 Spices lend food wonderful flavors and also impart health benefits. (Photo by Sean Simmers) |
|
Posted on 06/11/2008 9:24:36 AM PDT by Incorrigible
By BRIE ZELTNER
Spices lend food wonderful flavors and also impart health benefits. (Photo by Sean Simmers) |
|
[Cleveland, OH] -- In 1993, an eager biochemist at the University of Texas struggled to put the brakes on a protein he had discovered a few years earlier, a protein that can trigger cancers and inflammatory diseases.
Bharat Aggarwal knew that the protein, tumor necrosis factor, or TNF, could cause a whole cascade of inflammation in the human body — a very bad thing. He also knew that turmeric, the yellow curry spice, was a potent anti-inflammatory in traditional ayurvedic medicine.
The next step, sprinkling some turmeric on a culture of TNF, might seem like a bit of a leap. But it didn't feel that way to Aggarwal, currently a professor of cancer medicine.
"In ayurveda, it is nothing new," he said. "And the beauty is that it is very, very safe." Ayurveda, one of the world's oldest medical practices, is a traditional holistic health practice that attempts to balance the mind, body and spirit using primarily herbs, massage and even some surgical techniques. Aggarwal saw turmeric used frequently as a home remedy in ayurvedic practice growing up in India.
What Aggarwal and other researchers have found is that the spice cabinet may be home to a treasure of remedies that are safe, inexpensive and surprisingly potent.
Fifteen years after his first experiment, curcumin — the active ingredient in turmeric — is the subject of clinical trials in multiple myeloma, colon cancer, pancreatic cancer, cystic fibrosis and psoriasis.
Much of the recent research on spices has focused on turmeric and three other familiar kitchen names — ginger, cayenne and cinnamon.
All are powerful anti-oxidants, a buzzword in the health world because of the way these compounds can protect cells and tissues from the damage associated with aging and daily wear and tear.
Curcumin is both an anti-oxidant, preventing damage from oxidation, and an anti-inflammatory, reducing local tissue damage, swelling and redness caused by inflammation.
In fact, most edible plants contain anti-oxidants, said Kim Ortega, clinical dietitian in the Ireland Cancer Center at Cleveland's University Hospitals. Higher levels of polyphenols in plant foods make them better anti-oxidants, and some spices, like turmeric and cinnamon, pack quite a punch in this department.
Ortega and her staff advocate a largely plant-based diet for this reason, she said. And incorporating more spices into your daily recipes is a safe and tasty way to get an anti-oxidant boost.
Of course, many people think that the best way to get something that's good for you is in a pill, Ortega said. But that has its risks.
You need to let your doctor know about any supplements you take, including anything that seems as harmless as curry powder.
And of course, more is not always better.
"Even if it's natural, it can still be dangerous if it's highly concentrated," Ortega said.
Another disadvantage to taking herbs or spices in pill form is the loss of the whole food. Studies have shown that you're much better off eating the whole food rather than taking the supplement, Ortega said. This may be because the whole food contains so many other vitamins, minerals, fiber and chemicals that work together in the body, she said.
Ortega and Aggarwal wouldn't be surprised if spices like ginger and turmeric turn out to be health-boosting titans.
"It goes to show you that your grandparents did know something," Ortega said. "And we tend to forget those things, but there is potential to this stuff that we're learning now."
Both think that research into alternative and natural remedies have been slow to catch on in this country.
"The pity of the situation is that the National Institutes of Health does not look at us favorably because they think that drugs always come from pharmaceutical companies," Aggarwal said. "If there's no pharmaceutical company, there's no drug. And that perception has to change."
ADDING SPICE TO YOUR LIFE
Getting spices into your daily meals can be a tasty way to get an anti-oxidant boost. Here are four that have been the subject of research:
TURMERIC
What it is: Turmeric, the spice that gives curry powder its yellow color, appears to be a potential health-boosting powerhouse. Its active ingredient is curcumin, used for centuries in traditional medicine to treat ailments from gallstones to anemia, to heal wounds and treat arthritis. Bandages sold in India are even treated with turmeric to help speed healing.
How it works: Curcumin appears to be a potent anti-inflammatory, inhibiting enzymes that lead to the inflammation response and diseases like arthritis, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.
Researchers studying melanoma found it could kill three different lines of cancer cells, possibly by suppressing production of proteins that usually protect the cancer cells from natural cell death.
Biochemist Bharat Aggarwal's early research found it worked extremely well at turning off the TNF (tumor necrosis factor) pathway in a cell culture. Curcumin is being tested in humans for several cancers and other inflammatory conditions.
UCLA researchers found that mice fed curcumin had 80 percent fewer of the protein plaques associated with Alzheimer's disease than did mice on a normal diet.
Curcumin also is a potential Cox-2 inhibitor, which targets the same inflammatory pathway involved in rheumatoid arthritis.
Aggarwal compared curcumin to aspirin. The difference, he noted, is that you can take curcumin your whole life without side effects.
GINGER
What it is: This spice comes from the horizontal stem of the ginger plant, which grows underground but is not technically a root. It is one of the best-studied plants in the world.
How it works: The active ingredients in ginger, called gingerols, may protect tissues from the damage caused by free radicals. In test-tube studies, gingerols have inhibited the activity of nitric oxide, which can quickly form a damaging free radical called peroxynitrite. Gingerols may also help the body maintain its own stores of anti-oxidants.
Gingerols may also inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Researchers studying colon and ovarian cancers at the University of Minnesota and University of Michigan suggest ginger may be able to stop the progression of the disease, or even kill the cancer cells outright.
Ginger is perhaps best known for its soothing effects on the digestive system. Numerous studies have established it as a safe and effective treatment for nausea. Ginger even outperformed Dramamine in a 1982 study where subjects had to sit in a spinning chair for six minutes without getting sick. They almost made it when they took the ginger; not even close with the Dramamine.
CAYENNE
What it is: The active ingredient that lends a hot pepper its bite is capsaicin, another anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory that may help reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and other pro-inflammatory diseases of aging.
How it works: It may seem like getting a mouthful of cayenne could damage your mouth, but the capsaicin actually doesn't hurt any tissues. There is some debate on how a substance that causes a burning sensation can reduce pain, but capsaicin is actually best known as a pain reliever.
Capsaicin may help deplete a neurotransmitter called substance P that is involved in the pain and stress system. Substance P has been implicated in pain and swelling involved in headaches and arthritis. Capsaicin also has been shown to help with sinus and digestive disorders.
The FDA approved a capsaicin cream called Zostrix for the pain that lingers after an attack of shingles. The cream is also marketed for arthritis pain and the pain associated with diabetic neuropathy.
Researchers in Toronto are studying capsaicin as a potential treatment for diabetes. Early work in genetically engineered mice prone to diabetes revealed it could block a key receptor site in the nervous system that may play a role in whether the mouse develops insulin resistance or diabetes.
CINNAMON
What it is: Cinnamon, the inner bark of the cinnamon tree, is a powerful anti-oxidant. A teaspoon of cinnamon has the same anti-oxidant power as a half-cup of blueberries. There are several types of cinnamon, but only one, Ceylon cinnamon, is considered "true." It is also the hardest to find. Most cinnamon in the United States is made from cassia, or Chinese cinnamon, which when whole looks rougher and is much more difficult to grate.
How it works: Cinnamon may slow the rate at which food leaves your stomach after you eat, which keeps your blood sugar from spiking after a meal. There also is evidence that active ingredients in cinnamon mimic the activity of insulin and activate insulin receptors.
Still, the jury is out on this spice. A small but oft-cited study in 2003 established the blood glucose- and cholesterol-lowering properties of the spice (they used cassia cinnamon) in people with Type 2 diabetes, but a recent look at all the studies since does not support the claim.
In fact, there are some concerns about people taking too much cassia cinnamon, or cinnamon extracts that are fat-soluble, because of the amount of an additive called coumarin they contain. Coumarin is a contaminant found in some cassia cinnamon that can cause liver and kidney damage at high doses and in sensitive people.
University Hospitals dietitian Kim Ortega said it's best to talk to your doctor about taking cinnamon as a supplement, and not to worry about having it occasionally on your pancakes.
(Brie Zeltner is a staff writer for The Plain Dealer of Cleveland. Zeltner can be contacted at bzeltner(at)plaind.com.)
Not for commercial use. For educational and discussion purposes only.
I like all of the above spices. No wonder I'm so healthy!
save
Cayenne peppers are impossible to find in the northeast grocery stores. But there is always Tabasco.
mark
It has also been used in research regarding surgery and its ability to speed healing and reduce pain in the surgery area. Learned about that here...
You could grow them yourself. Or, order them dried from New Mexico.
Powdered cayenne is available in the spice aisle.
Mail order a can of bear spray. You can spray everybody up at the dinner table :)
I love cinnamon but a spoonful a day seems a bit much.
“Ginger is perhaps best known for its soothing effects on the digestive system. Numerous studies have established it as a safe and effective treatment for nausea. Ginger even outperformed Dramamine in a 1982 study where subjects had to sit in a spinning chair for six minutes without getting sick. They almost made it when they took the ginger; not even close with the Dramamine.”
Keep Dramamine handy just in case, ginger doesn’t work for everyone. Found this out on an 18-hour flight in which I filled a dozen airsick bags.
“I love cinnamon but a spoonful a day seems a bit much.”
Oh, I don’t know, now you have a perfectly valid reason to eat Cinnibons every day :p
Carolyn
carolyn
And olive oil, lots for cooking and salads. It's good for your coat.
Garlic, it’s just not to repel vampires anymore!
works on hairballs too.
Cup of blue berries, tsp of cinnamon, few pinches of ginger.
Plus flour eggs and milk.
Breakfast of champion’s muffins.
I knew a guy that used pepper spray to kick it up a knotch in his cooking.
I don’t think cayenne peppers are used in Tabasco sauce. I believe it’s made from Tabasco peppers. Cayenne peppers are about 3 inches long, slender and bright green. Tabasco peppers are short, stubby and light green-to-yellow in color.
ditto
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.