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September/October 2005 Fenugreek Trigonella foenum-graecum
Continuing the series on 'Let your food be your medicine with Fenugreek.....'
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The Old Ways
I am putting the following under the ‘The Old Ways' because most people today don't spend time learning directly from plants.
Discovering this seed in the past must have been quite a find, unusual shaped seeds, strongly pungent, producing a jelly like substance when soaked, bitter tasting, warming, yellowish –brown, the plant highly sought after by birds and animals and easy to grow.
Chew on a couple of seeds, soak some (see preparation below), shake it up, taste, touch and smell it. Drink a couple of cups of the infusion and see how you smell in a day or so.
I find them both bitter and sweet and after soaking for a while, jelly- like. On shaking it is very frothy.
So what does all this mean?
• The bitterness indicates an effect on the digestive tract
• The yellow is another ‘key' for that area
• The gel, mucilage that would soothe and reduce any constipation or inflammation
• The soapiness, saponins, constituents that can be steroid-like in their action
• The curry-like smell of your perspiration, that the volatile oils works through the body and out through the sweat glands.
This is another plant used as both food and medicine.
Historically, the ancient Egyptians ate it as a vegetable and used the seeds for incense and for embalming. The dried leaves were cooked in India and the Middle East.
The New Ways
We now know that fenugreek seeds contain a range of therapeutically active constituents. Volatile oils, alkaloids (Trigonelline), saponins including the steroidal saponin, diosgenin and yamogenin (like Wild Yam), flavonoids (quercitin and luteolin) mucilage, coumarins, fixed oils, protein, Vit A,B,C and minerals.
It has been well researched for its hypoglycemic effects, cholesterol and lipoprotein reducing effects, and herbalists use it as;
• a digestive tonic – bitter and stimulates appetite and assimilation especially after an illness
• a nutritive
• a laxative
• an expectorant
• a galactagogue - increases milk production
• an anti-diabetic herb
Because it is warming it resolves ‘cold' and ‘damp' conditions, relieves pain due to its demulcent (soothing) effect.
It is also considered to have an oestrogenic effect due to the diosgenin.
Some references say it is oxytocic-like in its action.
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What Plant?
It needs a hot position to grow well and is probably indigenous to the Mediterranean or Asia. It is now cultivated world-wide.
It has the typical three-leafed clover-like shape, is a small plant (up to 50cm), has whitish-yellow pea shaped flowers and bright green leaves.
The seed pods are unusual, they are slender, long and curved and in some countries its name means ‘goathorn'. Foenum-graecum means ‘greek hay'.
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What Part?
The dried ripe seeds are used and there are about 16 to 20 in a pod. They are 4-7mm long, rhomboid in shape with a longitudinal indentation down the middle of one side.
How and when to use them?
They are used in a decoction, (see below).
Herbalists may consider Fenugreek in treating people with;
• bronchitis
• dyspepsia
• anorexia
• poor breast milk
• type 2 diabetes
• irritations and inflammations both internally and externally
How to prepare it?
Many claim that to roast the seeds lightly and crush them brings out the flavour.
Others add 2 tsp per cup of boiling water and let it infuse for 5 hours or sprout the seeds and eat them on salads.
The best way I have found is to;
1. Soak 1 tbsp of seeds in a cup of cold water for 20mins.
2. Bring very slowly to simmer.
3. Turn off the heat and leave to stand for 10 to 20 mins.
4. Strain, eat the seeds on salads and drink the liquid.
It is also found as a constituent of curry powder and other spice blends.
Curry Powder
Ethiopian blend
Fenugreek, red pepper and garlic were blended together and used to coat ‘pastrima' a dried meat.
How much to use?
1-2 cups daily for an adult.
1 Tbsp of powder can be mixed in a cup of milk (Frawley and Lad The Yoga of Herbs)
Safety
Due to the steroidal saponins, excessive use should be avoided in pregnancy.
It may enhance cholesterol lowering drugs.
It may reduce the absorption of oral drugs due to the mucilage but this is purely speculation.
Research
There are several interesting research papers on Fenugreek….
• Epidemiological studies implicate apoptosis as a mechanism that might mediate the Fenugreek's anti-breast cancer protective effects.1
• Fenugreek research suggests significant chemopreventive effects of the seeds against breast cancer. 1
• In athletes (cyclists) a fenugreek extract supplement was added to a high oral dose of dextrose, and the rates of post-exercise glycogen resynthesis were enhanced above dextrose alone.2
• Fenugreek seeds were evaluated in study on normal and diabetic erythrocytes and showed potent antioxidant effects .3
• Using fenugreek seeds alongside dietary approaches improves glycemic control and decreases insulin resistance in mild type-2 diabetic patients. There is also a favourable effect on hypertriglyceridemia.4
• Oxygen radical release from biopsies was reduced after incubation with. Slippery elm, fenugreek, devil's claw, tormentil and wei tong ning and the authors suggest that these merit formal evaluation as novel therapies in inflammatory bowel disease.5
• In 25 subjects, 18.0 g of the germinated Fenugreek seed powder resulted in a significant reduction in total cholesterol and LDL levels. No significant changes were found in HDL, VLDL and triglyceride levels. 6
• Fenugreek, given in a dose of 2.5 g twice daily for 3 months to coronary artery disease (CAD) patients also with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), decreased significantly the blood lipids (total cholesterol and triglycerides) without affecting the HDL.7
• The addition of powdered fenugreek seed (15 g) soaked in water significantly reduced the subsequent postprandial glucose levels.8
Anecdotally a herbalist recently reported a patient on fenugreek for low breast milk supply had gone from hypothyroid state to hyperthyroid state.
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References
1. Amin A, Alkaabi A, Al-Falasi S, Daoud SA.
Chemopreventive activities of Trigonella foenum graecum (Fenugreek) against breast cancer. Cell Biol Int. 2005 Aug;29(8):687-94.
2. Ruby BC, Gaskill SE, Slivka D, Harger SGThe addition of fenugreek extract (Trigonella foenum-graecum) to glucose feeding increases muscle glycogen resynthesis after exercise. Amino Acids. 2005 Feb;28(1):71-6. Epub 2004 Dec 2.
3. Kaviarasan S, Vijayalakshmi K, Anuradha CV. Polyphenol-rich extract of fenugreek seeds protect erythrocytes from oxidative damage. Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2004 Fall;59(4):143-7
4. Gupta A, Gupta R, Lal B.Effect of Trigonella foenum-graecum (fenugreek) seeds on glycaemic control and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a double blind placebo controlled study. J Assoc Physicians India. 2001 Nov;49:1057-61.
5. Langmead L, Dawson C, Hawkins C, Banna N, Loo S, Rampton DSAntioxidant effects of herbal therapies used by patients with inflammatory bowel disease: an in vitro study. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2002 Feb;16(2):197-205.
6. Sowmya P, Rajyalakshmi P Hypocholesterolemic effect of germinated fenugreek seeds in human subjects Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 1999;53(4):359-65.
7. Bordia A, Verma SK, Srivastava KC Effect of ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.) and fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum L.) on blood lipids, blood sugar and platelet aggregation in patients with coronary artery disease.Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids. 1997 May;56(5):379-84.
8. Madar Z, Abel R, Samish S, Arad J.Glucose-lowering effect of fenugreek in non-insulin dependent diabetics. Eur J Clin Nutr. 1988 Jan;42(1):51-4.
9. Frawley D., Lad V. The Yoga of Herbs. 2nd Ed. Lotus Press, 1988.
10. Burgess IM. Weeds Heal. A Working Herbal. Viriditas Publishing.NZ 1998
11. Chevallier A. Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley, 2001
12. Brinker F. Herb Contraindications and Drug Interactions.3rd Edition. Eclectic Medical Publications, USA, 2001.
13. Fisher C, Painter G. Materia Medica of Western Herbs for the Southern Hemisphere. C Fisher G Painter 1996.
14. Mills S, Bone K. The Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy. Churchill Livingston 2000.
15. Mills S., The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism. Lothian 1985
16. Skenderi Gazmend. Herbal Vade Mecum. Herbacy Press 2005.
Reflections
For baldness, as an aphrodisiac and ‘breast enhancer' are just some of the other claims. The latter does seem to have some anecdotal evidence for use and a century ago it was part of Lydia Pinkham's Vegetable Compound used for all ‘female troubles'. Interesting considering we now know of its oestrogenic action.
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