Useful Benefits of Alfalfa in Medicines, Food Supplements and Fodder

Posted by emilioatterson30 on January 29th, 2015

Alfalfa possesses great medicinal value and has been in use for thousands of years both as a medicine as well as a food item. The most important and popular use of alfalfa is in the form of fodder for horses and other domesticated animals. It is also used as a dietary supplement in many parts of the world owning to its nutrient rich content.

Benefits of Alfalfa

The sprouts and the shoots of alfalfa are sold in the market as health food and are rich in many types of vitamins and minerals. There are also some amounts of trace elements present in them, plus the vitamin D2 is also found in it.

The other parts of this plant, which are the seeds, the stems, the flowers and the parts that grow above the ground are also useful. These are used as herbal extracts that prove to be effective in many types of conditions and ailments. The use of alfalfa is also found in Chinese medicine, which is renowned for using rare herbs for treating a wide variety of illnesses in humans.

By using the medicinal extracts of alfalfa, one can treat conditions related to the kidneys, the digestive system and the joints, both in humans as well as in animals. Even complex diseases such as arthritis can be treatment with the use of alfalfa extracts.

Plant Compounds Found in Alfalfa and Their Use

The extract from alfalfa also contains a chemical compound called phytoestrogens which are helpful for women as they are of similar nature to the hormone estrogen found in females. Then there are other compounds like saponins which are used for binding cholesterol to lessen its absorption in the digestive system of the body. This makes it a very useful substance for the treatment of people who suffer from high cholesterol.

Until now, there have been no side effects found to the use of alfalfa, which makes it a relatively safe food item for use by both humans and animals. But its intake should be controlled and not be excessive in any way or form, especially when it comes as a concentrated extract. Excessive intake of the concentrated extracts of alfalfa can lead to dehydration.

Alfalfa as Fodder for Animals   

Alfalfa is of great nutritional and medicinal value which is why it is used as an ingredient in many types of herbal medicines as well as food supplements manufactured by companies all around the world. It is also used as fodder for animals for the same reason. When fed to animals, it can improve their health and stamina and also improve the quality of the products derived from the animals, such as the milk obtained from cows.

 About the Author:

Emilio Atterson helping to improve pets health with raw food diets like Bermuda Hay, Alfalfa, Timothy Hay etc. In part time he is also like to write articles on pet health & their diets. For more details please visit http://www.robouzakher.com/