Herbs and Spices

You thought that when you spiced up your foods you were doing it for flavour. It goes way beyond that! The herbs and spices we use to flavour our foods are on the top of the list of high ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) - A good thing! Let me highlight a few for you:

Garlic - ORAC score of 5,346. Garlic is incredibly beneficial to your immune system because it offers a triple-whammy: it's antibacterial, antiviral and anti-fungal. We should be eating garlic every day. One of the best things about garlic is that bacteria, viruses, and yeast build up no resistance to it,

unlike with synthetic antibiotics. For optimal benefits, garlic should be fresh since the active ingredient is destroyed within one hour of smashing the garlic cloves. In other words, garlic capsules are basically useless. Garlic contains allicin, a chemical that is anti-carcinogenic. It also has been shown to lower LDL, lower total cholesterol, lower blood pressure, reduce your risk of blood clots and stroke, lower homocysteine, and even prevent insect bites --including mosquitoes and ticks. 


Turmeric - ORAC score of 159,277; general immune system booster due to its high antioxidant capacity, and an anticancer agent as well; turmeric is five to eight times stronger than vitamins C and E, and even strong enough to scavenge the hydroxyl radical, which is considered by some to be the most reactive of all oxidants.




Oregano - ORAC 13,970; active agent is rosmarinic acid, a strong antioxidant; one tablespoon of oregano has the antioxidant capacity of one medium apple.





Cinnamon - ORAC 267,536; powerful antimicrobial agent—found to kill E. coli and many other bacteria; also has anti-inflammatory compounds. (for more info about cinnamon go to: http://gale4health.blogspot.com/2018/01/cinnamon.html)

Cloves: THE BIG ORAC GRAND PRIZE WINNER AT 314,446, highest of all foods tested! Contains eugenol; its mild anesthetic benefits are useful for toothaches and sore throats; good anti-inflammatory.







By incorporating some of these fantastic foods, you'll not only evade the circulating viruses, but improve your overall health and longevity at the same time. So be generous with those herbs and spices and improve your health!