Momordica charantia L.

Cucumis argyi H.Lév; C. intermedius M.Roem.

Cucurbitaceae

Balsam pear; bitter melon; cerassie; karela; leprosy gourd; and numerous others

Momordicae fructus

Fruit, less commonly, leaf

More than 200 compounds have been isolated from the fruit, seeds, leaves and roots (Pawar et al. 2013). The hypoglycaemic constituents are the proteins, the momorcharins (e.g. α- and β-momocharin) and the momordins (Choudhary et al. 2012). The triterpene glycosides (the cucurbitanes and cucurbitacins), such as the momordicosides, the goyaglycosides and charantin are found throughout the plant, including the fruit (e.g. Harinantenaina et al. 2006; Nguyen et al. 2010), sterols, saponins, other triterpenes and a range of phenolics including gallic acid, chlorogenic acid, catechin and epicatechin are also known (Chen et al. 2005; WHO 2009).

A 2012 Cochrane review concluded that there was no statistically significant difference in glycaemic control with M. charantia preparations compared to placebo. This review, however, found only four clinical studies suitable for inclusion, and which were not considered to be of high quality. Overall, the data are inconclusive, but given the wide usage and abundant anecdotal evidence of hypoglycaemic effects, there clearly is a potential to use M. charantia preparations as a dietary food for special medical purposes (Chaturvedi 2012; Krawinkel and Keding 2006).

M. charantia