The sunflower plant has different parts including stem, leaves, and seeds, among other parts, which all have many uses and health benefits. In Rwanda, this plant is majorly cultivated in Bugesera District. Sunflower leaves can be used as greens in a salad, boiled and added in teas or even baked depending on what one prefers. The leaves are also used as a herbal supplement. Joseph Uwiragiye, the head of the Nutrition Department at University Teaching Hospital of Kigali (CHUK), says sunflower leaves have been used for lung ailments and malaria, especially when used in tea. He says that sunflower leaf tea reduces high fevers and has astringent properties. From studies, Uwiragiye says, sunflower leaves have therapeutic properties for curing malarial fever as well as treating arthritis. Normally, arthritis is a disease that affects mostly older people. The joints of the hand, feet, elbow, and ankle joints swell and become stiff. “Using sunflower leaves has been proven to help prevent and cure any issue related to arthritis. This can be done by applying the sunflower leaves directly to the joints, which reduce swelling and curb pain,” he says. Uwiragiye says to prevent the onset of this disease, it’s advised to drink boiled water from the leaves, believed to inhibit and kill the bacteria that has entered into the blood circulation. Studies indicate that sunflower leaves can prevent and at the same time treat gastroenteritis and gastrointestinal tract, pulmonary pneumonia, and respiratory tract. It also indicated that a sudden burst of diarrhoea accompanied by vomiting or sometimes without, especially in young children, may be a result of gastroenteritis infection. Gastroenteritis is caused by a range of pathogens, bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. Sunflower leaves have been established to be good relief for gastroenteritis, whereby the leaves are boiled in water and the resultant tea drank, giving almost immediate relief. It also acts as a natural painkiller and relieves the symptoms of menstrual pain, breast pain, joint pain, head and other body parts that are often inflamed. Rene Tabaro, a nutritionist at King Faisal Hospital, says sunflower leaves can also be used to treat ulcers and wounds. He says this can be achieved by simply pounding the leaves until smooth and then pasting on the wound ulcer after it has been cleaned. In addition to this, he says, sunflower leaves can also be used in treating swelling. Medicinal properties in sunflower leaves can as well help heal pulmonary infections like whooping cough and common colds.
