Hadjod

Hadjod or Cissus quadrangularis, also known as veldt grape, adamant creeper, or devil’s backbone, is a plant that belongs to the grape family. Native to certain parts of Asia, Africa, and the Arabian Peninsula, Cissus quadrangularis has long been used as a natural remedy to treat a wide variety of ailments. Since ancient times, people have used it to help treat pain, regulate menstruation, and repair bone fractures. The healing properties of this plant are attributed to its high contents of vitamin C and antioxidant compounds like carotenoids, tannins, and phenols. Today, extracts produced from its leaf, root, and stem are widely available as herbal supplements. They can be found in powder, capsule, or syrup form Historically, it has been used to treat many conditions, including hemorrhoids, gout, asthma, and allergies. However, recent research has found that this power-packed plant may also help promote bone health, relieve joint pain, and protect against chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Hadjod is blessed with countless useful constituents but is especially renowned for its vast reserves of calcium and magnesium, apart from anabolic steroids, resveratrol and flavonoids. These work in synergy, to promote rapid healing of fractures and provide relief from pain in joint disorders, thus justifying its classical Sanskrit name “Asthisamharaka”, which literally translates to “bone setter” or “that which protects the bone from destruction”. Furthermore, hadjod is infused with many other beneficial bioactive constituents namely tannins, triterpenoids, alkaloids, carotenoids, as well as essential vitamins and minerals like vitamin C, vitamin E, iron, zinc and sodium, all of which offer advantageous antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Hadjod displays an intrinsically Katu (Pungent) and Madhura (Sweet) rasa (taste), which eventually becomes a Katu vipaka (pungent flavour after digestion or end taste). It equalizes and balances the Vata (air and ether) and Kapha (water and earth) doshas (energies or life forces), as well as effectively flushes out the AMA toxins (toxins that are present within the system and which often lead to incomplete digestion of food). In addition, hadjod holds an inherent Ushna virya (Heating potency) and exhibits typical Laghu (Light), Ruksha (Dry) and Sara (Unstable) gunas (qualities or actions).