5 Spices That Are Natural Medicines

The use of natural ingredients to remedy or relieve various health problems is increasing with every passing year and for good reason. Many common kitchen foods and spices have health-promoting properties that can provide adjunctive benefits.

Beyond their culinary use in making foods tastier, these ingredients can help us deal with various health issues, especially those that arise over time and are chronic in nature. Home self-care measures can thus be time-saving, inexpensive, and, most importantly, effective.

* Turmeric

Turmeric, touted for being the crowning jewel of Indian cooking, is an all-natural anti-inflammatory agent and a potent pain reliever. Turmeric owes its bright-yellow color and its therapeutic goodness to a compound called curcumin, an antioxidant that helps protect the body from free radicals that cause cell and tissue damage.

* Ginger

Ginger has strong anti-inflammatory properties that can be traced back to the compound gingerol in it. This compound has been proposed as a potential remedy to treat pain associated with gout, rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoarthritis, although more scientific research needs to be done to support these claims.

* Olive Oil

Besides being a gastronomic treasure popularly used in Mediterranean and Italian cooking or as salad dressing, olive oil has also emerged as a beneficial and safe alternative to traditional pain relievers and anti-inflammatories.

* Cloves

Whole and ground cloves are often used to enhance the taste and smell of a wide range of culinary preparations. As a medicine, cloves work as a powerful painkiller.Cloves work as a natural anesthetic to numb the affected area and provide some degree of comfort from the pain associated with toothaches and arthritic inflammation.

* Cayenne Pepper

The compound capsaicin in cayenne pepper exhibits an anti-inflammatory effect that helps reduce joint, nerve, and muscle pain and inflammation. It also prevents the activation of the brain’s pain pathways, which in turn reduces the feeling of pain.