Top 5 Herbs for Inflammation
The human body is an immunologic masterpiece built to withstand various attacks from foreign bodies. It can learn to fight back viruses and bacteria by just coming in contact with them once.
One of its ways of averting these foreign entities is inflammation. An automatic process in which white blood cells protect the body by creating a hot zone around an intruding entity.
However, the body might overreact when carrying out this duty and now attack harmless entities that get into our bodies, such as food. Sometimes the process lasts longer than it is supposed to— leading to Chronic inflammation.
No matter what makes inflammation get out of hand, we need to help our bodies get back on track. One of the easiest and most effective ways to do that would be with herbs or their supplement capsule. So, here are five active herbs to help inflammation:
5 Herbs for Inflammation
Ginger
Zingiber officinale is considered by many a culinary titan. Ginger is packed with an array of nutritious components.
Aside from its impressive culinary regimen, ginger is also used medicinally to boost health and has been related to longevity and promoting an active lifestyle in old age.
The herb contains over 100 active compounds, which include gingerol, shogoal, zingiberene, and zingerone. All active ingredients raise the bar of expectation high.
Ginger is used in unorthodox medical practices for colds, coughs, and many other situations. Many ancient civilizations also used it to boost their health. They made teas, balms, and other local concoctions to get the best out of the herb.
Ginger has been found to reduce some inflammatory markers such as TNF-α, C-reactive protein(CRP), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β). These markers show an increased activity of inflammation or a potential for it.
Ginger can be added to your meals as a spice. However, using supplements would pack a better punch. They come in concentrated powders and pills that you can add to your daily regimen.
Garlic
Garlic is another culinary titan on this list. The cloves of this herb are used to spice a wide variety of dishes. With a strong and unique flavor that makes it stand out, it is popular enough to be easily recognizable.
Garlic has been used throughout history medicinally. It was used in medieval times as a remedy for constipation, animal bites, and dropsy animal bites. In Victorian times, they were bound to people's feet to help ease pain.
Garlic contains a few sulphuric active ingredients, diallyl, allicin, and disulfide. These components are suspected to reduce the levels of two significant inflammatory markers— TNF-α and CRP.
Numerous studies back the efficacy of garlic as an inflammatory regulator. One such reputable study shows that garlic is highly effective in fighting inflammation.
Garlic comes in a few popular forms; you could purchase supplements as pills or capsules, with concentrated powders also available.
Black Pepper
Piper nigrum is the official name for Black pepper. Famous for its characteristic hot spicy taste, some consider it the king of spice.
Black pepper comes from ground seeds and sometimes the much softer exterior of the tree’s fruit. This is ground and dried to be used to add that hot, peppery taste to culinary dishes.
Medicinally, black pepper has been used in traditional medicine to fight gastric ailments, especially diarrhea. It is known for its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects.
Piperine has been identified to be the primary active ingredient in black pepper. It has also been scientifically proven to reduce inflammation in the body.
In an animal study, Black pepper's piperine effectively reduced the activity of critical inflammatory markers like IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. Human research of its use shows great promise as well.
Black pepper can easily be added to your diet as a spice for your food. It goes well with pasta, rice, vegetable, and poultry dishes.
Ginseng
Ginseng contains one of the world’s most medicinally effective groups of active compounds— ginsenosides. This group of active compounds has been backed by numerous studies to rapidly reduce inflammation.
A group of 9 studies with over 400 participants showed reduced levels of CRP. The participants were given 300 to 4,000mg of ginseng daily for 4-24 weeks.
In another set of studies, participants were given 1,000- 3,000mg of ginseng daily for about 32 weeks. All of the 409 participants showed reduced levels of IL-6 and TNF-α.
Asians have used ginseng as a traditional medicine for centuries to boost men's sexual health and improve sleep.
Ginseng extracts are popular and are a more efficient way to add the herb to your diet. Alternatively, you can add sizable amounts to cooking your everyday meals. Ginseng goes extremely well with soups and stews and can also be used to make tea.
Rosemary
Last but not least is one of Mint’s cousins— Rosemary. The herb is officially called Rosmarinus officinalis. This native Mediterranean herb has a highly fragrant scent that is important for cooking certain delicacies.
The leaves of this herb can be ground or dried to spice poultry, lamb, or beef. Traditionally, rosemary has been used to help boost memory, improve focus, and even stimulate hair growth.
The herb is packed full of polyphenols rumored to have anti-inflammatory effects. The most active of them include carnosic acid and rosmarinic acid. These two compounds have been scientifically proven to reduce inflammation.
In a 16-week study, 62 participants with an inflammatory-related condition showed improved mobility and reduced pain and stiffness. These improvements are all signs of reduced inflammatory activity.
You can easily add rosemary to your diet by using it to spice up your meals as often as you can.
Conclusion
Inflammation might not seem like a severe condition, but it limits a healthy, active lifestyle in many ways. Using herbs to combat this condition is one of the easiest and most effective ways to get the results you want.
We advise the use of our dietary supplements from these herbal extracts as a way of boosting that healthy lifestyle you want.