OKRA Health Benefits

Posted by Nurse Mary on 13th Aug 2024

We love to fry fresh okra when it is in season, as well as use it as a frozen vegetable in the winter. Okra is very nutritious, good for the digestive tract, and high in fiber. It actually has almost no flavor, and you can add them to a smoothie for extra fiber and nutrients.

Today we decided to fry some okra and share that experience with you.

See the Short Video on: Cooking OKRA

I like to put just a few pieces of frozen Okra in smoothies and detox drinks.

I stumbled across this article and thought I’d share with you some of the benefits of okra that they talked about.

The Benefits of Okra

Okra is a great source of fiber, helps the gut, and can be used raw (or frozen) in smoothies. It is also great cooked. We like it fried with onion in a natural cooking oil like coconut oil.

Okra is Good for the Gut

The slippery substance of Okra actually helps to coat the lining of the gut
It has a non-fermentable fiber so that it does not irritate the gut or cause gas or bloating

Okra is Rich in Nutrients

It is high in Vitamin A
Contains Calcium – the type that is absorbable by our body
It is a source of Iron – so it is great for people who are on a mostly plant-based diet because there aren’t many vegetable sources of Iron

Okra is Good for the Immune System

Okra has a nice dose of vitamin C as well as antioxidants
It can help the body to scavenge and remove free radicals that cause damage and chronic inflammation

Protecting your Gut and Preventing Leaky Gut

As I was doing research for this article, it made me think about other herbs that also help protect the lining of the gut. So you might ask, why is it so important to protect the lining of the gut? Well, what we are finding is that the gut protects us from a lot of toxins we put in our bodies from processed foods etc... Not only that, if your gut lining gets "holes" in it, you are more likely to develop food sensitivities. Some of us get to the point of having to be super careful about what foods we can eat and what we have to avoid. For some, that might look like Gluten Sensitivity, for others, a Dairy Sensitivity, maybe an egg allergy or painful joints from tomatoes and peppers. The list goes on and on, and the evidence shows we need to eat more things that protect our gut and rebuild our gut lining.

So here is a list of things that help to "PROTECT" the gut:

The other side of this, is what can we do to re-build the gut lining? Here is a short list of things to "REBUILD" the gut lining.