TODAY, more and more people work too hard to accumulate more wealth.

They do it at the expense of their health. So, by the time they are old, they are sickly and have to spend all their wealth just to get better.

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"The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while Nature cures the disease," said Voltaire centuries ago.

But sad to say, these days people take pills because they are very busy. They don't want to exercise or diet, they want to obtain good health through medication.

In the coming years, medicine would no longer be remedial but it will be preventive instead.

Nature has provided us potent medicines in the form of vegetables.

Some of the most popular ones are the malunggay, ampalaya, carrot, and winged bean. These vegetables are guaranteed to minimize your doctor's bills.

If there's a plant that can keep the doctor away, it's the common malunggay. It is rich in vitamins and nutrients. Its image is even the official logo of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

Nutritionists have proven that 100 grams of malunggay leaves yield the following: 75 calories of energy (higher than ampalaya, squash, tomatoes and carrots); 5.9 grams of protein (higher than cauliflower, lettuce and mustard); 12.8 grams of carbohydrates (higher than okra, papaya and watermelon); 353 milligrams of calcium (higher than gabi leaves, mung beans, squash and sweet potato tops); 3.7 milligrams of niacin (higher than other vegetables analyzed).

Malunggay is at the top of the list for thiamin, phosphorus, and ascorbic acid.

"Due to high vitamin A, C, and E content, which are very potent antioxidants," reported FNRI's Dr. Lydia M. Marero, "malunggay is a good quencher of unstable free radicals that react with and damage molecules that cause aging. Antioxidants reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. They also prevent the onset of various chronic diseases like arthritis, cancer, heart and kidney diseases."

Dr. Marero also reported that malunggay contains the phytochemical niaziminin, which is found to have molecular components that can prevent the development of cancer cells and correlated with inhibitory ability against superoxide generation. The first naturally occurring thiocarbamates, novel hypotensive agents niazinin A, niazinin B, niazimicin and niaziminin A and B were isolated from malunggay.

Tender malunggay leaves also reduce phlegm and are administered internally for scurvy and catarrhal conditions while the flowers are used to heal inflammation of the tendons and abscesses.

Unripe malunggay pods can prevent intestinal worms while the fruit also prevents eye disorders.

On the other hand, traditional medicine attributes many medicinal properties to ampalaya. Reportedly, the extract from the leaves or roots shrinks hemorrhoids. The leaf juice is supposedly a good antitussive (i.e., it stops cough), antipyretic (i.e., for fever), purgative and anthelmintic (i.e., against roundworms).

Ampalaya is also used to treat sterility in women and can supposedly alleviate liver problems. Likewise, there are claims that ampalaya has some antimicrobial activity and can help infected wounds.

Ampalaya has been considered as nature's answer to diabetes. Today, almost 100 studies have demonstrated that this bitter fruit can lower blood sugar.

Dr. A. Raman and Dr. C. Lau, who reviewed over 150 pre-clinical and clinical studies on amplaya's anti-diabetes properties and phytochemistry, concluded that, "oral administration of fruit juice or seed powder (of bitter melon) causes reduction of fasting blood glucose and improves glucose tolerance."

Ampalaya is traditionally regarded by Asians, as well as Panamanians and Colombians as useful in preventing and treating malaria.

Laboratory studies have confirmed that various species of the bitter fruit have anti-malarial activity though human studies have not yet been published.

Meanwhile, carrots are credited with many medicinal properties; they are said to be diuretics, re-mineralizers, anti-diarrheal, anti-anemic and an overall tonic. They are also said to cleanse the intestines.

The carrot is rich in alkaline elements that purify and revitalize the blood. They nourish the entire system and help maintain the acid-alkaline balance in the body. The carrot also has a reputation for helping maintain good eyesight.

Raw grated carrots can be applied as a compress to soothe burns. Its highly energizing juice has a particularly beneficial effect on the liver.

Consumed in excessive quantities, carrots can cause the skin to turn yellow. This phenomenon, called carotenemia and caused by the carotene in carrots, is frequently seen in young children though not at all dangerous.

Chewing a carrot immediately after food kills all the harmful germs in the mouth. It cleans the teeth, removes food particles lodged in the crevices and prevents gum-bleeding and tooth decay.

Eating carrots is also good for allergies, anemia, rheumatism, diarrhea, constipation (very high in fiber), intestinal inflammation, blood cleansing (a liver tonic) and an immune system tonic.

The carrot is traditionally recommended for weak, sickly or rickety children, convalescents and pregnant women as its anti-anemic properties have been famous for a long time.

"It's a veritable backyard supermarket," said Dr. Noel Vietmeyer of winged beans, more popularly known in the country as sigarilyas.

The tender pods, the most widely eaten part of the plant, can be harvested after two to three months of planting. The long pods, which can reach up to 50 centimeters in length, are rich sources of protein, carbohydrates and vitamin A. The pods can be eaten raw or used in salads, soups, stews and curries.

The immature pods can also be used as peas. The matured pods can be stewed, boiled, fried, roasted or made into milk. The seeds mimic the soybean in composition and nutritive value. The seeds contain 29-39 percent protein, 15-18 percent fat and 23-42 percent carbohydrates.

The tender top three sets of leaflets can be eaten raw like spinach or cooked as greens. They are rich in vitamin A, protein and carbohydrates.

The vines produce starchy underground tubers. In the Philippines, however, the tubers are relatively small and are not eaten. The tubers contain 12-15 percent protein (2 to 4 times higher than that of the potato and 8 times more than that of the cassava), 0.5 to 1.1 percent fat and 27.2 to 30.5 percent carbohydrates. The tubers are peeled after boiling, fried or baked before use.

The winged bean does more than just fill stomachs. Indonesians traditionally use extracts to treat eye and ear infections and cure dyspepsia. Malaysians claim a lotion concocted from the plant helps soothe smallpox.

Sean Adams, information chief of the United States Department of Agriculture, reported that the winged bean has high levels of protein called lectins, which are used as diagnostic tools in medical research because they bind to certain blood cells.

"Winged beans," he added, "also contain erucic acid (an antitumor medication) and polyunsaturated fatty acids that can be used to treat acne and eczema."

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(December 2, 2008 issue)
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