergic effect.

【Healthy Recipes】

1. Roasted loofah 800g loofah, 50g soaked mushrooms, ginger juice. First, remove the stems of soaked mushrooms and wash them, peel the loofah, wash and slice them; heat the pan, add lard, cook with ginger juice, then add loofah slices, mushrooms, cooking wine, refined salt, MSG, boil until mushrooms and loofah are tasty, thicken with wet starch, pour in sesame oil, mix well and it's done. This dish has the effect of replenishing qi and blood and unblocking meridians. It is suitable for women with postpartum milk retention, breast pain and other symptoms.

2. Tomato and loofah soup 1 loofah, 2 tomatoes, and some chopped green onion. First wash the tomatoes and cut them into thin slices, peel the loofah, wash and slice it; put the cooked lard in the pot and heat it to 60%, add 500 ml of fresh soup and boil, add the loofah slices and tomato slices, and when they are cooked, add pepper, fine salt, MSG, and chopped green onion, mix well and remove from the pot. This soup is delicious and fragrant, and has the effect of clearing away heat and toxins and eliminating irritability. It is effective for people with summer heat, irritability, thirst and dry throat.

3. Stir-fried loofah 250 grams of loofah. First, peel the loofah, wash it and slice it. Put a little oil in the pot and heat it to 60% hot. Pour the loofah in and stir-fry. When the loofah is cooked, add a little salt. This dish is light and delicious, and has the effects of clearing heat and dampness, resolving phlegm and relieving cough. It is especially suitable for patients with phlegm, cough, heat dysentery, and jaundice.

4. Raw loofah juice 1000g raw loofah, appropriate amount of honey. First wash the raw loofah, cut into strips, squeeze out the juice, add honey (usually 10:1 ratio), stir well. This juice has the effect of clearing heat, relieving cough and reducing phlegm, and is suitable for children with whooping cough.

【Notes】

Luffa is cold and slippery in nature, and eating too much can cause diarrhea; it cannot be eaten raw.