The sweet and delicately flavored inner bark of an evergreen tree, Cinnamon was one of the most sought-after spices of Asia. The best variety of Cinnamon (there are more than a hundred species of Cinnamon) is believed to grow along the coastal strips of Ceylon, near Colombo. The use of Cinnamon as a delicate flavoring agent is seen in documents that date back to ancient India and Greece. In Egypt, Cinnamon was used for embalming bodies. No wonder then that in ancient Egypt, Cinnamon was considered to be more precious than gold.
From these ancient cultures, Cinnamon made its journey to other parts of the world. It finds its place in many recipes of Medieval Europe. It even inspired a number of exploration enterprises and conquests in the olden times.
The sweetish and slightly tangy taste of Cinnamon not only adds flavor to food. According to research, consuming even as little as a half teaspoon of cinnamon every day is supposed to significantly reduce the level of triglycerides in the blood, and thus lower cholesterol levels. Cinnamon also helps to lower the level of blood sugar in patients suffering from Type 2 Diabetes. Cinnamon is also mildly carminative and can be used to treat mild cases of nausea, indigestion and flatulence. The spicy tangy taste also helps reduce nausea felt due to motion sickness.
Cinnamon was used in ancient traditional medicine to help fight diarrhea, singly and in combination with other herbs. Chinese traditional medicine prescribed a tonic made from cinnamon for the kind of productive cough appearing in older people.
Chewing and swallowing a pinch of cinnamon not only fights bad breath, it also helps digestion and clears any blockages in the respiratory system. Cinnamon is therefore usually prescribed for people who suffer from loss of appetite or indigestion.
Cinnamon is traditionally used to fight flatulent dyspepsia, intestinal colic and dyspepsia with nausea. A very mild dose of cinnamon can even be effective in cases of infantile diarrhea.
The compound contained within this herb increases and stimulates the flow of blood to the extremities. Thus it is helpful for people who suffer from cold hands and feet. The essential oil extracted from this herb also has antibacterial and antifungal properties.
Also known as Cassia or Sweet Wood, Cinnamon has various properties that make it an all time favorite among herbalists. Its smell stimulates the senses but has a soothing effect on the nerves. Cinnamon is even used as a rinsing agent for hair and added to pouches to keep moths away.
Cinnamon leaves are used in the form of powder or decoction. They are stimulant and useful in relieving flatulence and in increasing secretion and discharge of urine. Cinnamon prevents nervous tension, improves complexion and memory. A pinch of cinnamon powder mixed with honey does the trick if taken regularly every night for these purposes.
Common Cold
Cinnamon is an effective remedy for common cold. Coarsely powdered and boiled in a glass of water with a pinch of pepper powder and honey, it can be beneficially used as medicine in cases of influenza, sore throat, and malaria. Its regular use during the rainy season prevents attacks of influenza. Cinnamon oil, mixed with honey, gives relief from cold.
Digestive Disorders
Cinnamon checks nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. It stimulates digestion. A tablespoon of cinnamon water, prepared as for cold and taken half an hour after meals, relieves flatulence and indigestion.
Bad breath
Cinnamon serves as a good mouth freshener.
Headache
Headache produced by exposure to cold air is readily cured by applying a paste of finely powdered cinnamon mixed in water on the temples and forehead.
Acne
Paste of cinnamon powder prepared with a few drops of fresh lime juice can be applied over pimples and blackheads with beneficial results.
Other Diseases
Cinnamon is highly beneficial in the treatment of several other ailments, including spasmodic afflictions, asthma, paralysis, excessive menstruation, uterus disorders and gonorrhea. It is sometimes used as a prophylactic agent, to control German measles.
Other Uses of Cinnamon
Natural Birth Control
Cinnamon can be used for natural birth-control. It has the remarkable effect of checking the early release of ova after child-birth. A piece of cinnamon taken every night for a month after child-birth delays menstruation for more than 15 to 20 months thus preventing early conception. It indirectly helps the secretion of breast milk. Prolonged breast feeding checks the restarting of menstruation after child-birth, according to studies.
Dried cinnamon leaves and inner bark are used for flavoring cakes and sweets and in curry powder. They are also used in incense, dentifrices and perfumes. Cinnamon bark oil is used for flavoring confectionery and liqueurs. It is also used in pharmaceutical and dental preparations. Cinnamon leaf oil is used in perfumes and flavorings as also in the synthesis of vanillin.
USES
The anti-viral and stimulating properties of the volatile cinnamon oil is the prime reason for the medicinal value of the herb and the oil is the single most important product from the plant as far as its use in herbal medicine is concerned.
The herbal remedies made from the cinnamon can help in relieving cramps, they can help in alleviating colic, and they also act as an herbal relaxant, helping reduce the general anxiety and stress in affected patients. The volatile oil of the cinnamon contains a chemical called eugenol which can aid in relieving pain in the body, particularly in such instances as when it is used as a liniment during the treatment of arthritis, this chemical is also helpful in reducing the pain of a toothache as it deadens the nerve ending. At the same time, the remedial properties of the plant come into full effectiveness against disorders such as persistent headaches, against muscle pain and neuralgia in the body.
The herbal remedies based on the cinnamon plant are also useful stimulants of the digestive system and have a warming effect on the body, they are also very useful in cases of weakened digestion in the digestive system, the remedies are also useful against colic, in the treatment of griping pains, in the treatment of disorders such as diarrhea, and in the treatment of nausea and vomiting, as well as in alleviating excess wind and distension in the abdominal region. Other chemicals in the plant also come into play and give the herbal remedy many unique properties, for example, an astringent action is ascribed to the tannins, this property of the herb is also successful in stemming the bleeding during heavy nosebleeds, it can be used to stanch heavy periods and aids in resolving diarrhea and problems such as catarrhal congestion in different patients. Excess perspiration can also be stopped if the cinnamon is taken as a cold herbal remedy.
Cinnamon was traditionally used as a herbal warming agent, in the herbal medicine of both India and Europe, the herb was a treatment for "cold" conditions and was believed to induce warmth in the patient, cinnamon remedies were traditionally also taken combined with some ginger - spp. Zingiber officinale to induce the warmth in the body. Circulation in the body is stimulated by the herb, and the remedy is particularly relevant to the circulation in the fingers and toes - when such extremities of the body become to cold. Traditional healers also made extensive use of the herbal cinnamon based remedies as a treatment for all sorts of digestive problems, specifically in the treatment of nausea, to treat cases of vomiting and diarrhea, it was also used in the treatment of various aches, to treat cramped muscles and in the treatment of other symptoms ascribed to viral infections such as the common cold and flu.
Cinnamon is also used extensively and as a specific herbal remedy in patients with debilitations, it is also a major herbal remedy during the convalescence process from physical and mental injuries.
Menstrual bleeding is also encouraged by the herb and it is believed to posses a slight emmenagogic ability - thus capable of aiding in the active stimulation of the uterus in women affected by menstrual problems. The contraceptive action of the cinnamon is made use of in India, and the herb is usually taken by women following childbirth in this role as a guard against early pregnancy.
Other medical uses
Altitude sickness, Tennis elbow.
HABITAT AND CULTIVATION
The plant grows best in tropical forest with an altitude of 1500 ft or 500 meters, wild populations of the plant originally grew only in India and Sri Lanka, however, the cinnamon is now grown in many other areas of the world with similar climates. For examples, the West Indies and the Philippines now have extensive areas dedicated to the cultivation of the cinnamon, such plantations are found in many other tropical regions of the world as well. Cuttings of the plant are taken and used in propagations in many of these plantations; such cuttings are done once every second year in the rainy season, when the young cinnamon trees are cut to just above ground level in controlled cultivation. When harvesting of the bark is done, the harvested bark is usually exposed to fermentation processes for twenty four hours at a stretch, and harvesting is usually done from the stump shoots. The inner bark of the cinnamon is revealed as the outer bark is scraped clean and the plant is left to regenerate new bark during the next growing season.
No comments:
Post a Comment