What are different health benefits of Sage?
Sage, scientifically known as Salvia officinalis, is a Mediterranean herb. This silvery green herb is grown all over the world and is known for its culinary and medicinal value since the ancient times.
Sage is used in the raw form to give a spicy taste; it is also used in the dried form as well as in the form of oil extracts. The health benefits of sage are mainly due to the presence of alpha and beta thujone, cinerole, camphor, tannins, falvonoids and rosmarinic acid. It also contains vitamins A and calcium.
Some of the prominent Health benefits of Sage are discussed below.
Anti microbial
Sage has been since ancient times been used for preservative purposes mainly due to the presence of the phenolic rosmarinic acid. It is known to fight against bacterial and fungal infections, which not only makes it a good and effective preservative in retaining the flavor and nutrients of food but also helps in maintaining the health of the digestive system.
Antiseptic
Due to its antimicrobial properties sage can also used as an effective antiseptic and can be applied externally to any wound to ward of further infection.
Enhancing Memory
Since ancient times, sage has been used to treat memory loss. However, recent research has confirmed the fact that the roots of this plant indeed contain chemicals, which can help in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Hence, a daily consumption of this herb can help in sharpening memory as well as in warding off degenerative Alzheimer’s disease.
Antioxidant
Sage is also known for its antioxidant properties. These antioxidants help in reducing the effects of the harmful free radicals produced during the metabolic activities of the body. Antioxidants also help in slowing the degeneration of cells thus slowing the aging process.
Anti-inflammatory
Sage contains rosmarinic acid, which acts a potent anti-inflammatory agent. People suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, body pains and other inflammatory conditions can be given the herb in the form of tea which helps in reducing pains. This herb can also be used to treat swelling due to sprains, ulcers and wounds.
Oral Health
Sage is used in many regions as a gargle to treat sore throat, ulcers in the mouth and gums or inflammation. Its antibacterial properties helps in fighting bad breath and other oral infections.
Gynecological health
Another health benefit of sage for women is that it helps in controlling the bleeding during menstrual flow and in regularizing the cycle in case of any irregularities experienced.
Skin and bone care
Sage apart from vitamin A possesses cicatrisant which is helps in removing scars and blemishes from the skin. Due to this property extracts from this herbs is being used in cosmetics. Sage is also rich in calcium, which is essential for the good health of teeth and bones.
Anemia
Sage is rich in iron, an important factor required for the hemoglobin part of the blood. A deficiency of iron in the body can lead to anemia. Consumption of this iron rich herb can help in overcoming anemic conditions.
Digestion
Sage due to its chloretic and cholagogue properties facilitates in fat and protein digestion and also helps in relieving acidity. Hence adding a little of this herb as a spice in food not only enhances the flavor but also helps in digestion.
Due to its various health benefits, Sage has gained a lot of attention in the medical field and many researches are being conducted on this age-old herb to understand its impact and role in fighting various diseases like Alzheimer’s. This should help in the synthesis of more effective drugs against these diseases which still pose a challenge to our scientists.
|
|
|
|
If you found this post informative, why not sign up to receive new posts ?
It's simple, and free, and you can even opt to receive by email:
Subscribe in a reader
Subscribe to Good Health Tips by Email
Categories: Anti-oxidant, Body, Bones, health, Healthy, Herb, Sage Tags: Anemia, Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, Antiseptic, benefits, Bone, Daily, Diet, Flavor, Food, health, Healthy, Herb, Improve, Memory, Minerals, Nourishment, Nutrients, Rich, Sage, Skin, Spice, Vitamins
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.