What is Chaste Berry?
Chaste berry, also known as vitex agnus-castus, is from the plant genus vitex and the Verbenaceae plant family. According to research, the vitex genus alone has about 250 different species in the world, and of all the vitex plants, vitex agnus-castus(chaste berries) are the most common. This is because it has more health-benefiting properties compared to other species of vitex plants.
Chaste berries are known to be effective in the treatment of different ailments, including hormonal problems or imbalances. Some of the health benefits of this fruit include the reduction of libido in men who have an extremely high libido. It also helps manage menstrual and menopausal symptoms.
In addition, it solves some reproductive issues in women and boosts their fertility rate by a reasonable percentage, and ensures a healthy production of milk in breastfeeding mothers. Many kinds of research have proven the effectiveness of chaste berries, and these health benefits of chaste berries have scientific backings.
Facts About Chaste Berry
In ancient Turkish traditional medicine, chaste berries are part of the most important ingredients in treating anti-anxiety, digestive and anti-fungal problems. Today, chaste berries are consumed all over the world, both as tasty berries and as a perfect remedy for some health conditions. In addition to these, chase berries can also inhibit the growth of cancer cells and protect you against insect bites; this is good news for people who cannot stand insects.
Supplements can be made out of chaste berries, fruits, or seeds, and these supplements are available today in many stores and pharmacies.
Since chaste berries seem to affect positively the hormones that manage or regulate women’s reproductive system, it will not be bad if we re-christen it to be “lady-hormonal berries” or “berries for the ladies.”
There are some factors to take note of when consuming chaste berries, as consuming them while these factors exist can be extremely dangerous for your health. This is why it is important to understand the fruit, understand your body and decide if you should or should not eat them. The following are precautions that must be adhered to before taking chaste berries;
- Avoid chaste berries if you are pregnant. It can induce an abortion.
- If you are on any medications, speak with your doctor before taking chaste berries to avoid drug interactions.
- If you have hormone-sensitive health conditions, try to avoid chaste berries. Cancer is a hormone-sensitive health condition. So if you have cancer, avoid chaste berries.
- Breastfeeding mothers should not take these berries too. This can influence both the child and the mother negatively.
- If you must consume chaste berries and you are on any birth control pill, be cautious. Discuss it with your doctor first to know if you should or should not take it, based on the kind of birth control pill you use.
- Avoid chaste berries completely if you have any of the following health conditions;
- Parkinson disease
- Mental health conditions
- Restless leg syndrome
- Cancer
If you do not tumble into any of the categories listed above, chaste berries are safe and healthy enough for your consumption. But if you do fall into any of these categories, do not risk it. Avoid them as much as you can. For those who are not in the above-listed categories, let’s browse through the health benefits chaste berries can provide you with. Shall we?
Health Benefits of Chaste Berries
The health benefits of chaste berries cannot be overemphasized. These health benefits of chaste berries are backed by science. Thus, you should not have any mistrusts while using chaste berries for your health conditions.
Relieves Menstrual Symptoms
Menstrual symptoms cause severe discomfort, and this pushes many females into looking for remedies for the discomfort. Chaste berries are known to help relieve the following symptoms of menstruation; migraines, constipation, irritability, depression, breast tenderness, and pain.
It does this by reducing hormones prolactin and balancing the estrogen and progesterone hormones, thereby causing the effects of menstrual symptoms to reduce to the barest minimum. A survey carried out among women showed that those who consumed chaste berries for the relief of menstrual symptoms reported improvements in their menstrual symptoms.
Boosts Fertility
Chaste berries, according to research, can boost fertility in women. This is because it is crammed with vitamins that are known to be effective at improving fertility. Studies showed that 26% of women in their reproductive age who found it difficult to conceive became pregnant after three months of consuming chaste berries.
In other words, if you have fertility issues and you need a natural fertility boosting remedy, try chaste berries out, as research has shown that they are packed with essential nutrients that may not only balance your hormones but also prepare your body for pregnancy.
Treats Recurrent Breasts Pain
Breast pain or tenderness can be very uncomfortable, be it that it is caused by pregnancy or premenstrual factors. Knowing your way around how to manage the pain is a good first step to easing the pain. First things first, try out chaste berries. Whenever you feel uncomfortable in your breasts, get chaste berries and eat them. You can also get chaste berries supplements from pharmacies and stores for the same effect.
Follow the dosage on the label of the supplements for your breasts pain and tenderness. However, if the problem persists after taking chaste berries, or you notice that your breasts are changing in size or shape, with lumps and discharges present in and on the breasts, report immediately at the hospital for diagnosis, as it could be breast cancer.
May Help in the Prevention of Cancer
Cancer cells are made up of dead cells that become dangerous and accumulate in the body. These cells can begin from any point in the body and can then spread from their authentic location to other regions of the body. The best first attack for all kinds of cancer is prevention, and in cases where prevention is too late, earlier detection and treatment are the second and third best steps to take.
Although cancers caused by genetics may not be very easy to prevent, however, with the consumption of chaste berries, the growth of cancer cells becomes inhibited. Chaste berries are packed with properties that do not only inhibit the cancer cells but also stop them from spreading at a very high rate. However, if you already have cancer, do not consume chaste berries. You should only consume them if you want to prevent cancer.
Improves Cognition
One of the most common effects of menopausal symptoms is the rapid decline of memory. Chaste berries will do a great job in managing the cognitive decline associated with the premenopausal syndrome. In addition, if your memory decline is triggered by other health factors asides from menopause, you should also consider trying out chaste berries.
Asides from improving the cognitive decline in women in their premenopausal stage, chaste berries can also help balance out hormones that may trigger other premenopausal symptoms.
Repels Insects
Insect sprays that contain chaste berries extracts have been discovered to be effective at repelling insects faster and more effectively than insect sprays that do not contain chaste berry extracts. Insects like mosquitos, lice, flies, ticks, and bugs can be controlled with the use of chaste berry extracts.
Studies have shown that applying chaste berry extracts to the hair can kill lice and also prevent future lice infestation. Now that you know this, why not try it out and stick to one of the most natural and effective ways of eliminating insects?
Reduces Inflammation
Inflammation is one of the body’s ways of responding to infections and stress. When inflammation recurs, check with your doctor to know what the underlying cause may be. However, for mild cases of inflammation, try out chaste berries for a couple of days. If symptoms of inflammation persist, you should go to see a doctor for medical attention and advice.
Conclusion
Chaste berries are healthy berries that you can both snack on and make into oils and juices. They are packed with health-benefiting properties that can help improve the general body and maintain the organs in the body.
Some of the health benefits of chaste berries include; headache relief, elimination of inflammation, inhibiting cancer cells growth, improved cognition in older women, and balancing raging premenstrual and premenopausal syndrome hormones.
What is more? Chaste berries are tasty. They are also available as supplements, and these supplements are also as healthy as the natural chaste berries themselves are.