In Nigeria, this plant is also known as Hospital -too-far. Many people had this traditional belief that it could sustain a person up to a year without visiting the hospital for medication from minor illnesses if consumed.
It is known by such name because majority of homes in Nigeria own one or two of it stands, it can be either seen planted in a garden or by the wall of a fence.
My mum cooks it with foods like rice or soup. The image above shows a home just by the corner of my street. I would like to explore the reason why most homes cultivate the plant what has been the value it brought to most homes.
When I was young
I can recall when my mum uses her gloves to cut them and prepare it as part of our dish.
Hey, it can cause itches if you don’t use a protective when cutting it from the stem. It appears as chewy and slippery when used for soups.
It can be also squeezed to extract the juice for tea. When used for tea, she usually wash the leaves with salt and water the first time, squeeze the leaves to extract its juice. The juice is then boiled before served with tea ingredients.
Below are benefits of using the natural medicine from this plant.
Useful in malaria treatments
I personally noticed that consumers of the plant extract develops malaria resistant body systems. This is why it is common in most homes.
However this is not an advice for those who wants to treat malaria from start. It can be consumed in the process of treating malaria illness too to help the body regain faster.
Treatment of Stomach disorders
This leaves are powerful in the treatment of stomach upset. My mum will combine bitter leaf plant too. She will wash the leaves, squeeze the juice, then we are been told to lie down, it is been injected into the anus. Within a short time, the person who complained of stomach disorder will be fine.
Sometime we do not need to wait until we experience stomach disorder before utilizing the leaves of the plant. There may be a need to wash our bowels in order to stay healthy.
Thank you for your reading time, let’s all support herbal remedies and cultivate a stand or two of Hospital-too-far in our homes.
Until I see you next time.
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