Traditional Healing: Food Plants to Improve Sex Life

...  avocado, ampalaya, banana, cashew, nangka, okra, onion,  garlic, carrots, durian, cashew, etc. can be easily grown on the backyard.

Dell H Grecia
Women's Journal
Since the passage of Republic Act No. 8423, known as the Alternative Medicine Law, the effectiveness of herbal medicines has already been accepted by many. There are now herbal pills manufactured from lagundi, sambong, ampalaya, etc. which can be produced from big drugstores.

Aphrodisiac is derived from the Greek word aprodisiakos (aphrodisiacs), after Aphrodite, who inspired both men and women with great passion. She was regarded as the ideal of woman beauty and is represented in great works of art.”

1. Herbs such as avocado, ampalaya, garlic, carrots, durian, cashew, kawayan-tinik (spiny bamboo), etc. can be easily grown in the backyard.

2. Avocado is popular as a dessert. Its pulp or flesh has aphrodisiac properties. Avocado fruits resemble the shape of a man’s testicles. Some of its phytochemicals are ascorbic acid, beta carotene, calcium, iron, fiber, fat, lecithin, phosphorus, protein, potassium, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and vitamin D.

3. Banana comes in varieties as lakatan, latundan, saba or señorita. Its fruits are an aphrodisiac. It is eaten raw as a dessert. The variety saba is made into banana chips and, sometimes, flour. The lakatan is usually processed into banana cake. Countryside folks usually cook the saba variety (either ripe or unripe) as their breakfast or merienda. It is rich in ash, calcium, crude fiber, glucose, iron, moisture, phophorus, potassium, starch, and vitamin A, B and C.

4. The leaves of carrots in the form of a decoction are used in India as a stimulant. Its aromatic seeds, also in decoction, are an aphrodisiac. It is a refrigerant and an antiseptic and blood cleanser, capable of dissolving kidney stones and curing jaundice or yellowing of the skin as well. Carrots possess numerous phytochemicals. Some of these includes ascorbic acid, ash, carotene, camphor, bromine, boron, carbohydrates, chlorophyll, fiber galactose, and several betas and gammas.

5. Ampalaya is bitter gourd or bitter melon in English. Its leaves, flowers and fruits are used as an ingredient in aphrodisiac preparations. Man greatly benefits from these preparations. A one-half-cup leaf decoction, preferably with honey, is suggested once or twice daily. Its other properties are anti-diabetic, anti-tumor, astringent, anti-leukemia, antibiotic, laxative, and purgative. In China, Ghana and Mexico, bitter gourd is considered an aphrodisiac.

6. The shoots of spiny bamboo, locally called kawayan-tinik, are made into popular lumpiang sariwa, pickles or achara, or used as an ingredient for dinengdeng. Harvested ten days after emergence, the shoots contain protein, fat, ash, carbohydrates, crude fiber, calcium, phosphorus, iron, thiamine and ascorbic acid. It is used as anti-asthma and anti spasmodic agents, and as stimulant, astringent, tonic and cooling brews. Reproduction is mainly by tillers or shoots- and cuttings, too.

7. The rhizomes of ginger or luya in Filipino are boiled into a hot beverage called salabat. Powdered rhizome makes an instant salabat. Sliced fresh ginger root is added to stews, sauces, and other Oriental dishes. When ground, it is used in making gingerbread, cakes, biscuits, others. It is also used in wine, liqueurs, and cordials. In Asian medicine, it is a digestive aid, stimulant and diuretic. It is also recommended for rheumatism, asthma, colds and cough, diarrhea, colic or sharp, sudden abdominal pain and indigestion.

8. Okra is called lady’s finger in English. Both young tender fruits and seeds are mucilaginous or watery-sticky substances. They are used to thicken soups, stews, and sauces. Seeds may be used as coffee substitute. It is the mucilage that has an aphrodisiac effect. It is a stimulant, tonic, diuretic, carminative, and anti- spasmodiac. Okra contains ash, calcium, fat, linoleic acid, magnesium oxide, mucilage, nitrogen, pectin, starch, vitamin C, and, of course, water. It is propagated by seeds and is recommended in the backyard for it fruits prolifically.

9. Onion, commonly called sibuyas bombay, is used as an article of food and condiments. Its juice, when mixed with honey, ginger juice and ghee, is an aphrodisiac. Its other properties are as stimulant, diuretic, colic, anti-dysentery, spleenic, anticholesterollemic and antimicrobial. It cures sore throat, jaundice (yellowing of the skin), boils, anthrax and hemorrhage. Onions have carbohydrates, essential oil, fructans, inulin, protein, vitamin C, and others. Seeds are used for reproduction.

10. Garlic or bawang, as it is locally called, is a flavoring agent rather than a veggie. I use fresh garlic cloves to maintain my good blood pressure. Others buy garlic capsules for the same purpose.The pungent-smelling volatile oil cleanses the blood, tones the organs generally, and builds up stamina and strength, doubtlessly contributing to its aphrodisiac property. Among the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Japanese, Swedish, and Germans, garlic is widespread among them as an aphrodisiac.

Other Herbs for Sexual Vitality: anis, balanoi, balete, batau, bunga, clove, cocoa, dilau, durian, hasmin, ikmo, kapok, cashew, kintsay, langka, linga, makahiya, paminta, pandan mabango, pitogo, sabila, saffron, sarsa, parillang-Chine, takip kuhol, talong-puti, and watercress.

Reference: Philippine Herbs that Increase Sexual Vitality, Ontengco D DC, Del Rosario RM and AV Rotor