Common spices kill germs in food

WHEN people talk about getting "food poisoning", they usually mean they became ill because of bacteria that contaminated something they ate. Some who come down with this kind of foodborne disease simply has an upset stomach. But in far too many cases, serious health problems and even death can occur, especially in very young children, the elderly and people who are already ill.
But now scientists have found a way to protect against three of the top culprits ( E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria) behind foodborne sickness. The solution isn't some new chemical treatment or drug. Instead, it's the same thing ancient cultures used and traditional healers have recommended down through the ages - common spices.

In a study just published in the Journal of Food Science, researchers at Processed Foods Research and Produce Safety and Microbiology (USDA), investigated the effectiveness of oregano, allspice and garlic essential oils (EOs) against disease-causing E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria. The EOs were incorporated into thin, tomato-based coatings known as edible films which were layered on top of the bacteria. The disease-causing germs were also exposed to vapours rising up from the EOs in the tomato film.

The results of this research showed that all three essential oils were effective, natural barriers against E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria, although there were some differences between the three EOs. Garlic, for example, did little to stop E. coli or Salmonella but delivered a knock out punch against Listeria.

Like to take in the yummy aromas of food flavoured with herbs and spices? It turns out, according to the researchers' vapour tests, that oregano and allspice oils work best to kill bacteria as the spice EOs diffuse through the air. Those two spices proved especially good at zapping E. coli and Salmonella. Overall, oregano oil was particularly powerful — it consistently inhibited the growth of all three foodborne-illness causing germs tested.

In another recent study, also published in the Journal of Food Science, the same group of USDA researchers found that EOs from cinnamon, allspice and cloves also can protect food from a host of bacteria. The scientists placed allspice, cinnamon and clove bud oils in edible films of apple puree. Then, after 24 and 48 hours, they documented the antimicrobial properties of the essential oils.

The results showed Salmonella was most vulnerable to the natural EOs. What's more, even very low concentrations (one percent and 1.5 per cent) of allspice and clove bud oils suppressed the growth of Listeria. Overall, cinnamon oil was significantly greater than allspice and clove bud oils against not only Salmonella but also Listeria and E. coli.

According to the McCormick Institute of Science, there is abundant historical documentation that herbs and spices have been used down through the ages for medicinal purposes, to keep food fresh, and to enhance the taste of foods. In fact, unlike so-called "advanced" modern Western culture, ancient civilisations did not distinguish between spices and herbs used for flavouring from those used for health benefits.

Find the balance
You`ve no doubt heard the phrase "everything in moderation." It`s hard to find anyone that follows this maxim religiously; everyone falls off the wagon now and again, whether it's eating too much or exercising too little. But the one place in which you really need to follow this maxim as closely as possible is when it comes to alcohol.

A new study always seems to be coming out hailing the health benefits of alcohol consumption, like how it can lower the risk for lung cancer. But just as you're about to celebrate this fine finding with a glass of wine, another study comes out that contradicts it, ending the party before it even began.
Take prostate cancer as an example. In 2007, a study was published in Harvard Men`s Health Watch, and it reported that men who consumed four to seven good-sized goblets of red wine cut their risk of prostate cancer by 52 per cent compared to those who don`t drink red wine at all.

Fast forward to two years later and head west. In a study out of the University of California San Francisco and published in the journal Cancer, researchers found that people who drink heavily are at twice the risk for prostate as those who drink sparingly.

How can something so beneficial to preventing prostate cancer be so permitting of prostate cancer at once? Well, it all boils down to how much was drunk.
In the first study, those who cut their risk drank only four to five drinks of red wine - over the course of a week. In the second study, people who increased their risk drank four to seven drinks over the course of a day - for five or more days a week.

Now, the Harvard study found that with every extra drink of red wine, the risk of prostate cancer dropped by six per cent. This would seem to suggest that more may be a good thing after all, but the University of California study puts this misperception in its proper place.

Moderation is crucial in all things. The aforementioned studies serve as good examples of how something so beneficial to avoiding health hazards can create health hazards if it`s abused.

Remember though that alcohol is a toxin to the body. Overall it places strain on the liver and other bodily systems. The beneficial effects attributed to red wine (as mentioned in the studies above) don't really have anything to do with the alcohol itself, but rather with the naturally occurring phytonutrients (plant nutrients) and antioxidants in the wine. Of course, these phytonutrients originally came from the grapes that were used to produce the wine, and hence one may wonder - why not simply consume the red grapes and hence avoid the negative affects of the actual alcohol, while still gain the benefits of all those wonderful phytonutrients?




Source : www.zambiapost.com