Spices - Are Their Properties A Myth?

Author: Marko Balašević Time for reading: ~2 minutes Last Updated: August 08, 2022

Spices, in addition to their aromas and properties to flavor our food, are also herbs that are used to treat various conditions of antiquity. Hippocrates and Avicenna also mentioned their useful properties, including healing and

Spices, in addition to their aromas and properties to flavor food, are also herbs that have been used to treat various conditions since ancient times. Hippocrates and Avicenna also mentioned their useful properties, including treating and preventing infections.

Spices contain substances that explain their use as food improvers, to give a pleasant or spicy taste to food, to improve its aroma and / or durability, ie. they also act as preservatives. Different parts of plants are used for spices - leaves, seeds, fruits, flowers, roots.

The action of spices is due to their effect on the receptors of smell and taste, which in turn stimulate the increased secretion of digestive juices. This increases appetite and improves digestion.

The properties of spices to irritate the receptors are due to the presence of essential oils. The taste buds and the lining of the gastrointestinal tract are affected by the glycosides, alkaloids and other biologically active substances contained in them. Namely, due to the ability to irritate the lining of the stomach and intestines, aromas and spices are avoided in medical diets.

With their aromatic properties are useful: pepper - all its possible types: black, red, chili - allspice, bay leaf, cumin, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, anise, ginger, saffron, vanilla, nutmeg.

Black pepper
As "black pepper" we use the dried grains of the exotic plant Piper nigrum from the family of Piperaceae. The grains are used whole or ground to a powder. The spicy taste and aroma of black pepper is due to the essential oil and alkaloid piperine contained in the beans. Black pepper stimulates the appetite and gives a pleasant taste to dishes. Not recommended for people with an upset stomach, as it irritates his mucous membranes.

Red pepper (chili, hot pepper) The
homeland of pepper is the territory of today's Mexico. This tropical plant is now grown in tropical and subtropical climates around the world. Pepper contains the substance capsaicin, which is due to its spicy, burning effect and disinfectant properties. A curious fact is that after the discovery of America, red hot pepper was used as a remedy against cholera. A small amount of the spice is enough to stimulate the appetite and the secretion of gastric juices. In folk medicine, hot red pepper was also used in some neuropsychiatric diseases, including epilepsy.

Allspice
These are the seeds of the plant Pimenta dioica, a tropical tree of the myrtle family. The pungent odor of allspice is due to the essential oil in the beans. Allspice was discovered as a spice used by the local Caribbean people to prepare a meat specialty. Distributed by the sailors of Christopher Columbus. Nowadays, allspice is also used mainly for flavoring meat and sausages and as a preservative in food, fish and pickles. The Mayans used allspice as a remedy for digestive problems and as an ingredient in embalming mixtures.

Spices - Are Their Properties A Myth?

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