The Often Overlooked Benefits Of Micro Nutrients In Herbs

The scope of micronutrients in food and herbs is vast. The polar opposite is just as expansive. When you take a tour around a large supermarket, it demonstrates the range of what people eat. The supermarkets have a wide selection of packaged food. Not all of it is unhealthy, but a good percentage of it is not exactly nutrient dense.

To embark on a whole food diet, it simply means to eat fresh produce, lean meats and fish. But convenience over rides the cooking from scratch habits. It takes longer to chop vegetables than it does to order a pizza. Since our world has slowed down, and people are confined to home more, it is a good time to nurture ourselves with healthier foods and food habits.

I have often grown two or three herbs, but never placed a major focus on using them every day, in multiple different ways. Nor did I do a great deal of research on the individual herbs from a health perspective. I used ginger and turmeric, oregano, rosemary, basil and garlic mainly.

This year I grew numerous herbs, and have made a point of using them every day. The list includes mint, rosemary, tarragon, oregano, thyme, sage, chives, chamomile, dill, basil, parsley and cilantro. By growing the fresh herbs and using them often, it is quite economical. Later in the fall, they can be cut down and dried for tea.

For example, if you buy fresh dill at the grocery store, it is around $2.50 a bunch. The herbs are packaged in a plastic container, and may not be very fresh. They certainly won’t be as fresh as the ones you snip straight from the plants. Plus when you buy it packaged, you may not use it all, and a portion of it ends up getting thrown out. When you grow it, you only take what you need for the recipe. They can be grown in any sunny location, including in containers on balconies and decks.

In doing even a cursory bit of research, I learned each one of them is loaded with a wide variety of nutrients and antimicrobials. They also flower, and are quite aromatic to work around. They add a wonderful array of flavours, and scents to whatever you add them to. Many go great with boiled eggs. You can add them to salads, soups and sauces, and even make medicinal and healing products, foot soaks etc.

With all the news about health, and fear over maintaining health – combined with the increasing food costs, it is wise to learn more about nutrition, and put more time into food preparation. From husking and freezing fresh corn, to baking our own bread, this aspect of change can be a positive one.

The best we can do is to reduce waste, grow what we can, and use as many unpackaged whole foods as possible. All things need washing, preparation and chopping. The good thing about it, is that it is enjoyable to handle fresh produce. It’s especially awesome if it is local produce, brought in by the truckload, and there it is, BC produce, in a big pile right from the field, at the local grocery store. Corn and apples are the most common and abundant in this area. The kale is plentiful this year, but for some reason the fresh garden peas have been absent from the shelves.

In my opinion, concentrated supplements in pill form, can be quite dangerous. Fresh herbs used in cooking, delivers a more balanced range of micro nutrients, as opposed to trying to boost specific vitamins, like the recent vitamin D trend. I think it is better to get sunlight, and eat foods with vitamin D.

Our bodies are complex, and every enzyme and nanoparticle is dependent on the absorption of another. There is an intricate balance to be maintained. When we digest real food, our body has the innate ability to extract the nutrients, and direct them to where they are needed. If we add a certain enzyme or vitamin in large amounts, it may upset the balance, get excreted, or possibly even become toxic for the liver or kidneys.

The nutrients and anti microbial benefits of micro greens, opens up a whole new world in food preparation. In my opinion, the use of fresh herbs not only helps build and restore the immune system, but also helps prevent or heal infections, increase metabolic energy levels, and enhances the gut health and mood.

Closely related to the use of fresh culinary herbs, essential oils, derived from plants and trees, are also very positive additions to daily routines. Recently I read that rosemary oil is being used to enhance memory. I love the smell of rosemary, marjoram and many others. But I don’t like the smell of Neem and tea tree oil, both of which are good disinfectants. Neem can be added to a bit of coconut oil and used as mosquito repellant. I have also read Neem is good for many skin conditions.

For those of us who want to stay away from pharmaceuticals, including OTC medications, this herbal health concept is not new. However, now is a good time to take a renewed interest, in how to make food full of good benefits for people of all ages. It gives us some avenues to help maintain our autonomy over our health, and keep ourselves healthy in a holistic way.

In my experience so far, the addition of the herbs, and the range of essential oils, has reduced the iritis flare ups, and improved my vision. If the benefits in relation to a chronic condition are noticed within a few months, it convinces me that adding these extra plant derivatives – is probably helping in other ways too.

It just goes to show you – the little things in life can make a big difference!