Vernonia amygdalina

Vernonia amygdalina, a member of the daisy family, is a small to medium-sized shrub that grows in tropical Africa. V. amygdalina typically grows to a height of 2–5 m (6.6–16.4 ft). The leaves are elliptical and up to 20 cm (7.9 in) long. Its bark is rough.^[1]

Vernonia amygdalina
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Asterales
Family:	Asteraceae
Genus:	Vernonia
Species:	V. amygdalina
Binomial name
Vernonia amygdalina Delile

V. amygdalina is commonly called bitter leaf in English because of its bitter taste.^[2][3][4]

Uses

Food

The leaves are a major ingredient in preparation of ofe onugbu (bitter leaf soup) popular and culturally relevant amongst the Igbo people of Eastern Nigeria. They are dried to reduce breakage before washing to reduce bitterness. In [Eastern Nigeria] Nigeria, the water also serves as medicine to reduce stomach ache, leaves are also used in place of hops to brew beer.^[5]

Other

In Nigeria, twigs and sticks from this plant are used as a chewing stick for dental hygiene and the stems are used for soap in Uganda. In Ghana, the young leaves rather than the old, has gained credence for its potent anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory activity; and have been proven using animal models.^[6][7]

In the Northern part of Nigeria, it has been added to horse feed to provide a strengthening or fattening tonic called ‘Chusar Doki’ in Hausa.^{[citation needed]}

Zoopharmacognosy

In the wild, chimpanzees have been observed to ingest the leaves when suffering from parasitic infections.^[8]