When you are sick, a warm bowl of soup often heals the soul and the sickness . Many of us consider soup to be “comfort food”, whether chicken noodle, vegetable or your grandmother’s favorite throw everything in the pot soup.
So what really are the health benefits of soup. For months we have been screaming that food has to be your medicine. The only way that you can get good nutritional value from your food is to know and supply what is in it. We are not saying stop taking your medicine. We’re just saying let food be your medicine. For example, did you know that yellow root tea works great for lowering the blood pressure and blood sugar? Why not incorporate this into your diet. You may find that you need less and less of your medication. Now, consider adding this to your food in a soup or a soup broth. Guess what? You just made your food your medicine. We have been actively advocating cooking more and home and growing vegetables as well in your home. At Laeh Shea Apothecary, we started growing salad green and herbs hydroponically. It’s so great to really taste how lettuce taste when it is chemical-free. Even more so, how healthy it is to consume daily. So food as medicine is good for the body and good for the oul.
Fighting a cold
Do you know that one of the largest studies conducted on does soup heal revealed that soup doesn’t just warm you up and make you feel good. Eating soup inhibited the movement of neutrophils which are the white cells in the body that help fight infection. A boost in white blood count can make a cold recovery time much earlier. Given the new Flu strains and Coronaviruses if chicken noodle soup is the cure, count me in. Nutritionally, soup, in general, provides the body with a boost of vitamin A, minerals, selenium, and other antioxidants. Warm liquids in general, are helpful for hydration, the thinning of mucus and the clearing of nasal passages. Adding vitamins to any soup boosts the vitamin intake and we are all short on vitamins due to the cooking process of our foods because vegetables cooked in soup produce broth that you don’t dispose of. Win- win for the body.
Immunity and Healing
Who doesn’t want to feel better these days with so many illnesses? If by adding tumeric, ginger, basil, and other herbs to soups increases your life by 5 to 10 years, why are you not doing. I’m not saying anything new or anything you haven’t heard, but you haven’t been motivated to do so. My mother never used these herbs so how could they taste good and make me feel better. Well, I learned that my mom was a great cook, but terrible at making healthy meals. I’ve learned that meals can taste good and be good for you so I want to encourage you to make food your medicine. Soup is the easiets way to start. boost their immune system? Soup with the right ingredients, eaten regularly, can provide boost to your immune system and work as an anti-inflammatory.
Ingredients matter. Here are a few that have great benefits:
- Cabbage can increase your body’s ability to fight infection.
- Olive oil is anti-inflammatory and cancer fighting
- Tumeric is the BOMB! helps everything!
- Ginger supports healthy digestion.
- Seaweed cleanses the body and improves iron
- Shiitake mushrooms increases your immune function.
- Sweet potatoes provide beta-carotene for eye health.
Weight loss and weight management
Soups are typically low in calorie and you can kind of indulge with the veggie soups. The liquid and amount of vegetables typically found in soup recipes mean that if you’re counting calories or simply trying to keep your weight at a healthy level, soup can be a great choice. Avoid cream-based soups, add plenty of beans, lean or meat substitutes and veggies and you’ll have a very healthy meal to fight the battle of the bulge.
If you are in the Columbus, GA area stop into Laeh Shea Apothecary and try one of our delicious soups or order online.