Spice Up Your Life - Healing Herbs & Spices

Spice Up your Life - Healing Herbs and Spices. When you spice things up, you not only add bold flavors, you also add a good dose of antioxidants, antifungals, anti inflammatory compounds, vitamins and cancer-fighting phytochemicals to your meals. Many spices in the rack, like cayenne, ginger, cumin and oregano are considered beneficial for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions. But for cancer, turmeric, the yellow spice used in Indian cooking, is a real show stopper as it contains circumin, which not only clears out carcinogens before they can wreak havoc with cell DNA but also shuts down an inflammatory protein that encourages tumor growth! This is not new information, but what is new and exciting is being able to purchase a multitude of nutrient rich, vitamin packed spices in one bottle.

What makes a spice blend nutrient and vitamin rich? Well let me tell you. Fresh ground spices and herbs are extremely nutrient rich, this is why at Love That Spice, we grind them fresh daily at our Highland Park store in small batches to ensure optimal vitamins and nutrients. You see, bold and flavorful spices are great culinary tools but equally as important are the long list of health benefits spices and herbs offer. We carry the same spices as many of the top spice companies, only difference is we grind daily with two things on our minds. Those two things are providing fresh ground aromatic, bold and delicious spice blends and in perfect harmony, exceptional health benefits in the form of nutrients and vitamins. Why can't you have both? Well now you can! Many consumers are understanding that the great "American Diet" of over-processed food that are stripped of many nutrients with added fillers and sugars and chemicals that we can't pronounce or even understand are filling our grocery store shelves and eventually our pantries. What we aim to do at Love That Spice is to equip the consumer with the knowledge of what they are putting in their bodies and ultimately giving to our children.

In this series, let me arm you with common knowledge of a few spices that will send your taste buds soaring and your tongues wagging and begin to open a dialogue of cooking with nutrient and vitamin rich herbs and spices and why you should demand that they be ground fresh. Visit us at www.lovethatspice.com and browse our selection of fresh ground spices or visit us at our retail store in Highland Park, IL and let us grind your spice blend right on the spot. Now that's fresh spices, that's Love That Spice! 

Healing Herbs and Spices

There’s absolutely no doubt that herbs and spices add distinctive delicious flavors to food. But little do most people know that the red, yellow, and brown powders they sprinkle on their food - not to mention the herbs they cook with - add significant health benefits. After all, herbs and spices come from plants, and many plants, as scientists are learning, contain a multitude of healing substances, often found in very high concentrations in the seeds, oils and other plant parts that make up herbs and spices. Dozens of herbs and spices contain useful plant compounds, but the following 10 I have highlighted are healing standouts that you should have in you spice cabinet. 

Cayenne

Contains capsaicin, which is the active ingredient in many prescriptions and over the counter creams, ointments and patches for arthritis and muscle pain. Over time, it short circuits pain by depleting nerve cells of a chemical called substance P which helps transmit pain signals along the nerve endings to the brain.

Cinnamon

One of the most powerful healing spices, cinnamon has become most famous for its ability to improve blood sugar control in people with diabetes. Some of its natural compounds improve insulin function, significantly lowering blood sugar with as little as ¼ to ½ teaspoons a day. Like many other spices, cinnamon has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties and is rich in antioxidants called polyphenols. Cinnamon also contains lots of fiber.

Cloves

Cloves contain the anti-inflammatory chemical called eugenol, which inhibits COX-2, a protein that spurs inflammation (the same protein that so-called COX-2 inhibitor drugs such as Celebrex quash). Cloves also rank high in antioxidants in one study. The combination of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties spells heaps of benefits, from boosting protection from heart disease to helping stave off cancer, as well as slowing the cartilage and bone damage caused by arthritis.

Coriander

Coriander seeds have been used for thousands of years as a digestive aid. The herb can be helpful for some people with irritable bowel syndrome, as it calms spasms that can lead to diarrhea. Preliminary test in animals supports traditional use for coriander as an anti anxiety herb. Acts as an antioxidant, though you get the most punch from the leaf, cilantro.

Garlic

The famous odor of garlic comes from allicin, the sulfur compound believed to be responsible for most of the herbs medicinal benefits. When eaten daily, garlic can help lower heart disease risk by as much as 76 percent. How? By moderately reducing cholesterol levels (between 5 to 10 percent in some studies), by thinning the blood and thereby staving off dangerous clots and by acting as an antioxidant. Garlic’s sulfur compounds seem to ward off cancer, especially stomach and colorectal. Strong antibacterial and antifungal.

Ginger

Used for centuries in Asia as a digestive aid, researchers today are more excited about ginger’s ability to combat inflammation. Several studies found that ginger (and turmeric) reduces pain and swelling in people with arthritis. It may work against migraines by blocking inflammatory substances called prostaglandins. Because it reduces inflammation, it may play a role in preventing and slowing the growth of cancer.

Mustard

Mustard comes from the seed of a plant in the cabbage family - a strong anticancer group of plants. Mustard seeds contain compounds that studies suggest may inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Mustard also packs enough heat to break up congestion. Like cayenne pepper, it has the ability to deplete nerve cells of substance P, a chemical that transmits pain signals to the brain when used externally.

Nutmeg

Like cloves, nutmeg contains eugenol, a compound that may benefit the heart. Medically nutmeg and mace have strong antibacterial properties. Myristicin, the active ingredient in nutmeg has halluctionary effects if too much is ingested. The same active ingredient has been shown to inhibit an enzyme that contributes to Alzheimer’s disease.

Sage

Known as a memory enhancer, sage in some studies, has been shown to protect the brain against certain processes that lead to Alzheimer’s disease. Like so many other herbs, sage has strong anti-inflammatory, antioxidant as well as anticancer properties.

Turmeric

The spice that gives Indian curry its color, is used in Indian medicine. Lately, turmeric has been getting massive attention as an anti-inflammatory and a strong cancer fighter. The chemical responsible for turmeric’s golden color, called circumin, is considered a top anticancer agent, helping to quell the inflammation that contributes to tumor growth. Lab studies show turmeric helps stop the growth and spread of cancer cells that do form. Studies have linked turmeric to reduced inflammation in a number of conditions, including, psoriasis. In animal studies, circumin decreased the formation of amyloid, the stuff that makes up the brain deposits characteristic in people with Alzheimer’s disease. 

Food for thought….

“Almost 80 percent of cardiovascular disease could be prevented by lifestyle changes, and amongst the most important of these are dietary changes.”

 - Guy Reed, MS, MD, Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta

Now that you are armed with a little spice knowledge, go out there and demand fresh spices after all you deserve it! Remember, the fresher the spice, the more abundant the nutrients, vitamins and most important, the unbelievable taste! .   

Information, statistics and research excerpt taken from Food Cures Magic Foods to Help You Live Longer, Fight Disease and Lose Weight.

 Next Topic - Tea, the magic drink.