10 Spices that Can Heal Your Gut
A fast-paced life calls for busy schedules and compromises. Amongst everything, the foremost aspect that takes a back seat is health. Though we are aware that health is our only wealth, the hustle and bustle of daily life usually take precedence over health. This builds unhealthy dietary habits, irregular sleeping patterns, increased stress that all result in health conditions, the most common being poor digestive health. Over time, the digestive system loses its efficiency and is subjected to troubles such as indigestion, bloating, and gastritis. The good news is several native spices can heal your gut. These spices are an integral part of the Indian cuisine so consuming them regularly isn’t tasky. Keep reading to enlighten yourself with a list of healthy spices that can heal your gut.
What Foods Heal the Gut?
- Cumin Seeds: This staple is present in every Indian household and can do wonders to treat your digestive tract. Cumin seeds help with bile production that aids digestion. It acts as a powerful remedy both solely and when combined with other herbs. It helps minimize gastric troubles by pacifying the digestive system. Further, it detoxifies the intestinal tract, promotes assimilation and aids the growth of good microbes in the gut.
- Ginger: This herb is a power-house. Ginger has the potential of treating numerous ailments. Its healing properties can treat nausea, cold, and cough. It further promotes healthy circulation and digestive enzyme secretion. Besides, it is also a helpful detoxifying agent. You can consume this spice every day by adding it to your dal, curry, pulao, vegetables, etc. It blends well everywhere and yields healthy results.
- Turmeric: Time and again one has heard about the goodness of turmeric. This spice promotes the immune system, reduces inflammation, and aids digestion. It addresses stomach ulcers, brings down the risk of bowel cancer, and minimizes undigested food in the gastrointestinal tract. You can have a small portion of it with milk in the morning or mix it in your daily food items (dal, pulao, etc).
- Coriander Seeds: The digestive properties of coriander seeds are numerous. From the three doshas, it cools down excess pitta in the intestinal tract and the body. Being a natural cooler, it is used to treat heart-related pitta troubles as it is linked to relieving gas from the intestinal tract.
- Fennel: Often referred to as saunf in India, Fennel is one of the spices that helps fight digestive troubles. It remedies the bloating that occurs in the digestive tract. Being an anti-inflammatory, it soothes the muscles in the digestive system and works to heal nausea and intestinal cramping. Enriched with Vitamin C and essential oils, it mitigates conditions such as diarrhoea, bloating, and constipation. You can consume fennel seeds with your daily meals. Grind them and add to the dishes you cook or add toasted seeds to any items to give it a sweet, licorice flavour.
- Basil: Basil is one of the most effective herbs that heal your gut. It belongs to the same plant family that mint, oregano, and rosemary come from. Basil is further divided into many species including sweet basil, lemon basil, Italian basil, Thai basil, lettuce-leaf basil and the one best known for its ability to help the body deal with stress – holy basil, famously known as Tulsi.
- Black Pepper: A seasoning and flavouring agent, black pepper is a common spice found in many Indian households. Enriched with piperine, black pepper aids the absorption of nutrients. It improves the secretion of bile acids thereby helping with the breakdown of foods. Further, it also expels gas from the digestive system and hence is useful in curing flatulence, belching, etc. You can crush black pepper and use it as an ingredient to spice food items such as vegetables, fish, salads, soups, pasta, etc.
- Triphala: A powerful concoction of 3 Ayurvedic herbs – Amla (Indian Gooseberry), Haritaki, and Bahera, Triphala has numerous health healing properties. It is particularly known for alleviating digestive troubles. Triphala curbs the accumulation of gas, aids the contractile movement of muscles in the digestive system and supports the movement of food. This concoction can be had in its juice form daily at night before meals.
- Cardamom: A little cardamom can go a long way in helping many digestive troubles. This beautiful aromatic spice is widely used in many spicy and sweet savouries. Consumption of cardamom is linked to balancing excess mucus, gas and bloating in the stomach and small intestine.
- Chamomile: A warm cup of chamomile tea is all you need for a good night’s sleep. Apart from that, this calming herb also aids the digestive system. It helps treat irritable bowel syndrome, diarrhoea, stomach cramps, etc. Its medicinal properties are numerous and each of them is of great help for the many digestive troubles.
Bottom Line
These spices are commonly found and have numerous healing properties. A healthy gut is key to a healthy life and making these spices a part of your diet will surely help you get there. You can have these spices as a whole or consume some of them in their juice form. Before purchasing a herbal juice, verify the brand you choose. Select the one that uses authentic ingredients and yields maximum nutrition. A healthy gut isn’t a far fetched dream, it can be a reality. Just make sure you consume these spices and combine them with exercise, sleep and no stress for best results.
