Most of us has probably heard about the hormone Insulin that maintains the blood sugar level in our body. But, Have you ever heard about Insulin Plant? If you haven’t, then – you are at right place my friend. Here, In this article – We will be learning everything about Insulin Plant, How to grow insulin Plant, how it cures diabetes and Manymore.

Introduction

Insulin also known by its other names, Spiral flag, Step ladder and Fairy costus is a tropical flowering, Perennial and Evergreen plant which is widely grown all over the world for ornamental and medicinal purpose. The plant is native to Brazil. From there, it is now spread and cultivated globally mainly in South East Asia. The scientific name of Insulin Plant is Costus Igneus and it belongs to the family, Costaceae.

This plant bears beautiful looking flowers in different colours, So – It is widely preferred to grow in garden, indoors and in hanging baskets. This plant has great horticultural importance.

If we talk about the morphology of Insulin Plant, It is herbaceous growing up to the height of 60 cm . The leaves are large, fleshy and dark green in colour with purple shades in lower side.The leaves arise spirally from the stem, So called as step ladder.

Insulin Plant produce different colours of flowers like Red, Orange (mainly), Yellow. The flower are cone-shaped arising from the tip of the branches. We have attached the images of different colours flower of this plant, You can look them and know them which can help you to different it from fake insulin Plant. The fruit of this plant are small and grain. It can be grown from both cutting and seeds. Sometimes, Birds eat the fruit and drop the seeds in wild. So – This plant is also found in wild. Different colours of Insulin flower are :-

 

Insulin Plant


Insulin Plant


Insulin Plant


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Botanical Classification

Kingdom: Plantae
Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Euphyllophytina
Infraphylum: Radiatopses
Class: Liliopsida
Subclass: Commelinidae
Superorder: Zingiberanae
Order: Zingiberales
Family: Costaceae
Subfamily: Asteroideae
Genus: Costus
Specific: Igneus

 

Growing Methods

We can grow insulin Plant both indoors and outdoors. The best season for the propagation of this plant is Spring. This plant can be grown easily by cutting. It doesn’t require much care and management, So – even a busy person can plant it and enjoy it’s priceless benefits. This plant has great value in ayurvedic medicine, So – It is grown widely. This plant bears rhizome (Underground Shoot). We can propagate this plant from the cutting of rhizome. Most common method of growing insulin Plant are:-division of the clumps, cuttings, or by separating the offsets or plantlets that form below the flower heads. But, Here, In this article, we will be learning Growing procedure from cutting of stem (rhizome) as explained below:-

➡️ First of all, You have to select the health rhizome and take out it from the soil. The rhizome looks like this👇

Insulin Plant Rhizome

Img   Source:- hoxem.com

➡️ Then, You should separate the clumps in single pieces with some stem above the ground as shown in image below 👇

Insulin Plant Rhizome

        Img Source:- IndiaMART.com

➡️ Now, As Insulin plant grows well in Pots. Take a pot and fill it with garden soil and compost.

➡️ Take single pieces of rhizome and plant them 1 inch below soil keeping the stem portion upward.

➡️ As this plant produces more flowers in summer, Fertilizer requirement is also high during that time, You can add fertilizer once a month.

➡️ This plant grows well in both sun and shade. It is advisable to keep this plant in direct sunlight for about (3-4) hrs regularly.

➡️ The soil should be fertile with good drainage. Regular irrigation is required.

➡️ Repotting of this plant should be done annually.

 

How To Grow Insulin Plant (Video)


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Can It Cures Diabetes?

This plant has got its name as Insulin. This has some meaning. As insulin hormone help us to maintain blood sugar level, consuming insulin plant also maintain blood sugar level and helps to fight against Diabetes Mellitus (Type – 2, Diabetes). Research and studies shows that, It helps to bring the abnormal blood sugar level to normal within a short period of one month. Due to this, There is saying for insulin Plant, “a leaf a day keeps diabetes away”.

How To Eat Insulin Plant For Diabetes?

The person with diabetes has to chew the leaves of insulin plant regularly for one month in order to get normal sugar level in blood. It is recommended to eat, two leaves both in morning and evening for about one week. After that, the number of leaves can be reduced to one i.e. – One leaf in morning and One in evening. We can also eat the powdered form of this plant which is also very effective.

How It Works?

The leaf of insulin Plant contains corosolic acid which helps to generate insulin and thereby maintaining the normal blood sugar level. Its leaves reach in protein, iron, anti-oxidants (B-carotene and a-tocopherol) helps to maintain normal sugar level and reduce diabetes problem. Moreover, It helps to strengthening the beta cells of pancreas and aids in curing diabetes.

It isn’t advisable to eat the leaves of this plant for pregnant and lactating women. Similarly, Person having different allergies and one who is taking medication aren’t recommended to eat the leaves of these plant. However – It is better to consult with your doctor before using it on your own.

Though Insulin Plant work as miracle when it comes to diabetes, It can be also be used to cure different other diseases such as:-

✓Obesity

✓Metabolic syndromo

✓Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)

✓Liver damage

✓Cancer

The nutritional values of Insulin Plant are listed below:-

Protein
Iron
B Carotene
Terpenoids
Flavonoids
Antioxidants
Ascorbic Acid
Corosolic Acid

Fake Insulin Plant

There are some plants mimicking the Insulin plant called Fake insulin Plant. Therefore, It is better to know the peculiar characteristic of Insulin plant to indentify it without any problem:-

✓ The leaves arise spirally from the stem

✓ The leaves are dark green with purple shades in lower surface.

✓ Insulin plant grows mostly in shade or partial sunlight area.

 

Health Benefits Of Insulin Plant

Apart from being very effective for diabetic patients, Insulin plant do have other health benefits. Some of them are listed below:-

✓ Insulin Plant aids in our digestion

✓Due to its sodium and water retention capacity, it works as diuretic agent protecting our kidney and bladder.

✓Insulin Plant has anti-oxidant and anti-microbial agent.

✓ It reduces heart problem and reduces cholesterol.

 

Final Verdict

Thus – We can say that, Mother nature has gifted us with this beautiful plant. So – It our duty to preserve and plant this type of plant in our home.

 

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2 Comments

  1. I reside in Delhi and I want to obtain the seeds or rhizomes of the insulin plant, Costus ignious. Please guide me if it’s available in Delhi and how and where to get it.
    Thanks
    Ashok Singh
    My email is [email protected]

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