Researchers at the National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR-NIIST) have established that the Banana Flower /Vazhakoombu can be a potent weapon against lifestyle diseases, particularly diabetes and colorectal cancer.It is a rich source of biologically active compounds possessing significant anti-diabetic and anticancer potential.It contains a wealth of bioactive antioxidant phytochemicals as well as prebiotic dietary fibre. The research was funded by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and Indian Council of Medical Research and the findings have been published in the Journal of Functional Food, Food & Function, Journal of Food Biochemistry and PLOS One.