Tsikoriy

Chicory is a biennial, sometimes perennial herb of the Asteraceae or Asteraceae family. The homeland of the plant is the Mediterranean. Chicory is common in temperate climates, does not like high humidity. Found in New Zealand, America, North Africa, Eurasia, Australia. It grows wild on forest edges, along country roads, in meadows, wastelands.

On an industrial scale, 2 types of chicory are cultivated – ordinary and salad. The root of the plant is used as a coffee substitute and is a natural source of inulin. The polysaccharide is prescribed as an additive to the general treatment for diabetes mellitus, osteochondrosis, arthritis, obesity, VT problems, atherosclerosis, kidney stones. The leaves of cultivated species are added to salads to improve the taste of dishes and served as a side dish for meat.

Botanical description

The plant has a tap root that penetrates deep into the soil. The leaves are oblong, narrowed or rounded at the ends with a distinct vein. A rigid vertical stem is formed in the second year of life. The flowers are concentrated in baskets, blue (rarely pinkish or white). They are located on a short individual stalk. The flowers are bisexual, large, reed, open sequentially upwards. The fruit consists of short scales, five-sided with a tuft.

Chemical composition

Chicory leaves and root are a source of mineral potassium salts, sugars, lactones and inulin. The vitamin composition is represented by carotene, ascorbic and chicoric acid, B-group vitamins. The bitter taste of the leaves is due to the content of the glycoside intibin.

The composition of the root includes coumarins, flavonoids, glycosides, unsaturated sterols, triterpenoids, tannins. Pyrocatechin aldehyde, inulin and fatty oil are concentrated in the seeds of the plant. The flowers are rich in the coumarin glycoside chicorin, which breaks down into esculetin and glucose upon hydrolysis. Milky juice contains taraxasterol, lactucopicrin, sesquiterpene lactones – lactucin.

Calorie content of the root – 378 calories, liquid thickened chicory extract – 263,8 calories, raw greens – 23 calories.

The energy ratio B : W : Y is 32% : 9% : 78%.

Due to the rich vitamin and mineral composition, chicory is used not only in traditional medicine, but also in cooking to improve the taste and fortify dishes. Young rosette leaves are added to salads, they are mashed, and the shoots of the plant are baked in dough, boiled, stewed or fried. Dried, ground roots are brewed instead of coffee products, used in the confectionery and canning industry in the form of syrup.

Useful Properties

Chicory exhibits general strengthening properties. Indicated for use by people with diseases of the kidneys, spleen, pancreas, nervous system, migraines, insomnia, psychological disorders. The plant has an antitumor effect. Lotions, compresses, fees, infusions, decoctions, teas for external use are prepared from it.

Beneficial features:

1. Gives strength, improves mood, energizes and vivacity. Chicory serves as a natural coffee substitute. It contains riboflavin, thiamine, biotin, which, unlike a caffeinated drink, have a calming effect on the nervous system, and not exciting.
2. Reduces blood sugar levels, speeds up metabolic processes, suppresses the feeling of hunger, prolongs the feeling of satiety (due to the content of inulin, triterpene, pectin in the composition). Therefore, people suffering from diabetes and obesity are advised to drink a healing drink regularly after breakfast and lunch.
3. Tones the skin, accelerates the restoration of collagen fibers. Chicory has bactericidal, anti-inflammatory properties, therefore it is used as a tincture for external use: it promotes wound healing, fights skin diseases (eczema, dermatitis, psoriasis).
4. Prevents dysbacteriosis, constipation. Inulin, which is part of chicory, is useful for intestinal microflora. Bifidobacteria living in the digestive tract feed on fiber. And inulin is a special type of dietary fiber.
5. Infusion of chicory root improves hair structure, stimulates their growth (when used externally).
6. Strengthens the immune system by cleansing the body of toxic substances and toxins, promotes the absorption of vitamins and minerals.
7. Normalizes the rhythm and increases the amplitude of heart contractions, dilates blood vessels, reduces the level of “bad” cholesterol. Chicory drink is extremely useful for atherosclerosis, ischemia, hypertension and tachycardia.
8. Prevents and treats anemia. Iron from chicory is well absorbed in the human body. At the same time, cow’s milk should not be added to the drink, since it reduces the absorption of the trace element. It is recommended to replace it with a vegetable equivalent – soy, coconut, nuts or rice.
9. Stimulates the excretion of bile, cleanses the liver and kidneys from toxins, parasites.

A decoction of chicory roots is recommended for pregnant women, as it prevents swelling, heartburn, nausea, and removes excess fluid. Thus, the plant reduces the symptoms of toxicosis, increases appetite, and provides regular bowel movements. In addition, freshly squeezed chicory juice nourishes the muscles of the eyes.

A natural coffee substitute is recommended for people with pancreatic diseases. In chronic pancreatitis, an infusion of chicory roots is allowed to be taken only in remission.

During an exacerbation of the disease, ensure complete rest for the organ, minimize the load on the pancreas. In the acute stage, refrain from products that stimulate the secretory function, as they can worsen your well-being and lead to complications (development of hepatic hypertension, jaundice, diabetes mellitus, inflammation of the pleura, brain damage, cancer, difficulty passing juices through the duodenum 12) .

Противопоказания

Despite a wide range of useful properties, chicory should not be taken by nursing mothers, since the components of the drink can reduce lactation in women and have a strong stimulating effect on the nervous system of infants. In addition, the drink exhibits tonic and immunological properties that can cause a severe allergic reaction in a baby through breast milk.

Contraindications:

• phlebeurysm;
• gastritis, ulcer;
• hemorrhoids;
• stones in the kidneys;
• gout, rheumatoid arthritis;
• vascular disorders;
• allergy to vitamin C;
• a course of antibiotic treatment;
• respiratory tract diseases.

In some people, a chicory drink can cause overexcitation of the nervous system, insomnia, and increased appetite.

On guard of a beautiful figure

Chicory – an assistant in the fight against extra pounds

The main properties of ground particles of plant roots that contribute to the process of losing weight:

1. Accelerate metabolism due to the abundance of insulin, pectin, intibin in plant materials.
2. Improve the absorption of fast carbohydrates.
3. Stimulate the burning of fat, the removal of excess fluid and processed toxins from the body.
4. Normalize stool.

To lose weight with chicory, the energy value of the daily diet should be reduced to 1500 calories. Without mandatory physical exercises and strict diets, the effect of the drink will help you get rid of 4 kg per month.

How to use

Drink daily 200 ml 3 times a day for 3-4 months 1 hour after the meal. Chicory not only removes cholesterol and improves metabolism, but also relieves excessive sweating.

How to prepare a drink

Method No. 1

1. Ground, dried plant root (5 g) boil for 10 minutes in 500 ml of water.
2. Remove the pot with broth from the stove, cover with a lid, leave for at least 2 hours.
3. Strain. To improve the taste, honey or cane sugar can be added to the warm solution.

Method No. 2

1. Buy instant chicory powder.
2. Pour 5 g of dry mixture into a glass, pour 200 ml of boiling water. Stir vigorously, wait 5 minutes.

Method No. 3

1. Boil 1 liter of water. Pour them with 2 cm of ginger root, half a lemon.
2. Leave the mixture overnight in a closed jar.
3. In the morning add 10 g of chicory root powder, 10 ml of honey. Mix the drink thoroughly. Take 30 minutes before meals throughout the day.

Method No. 4

1. Chicory powder (5 g) pour 150 ml of boiling water.
2. Mix the drink thoroughly and cool to 25 degrees.
3. Add 50 ml of freshly squeezed apple juice, honey.

To preserve the beneficial properties of chicory, after opening the package, the ground root (powder) is poured into a glass container and hermetically sealed with a lid to prevent moisture from entering the product.

Remember, only the root of the plant is used for weight loss, since its inflorescences stimulate appetite.

Traditional recipes

For medicinal purposes, all parts of chicory are used: roots, leaves, stems. Herbal preparations, powder, decoctions, infusions are prepared from them.

The plant has the following effects on the body:

• choleretic;
• anti-inflammatory;
• diuretic;
• antipyretic;
• antimicrobial;
• immunostimulating;
• hypoglycemic;
• antibacterial;
• fortifying;
• sedative;
• astringent;
• wound healing.

Folk methods of treating diseases with chicory

In diathesis

Recipe: 60 g of chicory roots finely chopped, pour 250 ml of boiling water, cook for half an hour. Cool the broth, strain. Use externally in baths or as a lotion.

For the treatment of the gallbladder, liver, kidneys, constipation

Cooking principle: pour 15 g of crushed root into 600 ml of hot water. Put the contents on fire. Boil 10 minutes. Cool the broth, strain. Take 3 times a day, 70 ml.

To improve digestion, with liver diseases

Pour the roots and dry leaves of chicory (30 g) with boiling water (1 l), cook for 5 minutes, leave to infuse for 30 minutes. Take 150 ml in the morning on an empty stomach and before meals in the evening.

For pain in the joints

Grind dry chicory root (20 g), pour 200 ml of water, put on fire, cook for a quarter of an hour over low heat. Bring to the original volume. Strain. Moisten gauze in a decoction, apply to sore joints.

With pancreatitis, hypertension, hepatitis, cholecystitis, cholelithiasis

Method of preparation: pour 10 g of dry chicory herb into 400 ml of water. Boil 10 minutes. Strain before use. The recommended dose is 100 ml 3 times a day.

With arrhythmia, edema of cardiac origin

The infusion does not need to be boiled. To prepare the product, 20 g of dry raw materials are poured into 200 ml of boiling water. The container is wrapped with a towel, insisted for 30 minutes, then filtered. Scheme of administration: 30 ml 3 times a day.

To increase appetite, eliminate eczema and boils, treat acne

The leaves and stems of the plant (dry or fresh) in a volume of 15 g are poured into 400 ml of boiling water. The infusion is wrapped, filtered after it has cooled. Take 50 ml 25 minutes before meals 3 times a day.

To eliminate skin problems, use externally to wash the affected area.

With anemia

Fresh turntables of the plant are thoroughly washed, scalded with boiling water, chopped in a blender or twisted in a meat grinder. The resulting mass is squeezed out. The juice is brought to a boil, boiled for 3 minutes, cooled. Store in a cold place with ambient temperature up to 8-10 degrees above zero. Before drinking, 5 ml of juice is dissolved in 100 ml of warm milk, 5 ml of honey is added. Take 3 times a day for a month.

With hemorrhoids

Chopped chicory root (5 g) pour 200 ml of hot water. Leave for an hour. Take 100 ml three times a day.

Thus, chicory is used in folk medicine for internal and external use. The plant prevents hair loss, improves their structure and growth, gives vitality, natural shine. In addition, decoctions of chicory root are used to eliminate purulent acne, acne treatment.

Natural beauty recipes

With alopecia

To prepare a decoction, 50 g of grass and crushed roots are poured with a glass of boiling water. Cook for 20 minutes, remove from heat, insist in a warm place for 8 hours (night). Pre-wash your hair, rub the decoction into the root zone, do not rinse.

To strengthen hair

Method of preparation: pour chicory roots (30 g) with boiling water (400 ml) and heat in a water bath for no more than 20 minutes. Then cool the broth, strain, bring to the original volume (top up with boiled water). Rinse washed hair regularly with the resulting solution.

For the treatment of acne

Pour dry chicory grass (15 g) with boiling water (200 ml), boil for 10 minutes, leave for 20 minutes. After cooling, strain the solution. Throw out the pulp. A cotton pad is moistened in a decoction, wipe the face 3 times a day: morning, afternoon, evening.

How to prepare

In order for the plant to bring maximum benefit to the body, medicinal drugs are collected at the time when they contain the most nutrients:

• roots – in the spring;
• leaves – from early spring to flowering;
• grass – when it is in bloom.

Chicory is harvested in ecologically clean areas in the morning, when the dew dries on it. It is important that industrial enterprises, garbage dumps, and busy highways are not located near the place where the plant grows. For harvesting, only the flowering part of the plant (without stems) is collected in dry weather.

In a two-year-old chicory, the quality of one-year roots is determined by the leaves: the younger and juicier the greens, the stronger they are. Harvesting should be done in the autumn season, when the top of the plant dries. Having found a good root without cracks and rotten roots, it is cleaned of clay, washed and dried in the sun. To speed up the process, additionally cut into pieces.

Store the dried root crop in cloth or paper bags, glass containers in a cool, dry place. The main thing is not in polyethylene.

Under proper storage conditions, chicory retains its beneficial properties for up to 3 years.

Conclusion

Chicory is a perennial plant with immunostimulating, anti-inflammatory, soothing, wound healing, choleretic and diuretic properties. The healing drink tastes like coffee, has a slight tonic and healing effect. With regular use, soluble chicory stimulates the gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular system, and alleviates the condition of patients suffering from cholecystitis and chronic pancreatitis.

The main benefit of the root is that it promotes the digestion of food, flushes out the accumulated bile from the body, which is especially important for patients with diseases of the digestive tract. In addition, chicory has a positive effect on the large intestine, kidneys and liver. It saturates the body with B vitamins, resins, macro- and microelements, organic acids and tannins, improves metabolism, and increases efficiency.

Due to the presence of inulin, chicory stabilizes the work of the pancreas, lowers blood sugar, relieves bloating and pain from the digestive system.

As a preventive measure, it is recommended to consume 200-400 ml of instant drink per day (based on 5-10 g of chicory powder per 200 ml of hot water).