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10 Amla Benefits: Reasons Why Amla Is Great For Your Health 2024

stacey

Updated on - Written by
Medically reviewed by Kathy Shattler, MS, RDN

amla benefits
You should incorporate the amla berry into your diet for its various benefits. Photo: wadeeda/Freepik

Imagine the potential of a superfood with eight times more vitamin C than an orange, twice the antioxidant power of an acai berry, and around 17 times that of a pomegranate. Imagine no more with Amla, an Indian Gooseberry, now providing some of the most diverse and potent benefits for the human body.

Known to be used by Ayurvedic healers, the amla berry has been used as a food, medicine, and remedy for 1,000 years. 

For those who have never eaten or heard of this fruit, the amla fruit is about the size of a golf ball, and it possesses a pit and thin peel. The amla taste has been described as sour, bitter, and astringent, and amla is available on the market in fresh, powdered, dried, or extract form. 

Now, in 2024, individuals can reap the same health benefits from this popular-gaining wonder fruit, which has been and will continue to be, esteemed from the point of potent nutrition as well as great medicinal value.

10 Benefits Of Amla

Amla, also known as Indian gooseberry, offers a multitude of health benefits:

  1. Cardiovascular health
  2. Cancer prevention
  3. Enhanced eyesight
  4. Hair and skin benefits
  5. Protein metabolism
  6. Digestive health
  7. Dental health
  8. Anti-inflammatory properties
  9. Immune support
  10. Improved circulation

Amla Benefits: Why Amla Is Good For Health?

Why Amla is Good for Health
Amla may aid in weight loss and fat burning due to its high vitamin C content. Photo: Tatiana Goskova/Freepik

As an excellent source of Vitamin C, E, and A, iron, essential fatty acids, and calcium, amla is one of the best superfoods on the market today. It’s also deemed good, if not great, for an individual’s health with more than ten reasons why you should have known about amla a long time ago.

The following are ten of the health benefits provided by this ancient fruit:

  1. Amla powder decreases serum cholesterol levels[1] in individuals, particularly in men aged between 35 and 55. It is cardioprotective and is used in Ayurvedic medicine to lower blood pressure.
  2. Drinking amla juice suppresses cell proliferation[2] and induces the cellular death( apoptosis) of human colon cancer stem cells. It further inhibits mutations in genes and repairs chromosome abnormalities while inhibiting the growth and spread of various other cancers. Oxidation of DNA is inhibited.
  3. Amla improves eyesight and has been used as a therapeutic agent for macular degeneration. Due to its high vitamin A and C content and its anti-inflammatory properties, it is known to improve eyesight while boosting immunity. Amla can prevent ocular tension and dry eyes. At the same time, it can delay the progression of cataracts. Amla has been known to help with eye itchiness.
  4. Amla powder adds beauty benefits to the skin and hair. You improve your hair health by adding amla hair oil to your scalp. It decreases dandruff, stimulates hair growth, and strengthens hair follicles. You can mix amla powder with coconut oil to make your own hair tonic, thus reducing hair loss. Furthermore, amla can give you glowing skin by applying amla extract topically. The topical application of amla creates a skin glow and highlights skin brightness.
  5. Drinking the best leafy greens for juicing, and amla, maintains the proper function of metabolizing and transporting proteins, consequently alleviating the injurious effects of oxidized lipids.
  6. Consuming amla oil helps with jaundice, piles, indigestion, and cough and acts as a potent diuretic and laxative. Amla-dried pieces aid in regulating bowel movements and relieving irritable bowel syndrome due to the fiber found in the Amla berries.
  7. Drinking amla juice aids dental health and treats dental caries and gingivitis. It aids in the repairing of ulcers and fractured bones. Dilute amla juice helps with painful mouth ulcers.
  8. Amla helps in its anti-inflammatory properties, acts as a natural blood purifier, and reduces inflammation in arthritis and other rheumatic conditions. 
  9. Amla aids in the fight against the common cold and flu due to its high amount of vitamin C.
  10. Amla extract increases blood circulation and the integrity of the blood vessels.

Does Amla Help Burn Fat?

Does Amla Help Burn Fat
Amla may have potential benefits for weight management. Photo: timolina/Freepik

The thick skin on fresh amla has protein components in it that alleviate hunger. It is also said to be very effective at ridding one of abdominal fat. According to Ayurvedic medicine, drinking Amla juice is one of the quickest ways to rid oneself of unwanted body fat and weight.

How To Eat Amla?

Amla is probably the ideal fruit you can take in on a regular basis with no negative effects. 

According to health experts, the recommended daily consumption of amla powder for adults is 75-90 mg per day. Have amla early in the morning on an empty stomach for maximum benefits. 

Individuals can consume it raw, in pickled form, as a dried powder, or as a homemade concoction. It can be consumed as a raw drink, along with jaggery, as murabba, or in the form of dips and pickles.” This can be consumed every day. You can eat raw amla; it has a sour, astringent taste packed with juice.

For more ways to take amla, here are some suggestions: 

  • Amla Powder: Take one teaspoon of amla powder in the morning on an empty stomach with one teaspoon of honey or warm water.
  • Juice: Take 20 ml of amla juice with warm water first thing in the morning. You can drink amla powder or add amla powder to receive an abundance of vitamin C.
  • Chyawanprash: The main ingredient of chyawanprash is amla. So you can have one teaspoon of chyawanprash with warm water either in the morning on an empty stomach or two hours post-meal.
  • Amla murabba and pickle: Make murabba or pickle this winter with fresh amlas in the market and enjoy it with your meals daily.
  • Fermented fruit: You can ferment amla and have one or two every day.
  • Amla candy: You can cut amla into pieces and dry them under the sun. Once they’ve been dried enough- you can store them and pop them daily as candies.

Worshipped as the “Earth Mother” since ancient times, regular consumption of this beneficial fruit is recommended. However, on more specific occasions, consumption should be as follows: 

  1. For individuals suffering from worms, a tablespoonful of amla juice mixed with a cupful of coconut milk daily twice for a week expels tape-worm and hookworms.
  2. Now is a good time to take amla for individuals suffering from eye diseases. A cupful of pure amla juice with honey given twice daily preserves eyesight and treats conjunctivitis and glaucoma. It reduces the intraocular tension as well.
  3. For individuals suffering from diabetes, constant consumption of amla is advised. A tablespoonful of amla juice mixed with a cup of fresh bitter-gourd juice taken once daily for a couple of months aids in diabetes and associated symptoms.
  4. Individuals suffering from tuberculosis of the lungs, asthma, bronchitis, lung abscess, or pneumonia are advised to consume a tablespoonful of fresh amla juice mixed with an equal quantity of honey taken every day in the morning.
  5. For individuals suffering from excessive bleeding during menstruation, abortions, and post-partum childbirth hemorrhage, fresh amla juice with honey as a medicated tonic should be taken.

For pregnant and breastfeeding women, no time is a good time to consume amla.

Conclusion

Highly nutritious and linked to several impressive health benefits, eating amla is not only delicious and easy to prepare at home, but it makes for a fantastic addition to a healthy diet

What a wonderful gift from India to the world; the Indian gooseberry can now help individuals across the globe with its edible fruits and its abundance of vitamin C. Drink amla juice today!


+ 2 sources

Health Canal avoids using tertiary references. We have strict sourcing guidelines and rely on peer-reviewed studies, academic researches from medical associations and institutions. To ensure the accuracy of articles in Health Canal, you can read more about the editorial process here

  1. Europe PMC (2016). Europe PMC. [online] Europepmc.org. Available at: https://europepmc.org/article/med/3250870
  2. Vadde, R., Radhakrishnan, S., Eranda Karunathilake Kurundu, H., Reddivari, L. and Vanamala, J.K.P. (2016). Indian gooseberry (Emblica officinalis Gaertn.) suppresses cell proliferation and induces apoptosis in human colon cancer stem cells independent of p53 status via suppression of c-Myc and cyclin D1. Journal of Functional Foods, [online] 25, pp.267–278. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1756464616301505
stacey

Medically reviewed by:

Kathy Shattler

Stacey Rowan Woensdregt has more than 15 years of experience in print media, online media, copywriting, and digital marketing. She has written for many bespoke magazines and media houses and has worked within top digital marketing agencies around the world. Her niche markets include architecture, property, health and wellness, holistic medicine, art and lifestyle, and business.

Medically reviewed by:

Kathy Shattler

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