9 Incredible Health Benefits Of Katuki

Katuki is a herb that is found in mountains and is one of the rare herbs offering respite from several ailments that might be affecting your overall health and functioning of the body. There are a lot of health benefits of Katuki which have been detailed below in this article.

Ayurveda is known for offering respite from daily life’s stress and worries. Moreover, some specific roots and herbs that are prescribed in Ayurveda and can also help you get rid of several health ailments and diseases.

Katuki is scientifically known as Picrohiza kurroa and is from the family Scrophulariaceae. It is also known as Kutki and is a perennial herb that is used greatly in Ayurveda. This herb grows in the Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Southeast Tibet, North Burma, and West China.

The Katuki plant grows about 10 cm in height and it grows well in sandy clay textured, rocky cervices, and also in moist and sandy soil. The roots of this herb are elongated, tubular and are mostly associated with rhizomes. The stems of Katuki plant are small, weak, creeping, and erect at flowering, slightly leafy, and hairy.

Leaves of Katuki are 5-15 cm long, are coarsely toothed, narrowed to a winged stalk, and turns black on drying. The flowers are pale or purple in color, small in size, and are about 8 mm, 5-lobbed to the middle, and have longer stamens.

Katuki is bitter to taste and is known for several health benefits like its heart health benefits, it also enhances appetite and helps in weight loss, fights fever and arthritic pain, improves immunity, good for the respiratory system, improves liver function, and also good for the skin health.

Now, let us take a deeper look at these health benefits of Katuki.

Picrorhiza kurroa or Katuki is a known herb in Ayurveda and has been used traditionally for treating disorders of liver, upper respiratory tract, treat fever, and also chronic diarrhea.⁽¹⁾

One of the most crucial health benefits of Katuki is its benefits towards heart health. It is even given as a Cardio-tonic for improving heart health. The herb is rich in antioxidants and can fight inflammation. Thus it is overall a great tonic for your cardiovascular health. Katuki’s anti-inflammatory components, such as Apocynin, can aid in preventing the formation of blockage in the arteries and might help you ward off heart conditions like heart attack.

Researchers have also suggested its significant use in antithrombotic drugs, which function by preventing platelets from clumping and from forming clots.

Katuki is known to be good for your liver health. This herb has the potential to support the functioning of your liver by secreting bile juice, which helps your liver enzymes to come down at their normal levels. So, Katuki can protect the liver when it becomes weaker, especially after consuming toxins, like cigarette smoke, alcohol, and specific medications. Thus, it can be said that Katuki cleanses the liver and makes it function in a better way.

Katuki is thus known as a hepatoprotective plant and it was extensively studied in experimental and clinical situation. A study has found a biological plausibility of efficacy of katuki as supported by clinical trials on condition like viral hepatitis and hepatoprotection in animal model.⁽²⁾

Katuki is also known to promote better functioning of your digestive system. This herb improves your digestion power and offers you a better life. You can reduce some digestive issues, like bowel movements, excessive formation of gas, chronic diarrhea, and constipation, by consuming Katuki regularly. Moreover, the herb has laxative properties, which help in treating nausea, constipation, and vomiting.

If you are having a sluggish appetite and simply do not feel like eating anything then a dose of Katuki might just help you in dealing with this issue. Katuki stimulates gastric secretions and helps in improving your appetite. It might also help you with extreme weight loss and fatigue.

On the other hand, it can also be said that Katuki might be helpful if you are struggling with an excessive weight problem. Katuki can boost the digestive fire and improve the body’s metabolism, and keep your bowel movements regular, thus helping you cut any fat accumulation. This in turn helps in managing weight in a better way.

Katuki is also known to easily boost our immune system. Katuki extracts can help us in increasing the lymphocytes, WBCs that are an important part of our body’s immune system. Apart from this, it majorly increases the level of cell signals in our bodies. These cells are known to involve in maintaining the immune defenses of the body.

If you are dealing with arthritic pain then you should know that Katuki is a herb that might help you in your struggle. Studies have recommended that Katuki prevents the inflammation associated with the condition of arthritis, thus making it an excellent possible therapeutic option for the condition. There are clinical trials on people with osteoarthritis and also arthritic pain of the spine and that has yielded positive results.

Katuki is also known to fight Fever. Finely powdered Katuki can be mixed with warm water and sugar and consumed if you are having Fever. Katuki’s decoction with ghee is even recommended for this. Root of the katuki herb that is bitter to taste, is beneficial for soothing a Fever. The anti-pyretic properties of the roots of this herb can cool down the body temperature and bring down even a high Fever.

There is another health benefit of Katuki and that is, this herb has got excellent respiratory benefits. It is suggested by Ayurveda that Katuki can be used for treating respiratory problems like asthma and bronchitis. The herb’s muscle relaxant, immune-boosting, and anti-inflammatory effects are well known to contribute to treating respiratory issues.

However, actual research and trials have failed to back up this claim. In a study, taking the Katuki root powder even at high doses(i.e. 900 mg daily) failed to be effective at improving the function of the lung, preventing bronchial asthma, or even treating it. More research is required on this front for establishing if Katuki could help in treating respiratory issues.

We already talked about so many health benefits of Katuki. There are also some of the noted skin health benefits of this herb. Below are some of the skin health benefits of Katuki.

• Gives You A Better Skin: This herb is known to make your skin glow and also helps in reducing several skin issues. Katuki is known to have antioxidant properties for treating various skin disorders. If anyone is suffering from skin allergies, dermatitis, or deep wounds, they might get benefits from Katuki when they consume the herb,
• Prevent Psoriasis: Psoriasis is a skin problem that is caused because of certain skin infections or because of an injury on the skin from where begins bacterial infection. Once our body’s immune system becomes strong, it cleanses blood and colon automatically, and thus kills all the harmful bacteria. Katuki is the herb known for removing excess of bile or “Pitta” and heat from the body. This in turn controls and prevents itching and burning sensation of the skin. This herb is also beneficial in clearing out plaques and scales, thus helping patients with psoriasis to get well soon.
• Good For Wound Healing And Healing Of Primary Infections: We know that turmeric when applied over injuries and wounds speeds up the process of healing. Katuki also works similarly as the herb is packed with antioxidant properties that fight infections, injuries, and wounds. So, Katuki helps the wound or injury heal faster.

Katuki is known for its excellent health benefits. If you are dealing with any of the problems and willing to try this herb, then go for it; however, make sure that you consult with your doctor before trying the herb and know about any of its possible side effects or complication on your health that might make your condition even worse.

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