Fenugreek

(Trigonellaloenum-graecum L., Papilionaceae)

Also Called: Foenugreek.

Description: Annual plant up to 50cm (20in) high, generally glabrous, with strong odour.
Stems round, usually erect but often also procumbent, only occasionally branched.
Leaves petiolate with 3 oval or lanceolate leaflets.
Flowers solitary or in pairs in the axils of the leaves, corolla yellowish-white.
Fruit up to 10cm (4in) long, curved, with much elongated beak-like apex, containing 4-20 seeds.

Habitat and Cultivation: Ancient herb native to southern Europe and south-western Asia; found wild in the Mediterranean region.
It is cultivated in warm regions throughout the world. mostly in northern Africa and India from seed in rows 20cm (8in) apart.
The fruits are collected when ripe and the seeds separated by means of a flail.
The plant is grown as a good fertilizer crop.
Yield: 8-18kg (17-401b) per are (120 sq yd).
The seeds of British commerce are imported chiefly from India.

Constituents and Action: Mucilage, aromatic principles, abundant organically combined iron and phosphorous.
Internally the drug stimulates gastric secretion and aids digestion.

Medicinal Uses: Externally the seeds are emollient and accelerate the healing of suppurations and inflammations.
Approved in Germany by Commission E as an internal treatment for gastritis and loss of appetite, and for use externally as a poultice for inflammations.
Used traditionally to stimulate flow of breast milk, and in the treatment of non-insulin-dependent diabetes.
Shows promise in lowering cholesterol and blood sugar.
The supposed expectorant action is not confirmed.

Part used: Dried seeds.

Forms available: Capsules, tablets, seeds for cooking, powdered seeds for poultices.

Usage: Externally, cooked with water into a porridge and used as hot compresses on boils, abscesses, etc. in a similar manner to the usage of linseed.
Internally, for human use as a stimulant (a teaspoonful of powdered seeds 3 times daily in a little jam).
Much used in veterinary medicine in tonic powders and to fatten cattle.

Caution: May interfere with certain drugs for diabetes.
Therapeutic dosages of fenugreek should be avoided if you're pregnant, although use in cooking is all right.
In clinical trials some patients have reported intestinal wind and diarrhoea.
As they are high in mucilage, the seeds may coat the stomach and in this way block the absorption of other drugs.