The Health Benefits of Healthy Herbs and Spices
The Many Uses of our Fragrant Spices and Medicinal Herbs
Every culture on earth has relied upon the natural chemistry found in healing plants for their therapeutic properties. As far back as the earliest days of travel by sea, herbs and spices were among the most important trade items. They were in high demand, relatively light and were easy to transport.
In the Beginning
Traders were able to ask sky high prices for their herbs and spices because they were quite exotic and rare. The traders were secretive about where their spices were grown and even told Herodotus (a Greek historian) that cinnamon grew in the jungles along the Nile River and that it was guarded by large ferocious birds. In fact the cinnamon grew in Ceylon and was across the Indian Ocean on rafts to Madagascar and from there it was taken to the Red Sea.
Sugar and Spice
Pepper started out as a very expensive medicine, but by the time of the Roman Empire, it had become an essential cooking spice. The price remained high and pepper was commonly used as a form of currency. Cane sugar also started to become popular around this time, but like pepper, it was it was used medicinally for centuries before it was used as a food item.
Chocolate and Vanilla
Chocolate flavored with vanilla was the drink of the Aztec kings. The drink gained popularity in Spain and eventually in Europe. Carl Linnaeus, a famous botanist and physician loved the brew so much that he named it " Theobroma cacao" which means food of the gods. Coffee originally grew wild in Ethiopia but is now most extensively grown in South America.
Where They Came From
- Chocolate: Chocolate is made from the beans of the Cacao tree. It was originally grown in Central America.
- Pepper: Pepper was found originally on the south west coast of India. It is still grown there in Thailand and Indonesia.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon is the inner bark of the Cinnamomum zeylanicum tree and grows in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and India.
- Nutmeg and Mace: Nutmeg and mace grow on tall evergreen trees. They grown in the West Indies and Moluccas
- Coffee: Coffee was originally grown in Ethiopia but the Arabs were the first to drink it.
- Tea: Tea grew wild in China.
- Myrrh: Myrrh is the resin of a shrub and has grown in Somolia since biblical times.
- Vanilla: Vanilla is native to Central America.
Facts about Garlic
Garlic is perhaps the most widely used herbs today, but it is not just a flavorful herb. In 1858 Louis Pasture discovered that when bacterial cells were mixed with garlic oil, the cells died. Since then scientific testing has shown that not only is garlic a powerful anti-bacterial agent but that daily intake of garlic can help the body prevent minor infections and some cancers. Garlic can also reduce the risk of blood clots forming; preventing stroke or heart attack.
- Garlic helps to improve the immune system, allowing the body to conserve the antioxidants it needs to ward off germs and infection. This gives the body a better defense against the common cold
- Garlic acts much like Asprin because of its ability to thin the blood. Thinning the blood helps to prevent clotting, therefore reducing the risk of heart disease, hypertension and stroke. .
- Garlic lowers the levels of LDL (known as bad cholesterol) and raises the levels of HDL (known as good cholesterol) in our bodies.
Today a vast array of herbs and spices are widely available to consumers. Many common herbs are planted in home gardens or window boxes for everyday culinary use, whereas more exotic herbs used for medicinal may have to be purchased at a specialty shop.
Popular Herbs and Spices
The trouble that the herb traders went through so long ago was not in vain. The list of herbs and spices available today seems almost never ending, but these are among the many that have become most popular over the years.
- Allspice (whole or ground)
- Anise
- Basil leaves
- Bay leaves
- Caraway seeds
- Cardamom
- Cayenne
- Celery seed
- Chervil
- Cilantro
- Cinnamon
- Cloves (whole or ground)
- Coriander (whole or ground)
- Cumin
- Dill weed
- Dill seed
- Fennel (whole or ground)
- Mustard seed
- Mustard powder
- Nutmeg (whole or ground)
- Oregano
- Paprika
- Parsley
- Pepper( ground or whole)
- Poppy seeds
- Rosemary (ground or whole)
- Salt
- Savory
- Tarragon
- Thyme
- Turmeric
- Vanilla
Herbs and Spices
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