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Research into culinary and medicinal herbs and spices

07/10/2020
by Admin Doe

For centuries, herbs and spices have been used for culinary purposes, to enhance our savoring experiences through taste, aroma and color, as well as to preserve foods; in addition, traditional medicine has been using herbs, spices, & seasoning blends for medicinal purposes, both preventively and therapeutically.


Results of mordern research & studies on spices and herbs

Modern technologies used in research have confirmed what our ancestors already knew about spices and herbs: they are rich in natural compounds with therapeutic effects, from antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, to anticarcinogenic and cholesterol-lowering properties. 


Tannins, flavonoids, alkaloids and vitamins are some of the bioactive compounds that confer medicinal benefits to herbs and spices, such as clove, rosemary, sage, oregano and cinnamon.


Long term consumption of fresh herbs spices may protect us even against the development of acute, chronic diseases, helping us to maintain our heart health and reducing pain. 


What extensive research suggests on spices and herbs


Although the potential benefits of seasoning spices and herbs in protecting us against infectious, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases cannot be negated, it is only in recent years that the Western world has taken a keen interest in studying them extensively. 


Culinary herbs and spices possess antioxidative, they reduce inflammation, are anti-tumorigenic, anti-carcinogenic and glucose- and cholesterol-lowering activities. Meaning it has a positive effect on controlling blood sugar levels which helps 


Indeed, spices may affect cognition and mood, as well as the gut microbiota, relating to risks of diabetes, heart disease, alzheimers disease and other chronic conditions.


Statistics on the use of spices for health benefits


On average, up to 10% of Americans, surveyed in a US National and Health Nutrition Examination Survey, declare using spices such as ginger and chili pepper for health benefits (1), reasons for this being the lack of side effects of spices, the increased availability compared to traditional medicines, as well as the known health benefits of spices.


When surveyed about their predicted use of spices and herbs, about half of the participants in another study were interested in learning more about the health benefits of spices and admitted to currently using one or more spices, such as ginger, garlic or cinnamon, on a daily basis to promote their health and wellbeing (2).


Surely enough, in a long term study of health benefits of spices in a Chinese cohort, eating spicy foods almost every day decreased the risk of death by 14%, compared to consuming spicy foods less than once a week (3).


Interestingly, the consumption of spicy flavors reduced the salt intake and the blood pressure of participants in a randomized controlled trial (4), presumably by modifying the brain’s processing of the salty taste.


Should we consume spices and herbs to increase longevity


Given the close association of several metabolic diseases and age-related neurodegenerative diseases with oxidative processes in the human body, further research should focus on the use of herbs and spices (potential herbal medicine) as sources of antioxidants and the effects they have on specific markers of oxidation, upon consumption. And with time, we hope to see an even greater increase in the scientific evidence indicating the benefits of spices and culinary herbs in the overall maintenance of health and disease prevention.


1.         Barnes PM, Bloom B, Nahin RL. Complementary and alternative medicine use among adults and children: United States, 2007. Natl Health Stat Report. 2008(12):1-23.

2.         Isbill J, Kandiah J, Khubchandani J. Use of ethnic spices by adults in the United States: An exploratory study. Health Promot Perspect. 2018;8(1):33-40.

3.         Lv J, Qi L, Yu C, Yang L, Guo Y, Chen Y, et al. Consumption of spicy foods and total and cause specific mortality: population based cohort study. Bmj. 2015;351:h3942.

4.         Li Q, Cui Y, Jin R, Lang H, Yu H, Sun F, et al. Enjoyment of Spicy Flavor Enhances Central Salty-Taste Perception and Reduces Salt Intake and Blood Pressure. Hypertension. 2017;70(6):1291-9.