You Better Stop Drinking Garri too much from Today! Why?

I enjoy drinking garri a lot especially with very chilled water, groundnut, milk and a lot of sugar, I never knew a day like this will come when I will even be the one advising my friends to reduce their level of garri intake because of it’s health implications.

Well am sure am not the only one who loves garri because in Nigeria, one very staple food is garri. Made from cassava tubers, it has been nicknamed garry, African ican an cornflakes, garium sulphate, garrison and so many other funny names.

It is loved by all and sundry because it is cheap, affordable and consumed by the rich and poor alike. it may be consumed with milk, sugar, suya, groundnut, kulikuli, coconut, fried meat, fish either raw, cooked or fried, and the list is endless.

Some take it as a form of snack, others have it as real food. It may also be transformed and consumed as Eba, that is when it is prepared with hot water and eaten with soup.

Garri made from tubes and roots of the cassava plant contains proteins, fat, carbohydrates, iron, Vitamin B and C and also starch. The leaves contain calcium, iron, fats and protein too.

Garri is a carbohydrate based food consumed in many West African countries, Nigeria in particular. Processed from cassava, garri in its raw form is creamy-white or light-yellowish flour with a slightly fermented flavor.

The two main varieties of garri are white garri and yellow garri, essentially, both varieties of garri have the similar processing methods, the yellow color can be achieved simply by adding a few drops of palm-oil to the cassava flour during the frying or drying stage.

Read Also: Garri Processing and Reasons why Garri Business is a very Profitable Agribusiness to venture into

Garri can be eaten without further cooking, as a snack, by pouring it in a bowl adding water, sugar, groundnut and milk usually called garri soakings. For example, ijebu-garri is made with finer grains, and has a pleasantly sour taste, making it very suitable to be eaten in this way.

In most parts of West Africa, sugar or honey is then added as well as chunks of coconut, groundnuts, tiger nuts milk, and cashew nuts. In most garri recipes it is cooked by adding boiling water and stirring to make a stiff paste known as Eba.

Eba is normally eaten with different kinds of soups or stews. Most parts of Africa have an equivalent staple cassava dish. However, Garri has it own side effects to the body and below are some reasons you shouldn’t be drinking too much of garri;

Reasons why Should Stop Drinking Garri too much from Today

Garri has numerous benefits as it increases vitality in consumers. Taking too much garri can have some serious health implications, we would discuss a few of them below:

(1) Eye Defects

Garri is made from cassava which contains hydrocyanic acid. Cyanide in garri, in large quantity, can lead to serious eye defects. However, proper and thorough processing of the garri should reduce the concentration of the acid to a considerate level.

(2) It May Worsen Ulcer

Where in excess, another drastic effect of Cyanide which is an organic acid in nature is that it can lead to intestinal issues, and it can worsen the situation of an ulcer patient. If you’re an ulcer patient, you shouldn’t be consuming too much of garri cause it’s harmful to your health. Cyanide is also an organic acid in nature and where in excess, it can lead to intestinal issues, and can worsen the case of an ulcer patient.

(3) Causes Weight Gain

Cassava which is the root from which garri is produced is rich in carbohydrate. A cup of garri contains about 360 calories, out of which 99% is carbohydrate.

Hence, consuming too much of garri leads to excess storage of carbohydrate in the body and this can lead to unnecessary weight gain. So, you should know, garri isn’t good for weight loss.

Read Also: How to Start a Cassava Farming and Processing Business (Complete Guide)

(4) It Makes You Feel Weak

Garri is a staple food which almost all people drink on a daily basis. Garri can actually makes you feel weak after drinking it especially when you’re very hungry and you drink it in an empty stomach (when you’ve not eaten anything).

Although this won’t happen immediately after drinking but give it time, you’ll be weak after drinking garri without eating any other foods on it. This might lead to making you feeling sleepy and by that, it could ruin your day as you might not be able to do anything afterwards cause all you will want to do is sleep!!!

(5) It Dries Blood

This has not yet been proven scientifically though, but people always say drinking too much of garri actually dry blood. Especially when drinking it without adding milk.

With all these stated side effects, you may be wondering what to do. I know you love garri, I really do too. However, there is need to take caution so as to prevent any negative health implications.

As stated above, proper processing of the garri can dramatically reduce the level of cyanide. Hence, it is advisable that you purchase your garri from trusted sources and just as the popular saying goes, moderation is key. Moderate your overall consumption of garri.

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Do you have any questions, suggestions, or contributions? If so, please feel free to use the comment box below to share your thoughts. We also encourage you to kindly share this information with others who might benefit from it. Since we can’t reach everyone at once, we truly appreciate your help in spreading the word. Thank you so much for your support and for sharing!