Updated date:

Dec 2, 2020

Ayurvedic Herb - Guduchi, Giloy or Amrita And Its Health Benefits

Author:: Rajan Singh Jolly

Rajan is a botany and chemistry major. He has worked as a poultry breeder for 23 years, breeding layer and broiler parents.

Guduchi

About Guduchi

Guduchi is a herbaceous vine that is known by a variety of names, some among them being - Giloy, Amrita, heart leafed moonseed and Indian Tinospora. It is also known as Chinnruha, kundalini & Chakralakshanika or Chakrangi.

Guduchi is one of the most valuable of Ayurvedic medicinal herbs and is among the 3 Ayurvedic herbs, garlic and haritaki being the other two, which are considered as Amrit or nectar in Ayurvedic medicine.

It is commonly called Giloy which is a Hindu mythological term that refers to the heavenly elixir which saved celestial beings from old age and kept them eternally young.

Guduchi is a Sanskrit word which means "one that protects the entire body".

Amrita refers to one that imparts youthfulness, vitality and long life.

Guduchi is native to India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan & Sri Lanka.

Though the root, stem and leaves of the Giloy plant are all used for healing, it is the stem that is mostly used.

The Guduchi/Giloy Plant

Guduchi is a tall, perennial, deciduous, extensively climbing vine with branches that twine over large trees like Neem & Mango. In fact, the Guduchi that grows on medicinal trees like Neem is believed to possess greater medicinal properties as compared to those growing alone or on other trees.

The leaves are heart-shaped and large, the flowers, yellow or greenish-yellow, and the fruits, pea-sized, ovoid, and bright red coloured, when ripe.

The Guduchi vine sprouts long thread-like aerial roots on neem and mango trees that are as long as 30 meters.

Guduchi also grows wild in dry forests all over India.

Nutrients In Guduchi

Guduchi leaves are rich in protein, calcium and phosphorus. It is low in fat, high in potassium and also has decent amounts of iron.

The chemical constituents present in Guduchi belong to different classes like alkaloids, diterpenoid lactones, glycosides, steroids, phenolics, sesquiterpenoid, aliphatic compounds and polysaccharides.

Health Benefits Of Guduchi

Various classical texts of Ayurveda - Charak Samhita, Sushruta Samhita, Ashtanga Hridayam, Bhava Prakash, Ashtanga samgraha, etc mention the use of Guduchi traditionally in a variety of disease conditions. Giloy has also been used in tribal or folk medicine.

Though traditionally used to pacify Pitta, Guduchi balances all 3 doshas. It is bitter and astringent in taste, is hot in nature and heavy to digest.

Experimental and clinical studies have validated the Ayurvedic properties of Guduchi. Among the properties Guduchi has been attributed with, and, confirmed by modern-day studies are:

anti-inflammatory
antiulcer
antipyretic
hepatoprotective
antiarthritic
antileprotic
antiosteoporotic
cardioprotective
immunomodulatory
antiallergic
anti-infective
radioprotective
diuretic
antioxidant
gastroprotective
antidepressive
anxiolytic
antidiabetic
antitoxic
antitumor
anticancer

Ayurvedic texts also attribute more properties to Guduchi among them the following:

digestive
antibleeding
laxative
alleviating thirst
alleviating burning sensation in the body
aphrodisiac
demulcent
nutritive
rejuvenative
adaptogenic

The list sure is exhaustive. Though Guduchi is hot in nature it does not aggravate Pitta dosha, unlike ginger for example, which is also hot but aggravates Pitta.

Guduchi also is the only Ayurvedic medicine which can bind and remove mercury, lead and other heavy metals, & environmental toxins from the body, as well as, reduce the side effects of chemotherapeutic drugs.

Fact

The aerial roots of Guduchi though extremely thin are so strong that Sushruta, an ancient Indian surgeon, used them for suturing cuts. Guduchi being a healer of wounds helped in healing the wound faster and being strong resisted breaking.

The Guruchi Plant: Interview with Vaidya RK Mishra

Guduchi from The Wisdom of Ayurveda DVD Series - Considered One of the Top Herbs in Ayurveda

Giloy and Giloy Sattva - DR. VIKRAM CHAUHAN

Some Home Remedies With Guduchi

For Gout

Take Guduchi powder 10 grams, ginger powder - 10 grams, liquorice powder 10 grams, katuki (picrorhiza) 10 grams. Mix all herbs and add honey to make a paste.

Take 1 to 2 grams two times a day, morning & evening after meals.

For Rheumatoid Arthritis

Take Giloy powder 100 grams, ginger powder 25 grams, desi ghee 100 grams and water 1.6 litres.

Add water to giloy and boil till 1/4th water remains. filter the decoction. Add ghee to a vessel. Put the decoction in this. Make a ginger paste with a little water and add to the vessel. Heat this mixture till all the water dries up and only the ghee remains.

! tsp of this ghee can be taken every day.

For Fever

Take Guduchi powder 5 grams, dashmula 25 grams and water 200 ml. Put the Guduchi and dashmula in the water and boil the mixture till 1/4th remains. Filter and let it cool.

Take 10 to 20 ml of this two times daily before meals.

For Gout

To 400 ml of water add 25 grams Guduchi powder. Simmer on low heat till only 100 ml remains. Filter & cool.

Take 30 to 40 ml of this decoction 2 times daily before food. Make fresh decoction every day. Can be taken for 2-3 months.

As A Brain Tonic/Rejuvenator

Drink 5 ml Guduchi root juice daily

In Fever

Take 15 ml decoction of Guduchi 3 times a day for a few days or one 250 mg Guduchi tablet 3 times a day for a few days.

In Skin Infections like Eczema/Psoriasis

Apply Guduchi paste.

In Cough

Take 10 ml juice of Guduchi. Add honey and mix. Take on an empty stomach in the morning.

For Joint Pains

Take out juice from some Guduchi leaves. Mix with some desi ghee. Take on an empty stomach daily once.

In Constipation

Take leaf juice with jaggery for relief.

In Rheumatoid Arthritis

Mix ginger juice & giloy juice in equal quantities. Take on an empty stomach.

As a general rule, Guduchi took with

cow ghee balances Vata dosha
gur (jaggery) balances Pitta dosha
honey balances Kapha dosha

Some Precautions With Guduchi

Since it lowers blood sugar diabetics should keep this in mind and more so if you are taking any blood sugar reducing medicine.
For the same reason avoid it a couple of weeks before surgery.
Avoid it also during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this hub is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your physician or health care provider before taking any home remedies or supplements.

References

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2924974/
http://www.niscair.res.in/sciencecommunication/researchjournals/rejour/ijtk/fulltextsearch/2004/july%202004/tinospora%20cordifolia%20(guduchi)%20a%20reservoir%20plant%20for%20therapeutic%20applications%20a%20review.htm
http://easyayurveda.com/2012/08/28/guduchi-giloy-ayurvedic-details-benefits-usage-dose-formulations/
http://ispub.com/IJAM/6/2/11478
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/guduchi-amrit-ayurveda-dr-unnati-chavda
http://www.herbalbloom.com/herbal-research/guduchi/Guduchi-Tinospora-cordifolia-medind.pdf
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2221169115301738
http://ijapr.in/index.php/ijapr/article/viewFile/133/117

Comments

Rajan Singh Jolly (author) from From Mumbai, presently in Jalandhar, INDIA. on June 10, 2016:

@teaches, glad to know you find my hubs useful. Thanks!

@Flourish, I realize Ayurvedic plants are not much known in the West. Appreciate your stopping by.

FlourishAnyway from USA on June 10, 2016:

Well written and informative article on a plant I've never heard of. Well done.

Dianna Mendez on June 09, 2016:

THank you for the information on this herb. I find your article most informative and helpful.

Dianna Mendez on June 09, 2016:

Thank you for the information on this herb. I always enjoy reading your articles and find them so informative and helpful.

Rajan Singh Jolly (author) from From Mumbai, presently in Jalandhar, INDIA. on June 07, 2016:

@Chitrangada, glad you found this hub informative. Thanks for reading.

@Karen, not many in the West are aware of most Ayurvedic herbs. I'm glad you took the time to read this. Thank you.

@manatita, sure this is a multi action herb, surely will benefit in that and more. Thanks for appreciating bro and good to see you.

manatita44 from london on June 07, 2016:

Nicely written Article, my Friend. Who knows, perhaps I could do with some Guduchi now. Fights toxins, you say? Could probably do with re-juvenating my brain too. Ha ha.

Well-presented; well-written and informative Hub. Om Shanti!

Karen Hellier from Georgia on June 07, 2016:

I have never heard of this plant before. Thank you for sharing this information in such a detailed fashion!

Chitrangada Sharan from New Delhi, India on June 07, 2016:

This is Such an informative article about these useful Ayurvedic herbs ! I am aware of Giloy and Amrita but did not know about Guduchi. But certainly I was not aware of so many health benefits these herbs provide.

A very well presented hub and the videos make it all the more interesting!

Thanks for sharing this helpful hub!