We talk about food as a source of nutrition that will prevent health problems but what is more interesting is how food has been used in the place of medicine over the years to actually cure certain ailments! The Chinese, Indians and Africans have been noted for the prevalent use of food as medicine in their culture.

I remember the times in my childhood when I had heavy cold and my mom would give me this cup of tomato garlic soup !!  A spicy concoction that by some magic used to cure my cold overnight!!  Here are some traditional remedies were your food becomes your medicine:

Food as medicine for Cough, Cold and Breathing Problems

The food that substitutes medicine in Indians tradition to cure the common cold and cough is a cup of Black Tea with a tablespoon of honey, juice of ginger root and half a lemon – Ginger and honey have anti oxidant properties which together acts as an expectorant and the lemon juice gives an additional dose of Vitamin C. You can also use gooseberries that are extremely rich in Vitamin C too is taken as medicine. Another remedy is honey mixed with crushed Basil. The food that Chinese use as a medicine for curing cough is a little more difficult to take. Dried Gecko heated in rice wine. They are even meant to cure asthma and kidney problems

Food as Medicine for Digestive Problems

Another commonly used food as a medicine is ginger. In addition to the fact that it adds great flavor to the dishes it is added to this wonderful herb is also supposed to be a good cure  for both stomach acidity and motion sickness. In fact in China, a mixture of ginger cooked in wine and sesame oil is given to women shortly after giving birth. Dried Tangerine peel is also used in China to aid digestion. A glass of vegetable juice, white pumpkin or green gourd is great at curing acidity.

Food as Medicine for Cholesterol, Pressure and Diabetics

The Chinese Black Mushrooms that are used in many Chinese soups are believed to help in lowering blood pressure. The Sea Cucumber seen in many Chinese seafood recipes is believed to contain minerals that improves blood circulation disorders and lowers blood pressure.

Chewing a clove of garlic first thing in the morning helps in reducing cholesterol while fenugreek seeds soaked overnight and consumed on an empty stomach in the morning can help check the progress of diabetes!!

Guess we only need to head to the fridge and not the pharmacy the next we have a problem. After all it does look like Hippocrates comment about food is true!“Let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food”

Check out this link for some more interesting trivia about usage of food as medicines