The Giloy plant (Guduchi) is a deciduous climbing shrub that spreads extensively. You can see the aerial roots of this shrub usually around the mango tree or neem tree extending for as much as 30 meters.
The bark is papery, and the stem is succulent. This extensively climbing shrub has simple leaves that alternate ex-stipulate with 15 cm long petioles. These are long and roundish pulvinate at both the base and the apex.
The base is longer and twisted partially halfway around. The lamina is broadly ovate and ovate cordate 10-20 cm long and 8 -15 cm broad.
It has seven nerves and is deeply cordate at base. This plant is membranous and pubescent above and whitish tomentose with a prominent reticulum beneath.
It has uni-sexual flowers that are small and greenish yellow. It appears when the plant is leafless on axillary and terminal racemes.
Giloy plant has greenish-yellow flowers. The flowers occur in racemes or racemose panicles with the male flower appearing clustered and the female one as a solitary flower.
The flowering season extends throughout the year. Sepals are six in number with two series of three each with the outer ones being smaller than the inner ones. It has six free petals smaller than the sepals, obovate and membranous.
Fruits number 1 – 3 is smooth and ovoid. These drupelets occur on a thick stalk and are red or scarlet to orange in colour. They have sub-terminal style scars.
Guduchi is effective whether you use it in powder or paste form. The taste is a combination of astringent, pungent, and bitter tastes.
Common chemicals derived from Giloy herb: The list of chemicals derived from Guduchi includes glycosides, aliphatic, diterpenoid lactones, steroids, and alkaloids.
You can isolate these chemicals from Giloy plant – palmatine, tinosporaside, tinosporon, tinosporic acid, phenylpropene disaccharides, tembeterine, jatrorhizine, columbin, tinosporal, choline, tinocordifolioside, and berberine.
The root, stem, and leaves find use in medicine.
Heart-leaved moonseed herb, Giloy, Amrita, and Indian Tinospora form the list of popular names.
The botanical name for this herb is Tinospora cordifolia. Its branches are elongated and twining. It belongs to the Menispermaceae family.
The Guduchi is indigenous to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and tropical regions of India.
It helps in the rejuvenation of the mind.
Helps you maintain your youthfulness and longevity.
Growth of the bodily tissues occurs.
Stokes the fires of digestion.
The Tinospora cordifolia finds use in Ayurveda as a well-being tonic. It enhances vitality and helps treat a variety of diseases including those given below.
This herb promotes the power of the mind and keeps the body temperature steady. Giloy juice balances the vata-dosha or the air vitiation if you have Guduchi with cow ghee.
It is possible to balance the water vitiation when you take the Giloy powder with honey. It detoxifies the deepest chakra so that it exhibits its light nature.
This helps one agree with one's physiology and thereby increase potency. When the heart flame is strong, one can face emotional challenges without any problems.
Tinospora cordifolia plant has the aptitude to increase the fire in the heart. Guduchi also has a role as an adoptogen or an herb with the power to improve your resistance to illness, anxiety, and stress.
It shows antiperiodic, antidiabetic, antineoplastic, immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, antimalarial, antileprotic, anti-stress, antiallergic, antioxidant, anti-arthritic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-spasmodic properties. It does not show any side effects when used in the short term.
One must be careful with this herb when one is nursing or pregnant. In addition, since Giloy lowers blood sugar levels, if you are already taking diabetic medication, one must take care that the blood levels do not drop too low. Buy Sugar Control Juice (Sugar Free).
You can manage disorders having all three doshas as Giloy plant helps balance all the three doshas. Helps liver health and keeps the blood pressure under control when used with ghee formulations. You get protection from air pollution and dust in the air.
To balance the fire vitiation (pita dosha) you use jaggery with the Guduchi. This herb acts as a powerful immunity booster. One can have Tinospora cordifolia powder to detoxify the body. This does not affect any of the doshas.
Further, you can reduce the after-effects of chemotherapy drugs. To detoxify, one can combine the herb with other medicines such as Ashwagandha or Aloe Vera. It improves your voice, lustre of skin, and improves the complexion.
People who have worms, colitis, and hyper-acidity can benefit by taking Tinospora cordifolia. You can speed up the recovery in patients who are suffering from hepatitis by giving them Tinospora cordifolia with rock candy.
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It helps you tackle problems such as anemia, sexual debility, and spleen disorders. In addition, you can address problems dyspepsia, secondary syphilis cutaneous rashes, tuberculosis, and constipation. To help deal with gout one should have Tinospora cordifolia with sunthi.
One can have it with cumin seeds to reduce the burning sensation. People use the root of this herb to remove bowel obstruction as it has good emetic action.
Using this herb, one can get rid of calculi and reduce blood urea level. You can benefit by taking this herb for condylomata. To recover from vomiting or to quench excessive thirst, one should have the decoction prepared with giloy tree. You can reduce oedema by having this herb.
Giloy health benefits are countless but in the case of autoimmune diseases such as lupus, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis, the giloy plant might cause the autoimmune system to become more active.
This could lead to aggravation of the autoimmune diseases. Therefore, it is advisable to avoid the use of Tinospora cordifolia when you have one of these conditions.
In addition, one should avoid giloy plant when one is pregnant or nursing. One must not have this herb for long periods since this will slow down the bowel movements. But never start taking it without the consultation of an expert.