Chicory is especially great for your liver and digestive tract

Saturday, February 22, 2014 by: P. Simard
Tags: chicory root, healthy digestion, constipation remedies

(NaturalNews) Chicory is one of the many herbs derived from the daisy family. In the past, the Romans believed it was a great plant to cleanse the blood but it's in ancient Egypt where people first discovered its main perks, as they noted it was extremely helpful to maintain healthy livers and gallbladders. Actually in more recent years, the Zoology Department at Mansoura University in Egypt revealed that chicory may help diminish oxidative stress and liver injury in certain circumstances. Since the early days, many other incredible health benefits have been discovered and some were thoroughly validated by science.

This plant invigorates and strengthens the digestive and urinary systems. It is also quite beneficial for the kidneys and the spleen. It seems to trigger some sort of hypoglycemic effect and it may be appropriate to add it to your diet if your goal is to lose some weight while cleansing your organism. Last but not least, chicory can also have a calming and regulating effect on the heart rate.

As it increases the flow of bile, chicory empowers the digestive system by facilitating, amongst other things, the breakdown of fats. It also has a rather high concentration of a soluble fiber called inulin which plays an important role in digestion by nourishing the surrounding flora.

It is believed that the presence of inulin can help stabilize blood sugar levels while also encouraging more consistent and bulkier stools that by extent contribute to the proper elimination of toxins. A study published in the Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition in 2001 certainly corroborated the initial hypothesis.

Chicory's hypoglycemic effect and its relation to weight loss

The British Journal of Nutrition wrote a paper back in 2005 describing the impact that polymers such as inulin or oligofructose have in the intestinal tract. Since it promotes the secretion of certain gastrointestinal peptides responsible for appetite regulation, it is believed that the chicory root can possibly help control obesity and even diabetes.

The International journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition wrote in 2011 that chicory can provide substantial relief to the elderly suffering from constipation. They reported that based on results following clinical trials involving a group of constipated volunteers, researchers established that 15g of chicory added to an elder's daily diet can efficiently improve the intestinal flora and therefore ease the elimination process.

In 1999 the Journal of Nutrition reported scientific research that showed how fructooligosaccharides (oligofructose) were able to reduce the low density lipoproteins, also known as bad cholesterol, by obstructing the process through which hepatic fatty acids are generally synthesized.

On a final note, researchers demonstrated in a 28-day study on rats that salmonella strains could not survive when faced with large quantities of chicory root extracts. It was also reported that no side effects were discovered from the use of such high amounts.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.medicalhealthguide.com/herb/chicory.htm

http://science.naturalnews.com

About the author:
After spending several years working in property management, P. Simard is now focusing on being a naturopath in Quebec.