Scientific name- Momordica charantia Linn.
English name-Bitter gourd
Tamil name- pAgakkai, pakal, paval
Bitter melon grows in tropical as a food and medicine. It's
a slender, climbing annual vine with long-stalked leaves and yellow, solitary
male and female flowers borne in the leaf axils. The fruit looks like a warty
gourd, usually oblong and resembling a small cucumber. The young fruit is
emerald green, turning to orange-yellow when ripe. At maturity, the fruit
splits into three irregular valves that curl backwards and release numerous
reddish-brown or white seeds.. All parts of the plant, including the fruit,
taste very
bitter.
The fruits and leaves are used as a vermifuge, and for
piles, leprosy and jaundice. The leaves are used in the treatment of colic. The
root is an ingredient in aphrodisiacal preparations and used externally for
hemorrhoids. The fruit is useful for rheumatism, gout and diseases of the
spleen and liver. In large doses it is a drastic purgative and is considered
antiabortion.Karavila is also a very effective bauty aids.The leaves are crushed
and the juice is massaged into the skull. It encourages the growth of hair.
Loss of hair or bald heads are a common worry for many people
