Cardamom
Cardamon, known as the Queen of Spices is an aromatic spice with sweet yet floral profile which has been used for centuries to flavor foods and drinks. Beyond its pleasant smell, cardamom has numerous health benefits and has been extensively used as a natural healing aid.
Cardamom is native to moist forests of south India and is believed to be cultivated there some 4000 years ago. Cardamom was used by ancient Egyptians for its medicinal and aromatic properties as healing agent, and part of the religious and embalming rituals.
Like many other spices, Greeks and Romans also adapted cardamom into their diets and medical practices. Ayurvedic and ancient Chinese practices used this spice as a remedy for tooth and gum infections, throat aches, congestion, treating inflammation within the lungs, eyelids and kidneys. Cardamom was also utilized to alleviate gastrointestinal disorder, gallbladder stones and used as an antidote for poisons and venom. Throughout Ayurvedic practices, cardamom has been used for muscle and joint pain. Irregular neural signal cause fatigue, leading painful muscle contractions and spasms, often seen in older generations. Cardamom research revealed number of bioactive ingredients possessing anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties. In animal studies, cardamom’s anti-inflammatory ingredients have been shown to be effective in decreasing muscle pain and spasms.
Traditionally, Cardamom has been used as a remedy for nausea and may be able to calm the urge to vomit. Consuming cardamom powder was observed to lessen the severity of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy.In obesity due to a high-carbohydrate diet, cardamom was found to reduce weight gain and associated metabolic damage to the body. Cardamom steeped in boiling water is recommended as a morning gargling solution to control painful sore throats.Those suffering from asthma and bronchitis, cardamom is a wonder spice for you. This is because cardamom can help improve blood circulation in the lungs by blood thinning action. In Ayurveda, it has been used as a remedy for urinary tract diseases and kidney disorders such as cystitis, nephritis, and bleeding, as well as gonorrhea.
Cardamom is believed to possess anti-depressant properties.Its essential oil is one of the major oils used in aromatherapy and has been suggested in human research to be an effective choice for handling stressful conditions.
For centuries, cardamom has been used for its distinct smell and taste to flavour dishes and as a natural remedy. However, the powerful ingredients within cardamom’s essential oils are also believed to possess anti-depressant properties, and are extensively used in aromatherapy. The generations old, tried-and-true remedy for depression talks about the power of the cardamom seed. Grinding cardamom seeds into powder and boiling them in water with tea leaves, produces soothing aroma and a drink that is an effective treatment for depression.
The scientific research supports cardamom’s impressive anti-inflammatory properties to have multiple treatment applicability. Mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are complicated in nature, possessing many different symptoms and triggers. These symptoms cause various problems in person’s personal, professional and social circles. What makes such conditions especially complex is that symptoms vary from person to person. Scientist actively search for effective treatments including experimenting with various powerful antioxidants. Animals with PTSD-like symptoms showed improved anxiety-like behaviors when treated with green cardamom. Quercetin is a flavonoid compound within cardamom, believed to be responsible for such powerful effect. Research into quercetin showed lowered anxiety and depression in small animals.
content courtesy@dubischai