Research is lending even more reason to amp up spice use on a daily basis, with spices such as turmeric, cinnamon, and cloves normalizing insulin and triglyceride levels while boosting antioxidant defenses. Keeping triglyceride and insulin levels low effectively reduces your risk for numerous health conditions like metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and the number one leading killer — heart disease.

Turmeric Shown to Cut Heart Disease, Diabetes Risk

Study conductor Shelia West found that the levels of triglycerides, a type of fat, decreased by approximately a third in a meal prepared with spices. The decrease even occurred when oily sauces high in fat were present. The research, published in the journal Nutrition, shows how extremely simple dietary changes can have such a positive influence on health.

“Normally, when you eat a high-fat meal, you end up with high levels of triglycerides, a type of fat, in your blood…If this happens too frequently, or if triglyceride levels are raised too much, your risk of heart disease is increased. We found that adding spices to a high-fat meal reduced triglyceride response by about 30 per cent, compared to a similar meal with no spices added,” West says.

Although many spices have been shown to boost health, turmeric is especially gaining massive recognition for its incredible ability to fend off illness and disease. Shown to positively impact over 560 diseases, with the new study showing diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and heart disease to be among them, turmeric is rising to the top of the health spectrum. A main component in turmeric, known as curcumin, has even been shown to block cancer growth by inhibiting a cancer-promoting enzyme.

“To me, the biggest advantage [found in the study] is the lowering of triglycerides and the insulin levels [which dropped about 20 percent],” says cardiologist Ravi Dave of the University of California, Los Angeles who has reviewed West’s spice research.

Recognizing the health benefits of turmeric, other spices, and healthy foods in general is a necessary step to overcoming the ‘need’ for harmful pharmaceuticals. Instead of living a lifestyle that breeds health complications, preventing illness and disease should be sought after first and foremost. Being aware of the health-promoting foods which can be found with ease every single day will enable you to prevent illness, rather than turning to side-effect riddled pharmaceuticals designed to keep you sick.

The benefits of turmeric are just hitting the mainstream light, and its inexpensive nature makes it very simple to acquire virtually worldwide.

Dr. Mercola
Mercola
June 22, 2011

Irradiated herbs, seasonings and spices are exposed to HALF A BILLION chest X-ray’s worth of gamma radiation. This information is clearly publicized by the USDA and FDA.

The FDA presently supports the use of Cobalt-60 culled from nuclear reactors on all domestically produced conventional food.  The level of gamma-radiation used starts at 1 KiloGray — equivalent to 16,700,000 chest x-rays — and goes all the way up to 30KiloGray (500,000,000 chest x-rays or 10,000 times a human lethal dose).

According to Green Med Info:

“Despite the irresponsible promotion of this process as safe, food irradiation destroys much of the vitamin content of food, produces a number of toxic byproducts: formaldehyde, benzene, and formic acid, as well as unique radiolytic products, e.g. 2-alklycyclobutanoes, that have been demonstrated to be cytotoxic (damages cells), genotoxic (damages DNA), and carcinogenic (causes cancer) in test tube and animal studies.”

Sources:

Green Med Info

Green Med Info

Not only do herbs and spices provide flavor for very few calories, but they also have some amazing, disease-fighting antioxidants in them! Be sure to fill up your spice rack, cabinet or drawer with the list provided below; this way, you’ll always be ready to spice up your recipes and rack up the health benefits!

Cinnamon

Health Benefit: Can potentially lower blood sugar, triglycerides, LDL and total cholesterol in people with Type 2 diabetes. Aim for a quarter to half a teaspoon of cinnamon twice a day.

Get Cooking: Dip berries or bananas in low-fat sour cream, then in a mix of 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1/4 cup brown sugar.

Ginger

Health Benefit: Ginger can decrease motion sickness and nausea; may also relieve pain and swelling associated with arthritis. Doses used in clinical trials range from 500 to 2,000 mg of powdered ginger. (A quarter-sized piece of fresh root contains about 1,000 mg.) More than 6,000 mg can cause stomach irritation. Ginger can also hinder blood clotting, so if you’re about to have surgery or are taking blood thinners or aspirin, be sure to talk to your doctor first.

Get Cooking: Add 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger to vegetables like carrots and sweet potatoes, as well as fresh fruit (especially peaches).

Turmeric

Health Benefit: Contains curcumin, which some data shows may possibly inhibit the growth of cancer cells.

Get Cooking: For an Indian flavor, add 1/4 teaspoon turmeric to water when cooking 1 cup rice.

Paprika

Health Benefit: Contains capsaicin, which has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects that may lower the risk of cancer (also found in cayenne and red chili peppers). There’s no specific recommended dose, but moderation is probably the best way to go.

Get Cooking: Combine 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika, 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme and 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper to liven up popcorn.

Garlic

Health Benefit: Studies suggest that one or two cloves weekly may possibly provide cancer-protective benefits.

Get Cooking: Saute fresh garlic over low heat and mix with pasta, red pepper flakes and Parmesan cheese.

Rosemary

Health Benefit: Can potentially stop gene mutations that could lead to cancer and may help prevent damage to the blood vessels that raise heart attack risk.

Get Cooking: For a delicious chicken rub, combine 2 teaspoons of rosemary leaves with 2 teaspoons seasoning salt and 1/2 teaspoon of thyme leaves.

Oregano

Health Benefit: A USDA study found that, gram for gram, oregano has the highest antioxidant activity of 27 fresh culinary herbs.

Get Cooking: To spice up tomato soup, add 3/4 teaspoon oregano to one can; add 1/2 teaspoon to 2 cups pasta or pizza sauce. Substitute 1 teaspoon dried oregano for 2 teaspoons fresh.

Basil

Health Benefit: Flavonoids in basil may protect your cells and chromosomes from radiation and other damage. Basil also has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties — plus it packs in heart-healthy beta-carotene and is an excellent source of vitamin K.

Get Cooking: Ground with garlic and olive oil into a paste, basil is a prime ingredient in pistou, a Mediterranian specialty. In Italy, pine nuts and sometimes grated hard cheese are added to the paste to become pesto. Pesto is most often served with pasta.

Cilantro

Health Benefits: May help to control blood sugar and cholesterol; it also contains phytonutrients, fiber, manganese, iron and magnesium. Some research indicates it may help to fight salmonella bacteria, as well.

Get Cooking: Add cilantro to homemade salsa, guacamole or salads. Use a bit of fresh cilantro mixed with the traditional lettuce and tomato salad for a nice twist.

Chilli Pepper

Health Benefits: Chili pepper can fight inflammation, provide natural pain relief and it’s currently being studied as a natural aid for arthritis patients. The heat can also clear congestion and studies suggest chili pepper could be effective in aiding weight loss.

Get Cooking: The next time you make healthy sautéed vegetables, add some chili peppers to turn up the spice volume.