Posts Tagged ‘Anti-oxidant’

Wild Raspberry – What are the characteristics and different Health Benefits?

Rubus rosifolius, also known as bush roseleaf, West Indian raspberry and ola’a Thimbleberry is a spiny shrub native to the sub forest and open forest high in the Himalayas, East Asia and Eastern Australia. It is also found in abundance in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and south to the Rio Grande do Sul.
Rose Petal leaves are compound, brambles, margins dentate with glandular hairs on both sides of brochures. The flowers are white in panicles or solitary. Edible fruits are 2 cm long. Leaves stay green and fruits ripen in winter in Eastern Australia.
Wild Raspberry is a tall shrub or climber confusion. The stems are covered with short hairs rusty or white wool, and armed with numerous spines recurred. The alternate leaves are broadly ovate-heart shaped, usually 3 – or 5-lobed, 20.3 cm long, 2.5-18 cm wide. They are densely white or rusty hairy beneath. The flowers are white, in clusters in the axils of the leaves at the top. Sepals are large, velvety, and persist into fruition. The fruit is a red berry, about 1.2 cm in diameter.

There are two varieties of rosifolius that differ only in the number of petals Rubus rosifolius var. commersonii has 9-13 petals, while Rubus rosifolius var. rosifolius has five.

Habitat:-
The native habitat is rainforest, forest margins, clearings, gullies.

Reproduction of plant:-
Seed – requires stratification and is best sown in autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires stratification month at 3 degree C and is best sown as early as possible in the year. Plant out into their permanent jobs in the late spring the following year.

Benefits:-
- Wild Raspberries contain significant amount of polyphenol antioxidants such as anthocyanin pigments related to potential health protection against several human diseases.
- The aggregate fruit contributes to its nutritional value, as it increases the proportion of dietary fiber, placing it among plant foods with the highest fiber content of up to 20% fiber per total weight.
- They are a rich source of vitamin C, with 30 mg per serving of 1 cup (about 50% daily value), manganese (about 60% daily value) and dietary fiber (30% daily value). Contents of B vitamins 1-3, folic acid, magnesium, copper and iron.
- Rubus rosifolius has great antioxidant strength, particularly due to their dense contents of ellagic acid .Yellow raspberries and others with pale-colored fruits are lower in anthocyanin.
- Due to their rich contents of antioxidant vitamin C and the polyphenols, raspberries have an ORAC value of about 4900 per 100 grams. Although there are no clinical studies to date proving these effects in humans, antioxidant and antiproliferative effects against cancer have been linked to the amount of phenolics and flavonoids in various foods including raspberries.
- Raspberries are a low-glycemic index food.
- Fruit is edible and sweet-tasting. It can be made into jams, pies and preserves.
- Leaves can be made into tea which can be helpful during painful menstruation, childbirth, flu, and morning sickness.
- Aboriginal people in Australia used a decoction of the leaves as a traditional treatment for diarrhea.
- It is also used as an ornamental plant.

Precautions:-
It should not be used in case of pregnancy.

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What are the health benefits of Sesame Oil ?

Sesame is a flowering plant that comes from Pedaliaceae Family. Sesame is primarily grown and used for its oil-rich seeds, which comes with versatile colours, ranging from cream white to charcoal black.

Originality: Most of the wild species of Sesame are native to sub-Saharan Africa. In general, the paler variety of sesame is more valued in the West and Middle East, while both the pale and black varieties are prized in the Far East. In Greece, it is being used in cakes whereas in Togo, it is famous as the main soup ingredient. Regarding its huge usage, about one-third of Mexico’s sesame crop is exported to the United States and purchased by Mc Donald’s for famous sesame seeds buns. In India, it is famous in everywhere whether it is Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Manipur and even Assam; it is utilized in all four directions of India.

Cuisine’s Usage: The Small Sesame seed is used whole in cooking for its loaded nutty flavour. Sesame seeds are sometimes added to breads, including bagels, and tops of the hamburger buns. It is also used to garnish Sushi by sprinkling it over Sushi style foods. Even, whole seeds are also found in salads and baked snacks as well in Japan. Tan and black sesame seed varieties are roasted and used for flavouring gomashio. Light sesame oil has a high smoke point and is suitable for deep-frying while dark sesame oil has a slightly lower smoke point and is unsuitable for deep-frying. Instead it can be used for stir frying of meats or vegetables or for making of an omelette. East Asian cuisines often use roasted sesame oil for seasoning.

Nutrients: It possesses Energy of 567 Kcal, Carbohydrates of 26.04g, Sugars of 0.48g, 48g of Fats, 16.96g of Proteins and much more in Vitamins and Minerals.

Sesame Oil: It is an edible vegetable oil extracted from sesame seeds. Besides its usage as cooking oil in South India, it is often used as a flavour enhancer in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and a lesser extent Southeast Asian Cuisine. The Oil extracted from nutrient rich Sesame seed is very well-liked in alternative medicine –from traditional massages and treatments to modern advanced day fads. Ancient Indian Medical System perceives sesame oil to pacify stress related symptoms and on-going research indicates that it contains rich anti-oxidants and poly saturated fats that could ensure a help in controlling blood pressure. The Oil is trendy to use in Asia too as one of the earliest known crop based oil.

Ayurvedic Usage: In India, Sesame oil is reputed to penetrate the skin easily and is used for oil massage as well. In fact, in Maharashtra, Sesame Oil known as Teel Tel is particularly used for massaging the foot. It is also used for hair and scalp massage. Because of its enriched massaging benefits, it is broadly used in Ayurvedic Drugs. Spiritually in Hinduism, it is also used to lighten up a deepa or oil lamps in front of shrines for the Deities what they called performing Puja in Hindu temples. Also, specifically, it is applied to stones Deities in temple shrines in Southern India.

Alternative Medicine: Being a rich source of vitamins like vitamin E, it is used as an anti-oxidant that is correlated in lowering the cholesterol levels. As it comprises of certain minerals too such as magnesium, copper, calcium, iron, zinc and vitamin B6, Copper provides relief for rheumatoid arthritis. Magnesium supports vascular and respiratory health. Calcium helps in preventing colon cancer, osteoporosis, and migraine while Zinc promotes bone health.
Sesame Oil is also enriched with polyunsaturated fatty acids i.e. Omega 6 fatty acids; it is advised to be used in controlling blood pressure and hypertension. This is the reason it is sometimes used in place of regular edible oil.

Precaution: Despite its numerable nutrients, it is not suggested for people who have diarrhoea because of its laxative effects. According to American Heart Association, no more than 10% of person’s total caloric intake should be derived from sesame oil. Oil massages should be avoided immediately after administering enemas, emetics or purgatives, during the first stage of fever or if suffering from indigestion. There is cross-reactivity between sesame allergens and peanut, rye, kiwi, poppy seed and various tree nuts (cashew, walnut, hazelnut etc.) as it may lead to anaphylactic shock which can be fatal.

What are different health benefits of including parsley in your diet?

Parsley also called as rock celery is scientifically known as Petroselinum Crispum. Parsley grows in most climate and seasons of the year. This herb is well known for its disease fighting capabilities, probably, one reason as to why parsley is so widely used in a variety of cuisines.
Parsley is highly nutritious because of which there are a whole lot of health benefits associated with this herb. This herb is rich in vitamin A, B and C and has a rich reservoir of volatile oils and falvonoids that impart the nutritive property to parsley. Some of these health benefits are discussed below.

Anti-oxidant
Parsley is rich in vitamin A content. Vitamin acts as an active antioxidant getting rid of the highly toxic free radicals from the body that are produced during the various metabolic activities of the body. These free radicals if not removed from the body can initiate a cascaded of harmful reactions in the body leading to cancer as well. Apart from the vitamin A, vitamin C and falvonoids in parsley, also significantly help in clearing the body off these harmful free radicals.

Anti carcinogenic
Free radicals in the body can lead to the initiation and progression of cancer. Vitamin C and vitamin A works to reduce the risk of cancer in the body by checking the development of cancer cells and the cancer causing free radicals. Another compound present in parsley is folic acid. Folic acid is vital for the cell division hence its presence is important to avoid uncontrolled division of cells which may lead to cancerous growth.

Anti inflammatory
Parsley is also recommended to people suffering from osteo and rheumatoid arthritis and asthma. Vitamin C present in abundance in the herb acts as an active anti inflammatory agent which helps in reducing the pain associated with such conditions.

Cardiovascular health
Homocysteine is a very harmful compound which is produced during the metabolic activities in the body. This compound can inversely affect the blood vessels and at higher concentration can also lead to strokes. Folic acid in parsley helps to neutralize this harmful compound into harmless molecules there by reducing the risk of heart attacks or any related cardiovascular disorders.

Immunity
Parsley helps in strengthening the body immunity against diseases. Vitamin C which is one of the vital nutrients helps the body fight against infections like influenza. Deficiency of vitamins C can also lead to conditions like scurvy. Moreover the volatile oils found in parsley particularly Myristicin has shown to be inhibiting the formation of tumor in the
Lungs.

Diuretic
Apart from all the above health benefits of parsley, recent studies have shown that this herb acts as a natural diuretic by increasing the kidneys’ ability to excrete water and sodium. Hence this herb is highly recommended to people suffering from diabetes or hypertension both of which conditions may lead to water retention in the body.

Digestion
Another health benefit of Parsley is that it helps immensely in the digestion of more complex food material like proteins and fats allowing a faster digestion and assimilation. Parsley is in fact highly recommended in diarrhea. Consuming parsley in the form of tea can highly benefit a person having digestive disorders.

There are many more health benefits of parsley which make it a must in our daily diet. Excessive intake of any substance is of course harmful, in moderation this herb can do wonders for our overall health.