Does ofor have side effect? This is one question that people have ‘queried’ on Google. We will do our best to identify one unique side-effect of taking this seed in this article.
Ofor, with botanical name, Mucuna urens, is a species of large liana from the family Fabaceae (1).
Though used as a soup thickener in Nigeria, the plant is native to tropical Central and South America.
It is also in Nigeria and the Republic of the Congo and its other common names are horse-eye bean and ox-eye bean.
Benefits Of Ofor
Also, it is incorporated into normal feed for farm animals in the North due to
its high protein content (2).
There is an increase in the amount of misinformation coming from this plant, solely because people often refer to this plant as detarium microcarpum, which it is not.
Unfortunately, this has come with issues of kidney problem coming from ofor. Well, there is no research that explicitly says ofor can damage kidney.
But there are other issues that have been identified that excessive consumption of ofor could cause.
Before we identify the side effect of ofor, we will give you a few amazing benefits of this plant.
Ofor contains alkaloids, cardiac glycosides, tannins and saponins. It is reported to contain glutamic acid, aspartic acid and leucine as the major amino acids.
Also, there is a high concentration of tannins, phytic acid, cyanogenic glycoside, oxalate and gossypol.
These compounds make the seed nutritious, offering different benefits, including digestive health, cancer risk reduction (Phytic Acid), protection against oxidative damage and insulin resistance. This means taking it in moderate quantity offers you benefit.
These compounds also act as its nonnutritive value. Studies on the nutrient composition showed that the bean is a good source of protein (3).
Also, ofor is amazing for people who have Parkinson disease (4).
Side Effects Of Ofor
However, it contains toxic compounds including L-DOPA, nicotine, physostigmine and serotonin.
Furthermore, the gossypol in ofor brings a side effect that you should know. Note, however, that this side effect of ofor is dose dependent.
One major side effect of ofor is an important knowledge for women and the male folks most especially.
On one hand, ladies need to know this because they are the ones who use this seed in preparing soup.
Several studies have identified this side effect of ofor.
They all say ofor reduces a man’s fertility.
According to a study, there was a dose dependent decrease in mount frequency and intromission latency (5). In fact, the study says that as dose is increased, the ability for the penis to become strong again takes longer.
Furthermore, the study says there was a distortion in sperm morphology, resulting in sperms with curved and bent necks and sperms with a slender body.
The observed effects may in part be due to the presence of the different phytochemical constituents in the seed (6).
Weak Erection As Side Effect Of Ofor
Additionally, a study evaluated a long-aged claim that these seeds weaken penile erection, reduce sexual performance and cause infertility in man.
This study found that the methanol extract of Mucuna urens (ofor) caused sperm abnormalities such as unusual head with large acrosome, looped tail piece, mid-piece with distal droplet, pinhead, pyriform head and long hook (7).
According to the study, the extract recorded low sperm count, decreased sperm motility and abnormal sperm morphology.
The study says tannins, saponins, flavonoids, cardiac glycosides and alkaloids are in the seed.
Most importantly, some alkaloids such as cathinone are found to be responsible for reproductive toxicity, sexual dysfunction, decrease in plasma Testosterone levels, decrease in sperm count, decrease in sperm motility and decrease in the number of abnormal sperm cells.
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Previous studies had reported that cardiac glycosides such as digoxin lowered the levels of testosterone, luteinising hormones and sexual activity.
Furthermore, gossypol which is in ofor is said to interfere with sperm development and function. In the cotton plant, it acts as a natural defensive chemical that can lead to infertility in insects (8).
Bottom Line And How To Use Ofor
Since there is dose dependent effect, it is advisable to use other thickeners for your soup or use ofor in very low quantity.
This will help reduce the side-effect and always remember that a man needs to stay fertile for the advancement of the earth.