The Heart Health Benefits of Amla (Indian Gooseberry)

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Amla, also known as Indian gooseberry or by its scientific names (Emblica Officinalis and Phyllanthus Emblica), is a plant-based medicine and superfood native to India and southeast Asia. 

Despite the fact that amla has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries, the global research community has only recently begun to truly delve into the evidence behind this ancient cure-all remedy. And the results have been pretty astounding. 

As it turns out, indian gooseberries actually lives up to its reputation, and may be the most powerful medicinal plant ever discovered. 

Apart from its incredible nutritional value (with more vitamin C than citrus and more antioxidant properties than any other plant on the planet), scientists have discovered a vast array of medicinal benefits, ranging from lowering high cholesterol and blood glucose to assisting weight-loss and boosting your immune system. 

In this article, we’ll explore amla’s effects on your cholesterol in two scenarios — general hyperlipidemia and diabetic dyslipidemia — and show how adding amla to your diet can be an excellent, plant-based alternative to artificial medications. 

What Is Hyperlipidemia? 

Hyperlipidemia is the scientific term for the condition more colloquially known as “high cholesterol.”

More specifically, hyperlipidemia is actually the presence of elevated ‘bad’ cholesterol levels, which includes LDL, low density lipoprotein, cholesterol and triglycerides. It doesn’t measure your total cholesterol level, or the presence of HDL cholesterol (which is often called ‘good’ cholesterol). 

This ‘bad’ cholesterol can lead to arterial plaque in blood vessels, which left untreated can dramatically impair blood flow to all tissues. 

Over time, this buildup can lead to coronary artery disease, heart attacks, and stroke, which is why hyperlipidemia is important to identify and reverse quickly. 

The tricky part of identifying and preventing hyperlipidemia is that high cholesterol by itself doesn’t have many symptoms, and only shows up on a lipid profile. That’s one of the reasons why it’s important to stay on top of semi-regular checkups.

Can Alma Reduce High Cholesterol?

The short answer? All studies so far point to yes, amla for cholesterol reduction is a great option, but additional research may be needed to strengthen these findings. 

In one of the first clinical studies of its kind, amla powder had comparable effects to cholesterol lowering statin drugs, and the reductase inhibitor simvastatin, a leading drug, with subjects experiencing a significant reduction of cholesterol. 

Another small study that focused on arterial stiffness showed similar positive results with amla extract, including a drop in blood pressure characteristic to lowered cholesterol. 

Still another study explored the effect of amla fruit extract specifically on smokers, measuring a wide variety of cardiovascular and respiratory factors. Participants in this study showed significant, consistent benefits, especially in their ratios of ‘good’ cholesterol to ‘bad’ cholesterol.

Other research in both rabbit studies and rat studies have shown a very similar cholesterol-lowering effect, all of which speaks to amla’s potential as a plant-based medicine for lowering cholesterol. 

As we mentioned above, this body of research is small but promising, and we look forward to more studies to further our understanding of exactly how amla lowers cholesterol.

What Is Dyslipidemia?

Dyslipidemia is a larger term that encompasses both abnormally high and low levels of cholesterol on your lipid profile (blood work). When referenced in terms of diabetes, dyslipidemia speaks to a larger imbalance in the body’s ability to regulate lipids and cholesterol. 

Diabetic dyslipidemia is most often characterized by elevated fasting and post-meal triglycerides, low HDL-cholesterol, elevated LDL-cholesterol, and a high ratio of free, LDL particles.

In any situation, elevated LDL cholesterol (also known as low-density lipoprotein) is on the main frequently implicated risk factors of cardiovascular disease. 

Coupled with low HDL cholesterol (also known as high-density lipoprotein), and the high blood glucose levels that often occur with diabetes, diabetic dyslipidemia represents “the major link between diabetes and cardiovascular risk.”

The Effects of Amla on Dyslipidemia

For people living with diabetes, the effects of amla on dyslipidemia have potential to be even more significant than to those just dealing with hyperlipidemia. 

This is thanks to amla’s natural blood-glucose lowering effect, which works alongside its cholesterol-lowering effect to improve multiple areas of your cardiovascular health. 

And the results have been strong. In a randomized, double-blind, multicenter control trial of patients with dyslipidemia, Emblica officinalis extract had an effect on total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol, a rare combination for a single medicine. 

In the same clinical trial, amla extract was also found to have no effect on CoQ10, an enzyme that helps prevent heart disease. In contrast, most common statin medications did lower CoQ10, meaning that amla had similar positive results with less side effects. 

Other studies of patients with type 2 diabetes have produced similar data, reinforcing amla’s impressive ability to lower cholesterol and blood glucose in patients with diabetes. 

In addition, amla extract and amla fruit have even been shown to lower oxidative stress, another risk factor for heart disease, thanks to its exceptionally high antioxidant value. Another area which show’s amla’s promise as an all-factor medicine for heart disease. 

These studies continue to support amla’s potential as a plant-based, natural medicine to combat heart disease, and it looks like a better question isn’t “does amla lower cholesterol”, but rather, “how comprehensively does amla benefit cardiovascular health?”

Allergic reactions to amla are rare, and there are currently no known clinical side effects associated with amla. However, there are two things to be aware when adding amla to your diet: 

First, as we mentioned above amla can lower your blood pressure and help reduce inflammation. However, this may increase the risk for bleeding or bruising if you have any bleeding disorders, or during surgery. 

If you’re planning a surgery, discuss any new medicine or supplement with your doctor, including amla. 

Second, amla lowers your blood glucose when taken consistently, which is a reason for its strong antidiabetic properties. However, this also means that taking amla when you already have low blood glucose may increase your risk of hypoglycemia. 

Fortunately, if needed you can simply stop taking amla, and your blood glucose will likely rebound relatively quickly. If you’re living with diabetes and looking for recipes, head to this article for three simple recipes that you can make for yourself or bring to a party.

Amla’s promise as a plant-based medicine begs the question: why hasn’t amla powder caught on more widely? 

Well, two reasons. The first is that it’s difficult to source organic, high-quality amla berries, even in India and southeast Asia. Second, despite the fact that there are many ways to add amla to your diet, amla powder has a bitter and sour taste that can be off putting.

We’ve solved both issues with Amla Green. We work with trusted farms to source organic, wild-grown amla, which we use to formulate a 20x concentrated powder mixed with green tea or hibiscus tea. 

The result is a powerful, tasty powder with all the benefits of amla.

We’re thrilled to be able to share Amla Green around the world, so we’re offering a risk-free trial for your first batch. Try it, and if you don’t like it, we offer a money-back guarantee.