Curry Leaves: 7 Reasons To Add This Magic Herb To Your Meals Today

Have You Added This Magic Herb To Your Meals?

By Luke Coutinho Nutrition, 2023 antibiotics, cholesterol, cognitive disorders, curry leaf, curry leaf oil, Curry leaves, curry leaves benefits, curry leaves for cholesterol, curry leaves for diabetes, curry leaves for digestion, curry leaves for eye health, curry leaves for hair, curry leaves for skin, herbal curry leaf oil 0 Comments

From dals and sabzis to chutneys and salads, this Indian superfood is found in various preparations. Most of you have probably been eating daily. If you don’t, but want to start eating this superfood, you can add it to your lifestyle starting today. It is easily available in any part of the world. You can grow it at home. You don’t need a garden, just a small pot near your window sill. I am speaking about curry leaves.

curry leaves magic herb benefits — Curry leaves. Photo Credit: Pixabay/Rajesh Balouria

The benefits of curry leaves

Curry leaves were used in ancient India and continue to be an integral part of our culture and cuisine even today. The curry leaf is a superfood rich in iron, calcium, vitamin A, most of the B vitamins spectrum, and so on. Chewing on them can help you sharpen your memory and aid skin issues.

How to add curry leaves to your lifestyle?

You can add curry leaves as tempering to a variety of sabzis, dals, curries, or chutneys.
People add curry leaves with a pinch of cumin (jeera) powder and chili to their buttermilk as well in many locations in North India.
You can add curry leaves to your daily vegetable juice.
Many people dry curry leaves or even chew on them raw.
You can even opt to dry your curry leaves and grind them into a powder. You can sprinkle that powder into your lentils, khichdi, and other preparations.

For weight loss

Did you know curry leaves can help with weight loss? Now chewing curry leaves endlessly without making any lifestyle changes won’t work. You must look at other aspects of your current lifestyle like your nutrition, movement, sleep, and emotional health.

But how do curry leaves help? They improve digestion. Many people today struggle to lose weight because they have poor digestive systems. The more metabolically efficient your digestive system is, the faster you can break down food, assimilate, and absorb it. And the fewer chances you have of undigested food staying in your system. Most of this undigested food is stored as fat and causes inflammation in your body. So, adding curry leaves to your meals can help.

For diarrhea, dysentery, and constipation

If you have a case of the runs, dysentery, diarrhea, or constipation – use curry leaves. Boil these leaves to make a concoction and drink this liquid. You can also opt to boil these leaves, then make a paste and mix it into your food. You can alternatively consume this plain with a little bit of jaggery.

Struggling with morning sickness or nausea? Curry leaves can be good for you.

Many pregnant women who experience morning sickness and nausea have noticed that increasing their consumption of curry leaves can help manage these symptoms.

We also recommend curry leaves for our patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation to reduce nausea. Nausea can be a big issue when one is going through these treatments. It can decrease your appetite. We all know that if you are going through chemo or radiation, or even if you are pregnant, you need to eat well to maintain a healthy weight.

For immunity and gut health

Curry leaves are highly antibacterial and can help you with your immune system. We always suggest those undergoing an antibiotic course take a B-complex or a Becosule and a probiotic. We also ask them to increase their consumption of curry leaves. It is crucial to replenish your gut because antibiotics (in their honest attempt to get rid of bad bacteria) can deplete many of your good gut bacteria. The faster you replenish this bacteria, the better it is for your gut and immune system because 80% of immunity lies here.

For diabetics

We insist that diabetics add curry leaves to their meals. They can have some curry leaf chutney as an accompaniment to their meals. Why? It is rich in trace minerals like copper, iron, and zinc that help reduce blood sugar levels, especially post meals.

For eye health

Curry leaves are great for your eyes because they are rich in vitamin A (retinol). A deficiency of Vitamin A can cause night blindness, loss of vision, and so on.

For healthy hair

Curry leaves are magical when they come to your hair health. This may explain why it is used religiously across civilizations to maintain beautiful hair. Curry leaves are rich in beta-carotene, proteins, iron, calcium, vitamin C, and phosphorus. They are particularly effective to prevent hair loss and premature graying.

One of the best treatments for your hair is mixing coconut oil and curry leaves.

How to do this?

Take a cup of coconut oil and boil curry leaves in them until the oil becomes thick and absorbs everything from the curry leaf. You can apply that to your hair. It is great for your scalp, dandruff, thinning, falling hair, and even premature graying hair. You can store this homemade oil for 3 to 6 months.
You can also alternate curry leaves with dried curry leaf powder. Apply it to your hair 3 or 4 times a week.

Also, check out this 4-ingredient magic oil

This 4-ingredient oil combines these powerhouse ingredients that can address several hair woes, especially premature graying and hair fall.

Ingredients

500 ml of cold-pressed or wood-pressed mustard oil
200 ml of cold-pressed coconut oil (non-perfumed)
1 tbsp methi/fenugreek powder
1 tbsp of curry leaf powder or a handful of curry leaves.

Method

Mix everything and store it in a clean glass bottle for a week to infuse.

How to use it?

Take the required amount of infused oil and heat it lightly.
Once it becomes lukewarm, gently massage it onto the scalp and along the lengths of your hair.
Keep for 1 to 2 hours before bathing. You can also apply it overnight and cover it with a shower cap. Wash your hair with a mild chemical-free shampoo.
Do this twice a week.

DIY – Herbal Oil Mix

Ingredients:

500 ml coconut oil (unrefined, unperfumed)
2 tbsp neem leaves (dried)
2 tbsp curry leaves (dried)
1 tbsp amla pieces (dried) or dried amla powder
2 tsp kalonji/nigella seeds/onion seeds
½ tbsp fenugreek/methi seeds
2 tbsp castor oil

Method:

Take coconut oil, dried amla, fenugreek seeds, curry leaves, neem leaves, and kalonji in an iron wok.
Heat it for 4 minutes.
Once the mixture turns black, switch off the flame.
Leave it out overnight.
Strain it well the next day. Add castor oil to this mixture.
Store in an airtight bottle.

How to use it?

Heat the oil a little before application. Massage it onto the scalp and leave it for a few hours before rinsing with a mild shampoo. You can also opt to use fresh amla and curry leaves. But ensure they are not wet when you use them. You can also add shikakai, hibiscus flowers, and tulsi leaves, as per availability.

For cholesterol

Curry leaves are loaded with carbazole alkaloids that have antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties. Anything that contains carbazole alkaloids can help you control cholesterol production in the liver. Curry leaves, amla, ginger, garlic, onion, flaxseeds, and sesame seeds are all rich in these alkaloids and can help you reduce cholesterol production.

For improved digestion

Curry leaves are great for your digestion because they help stimulate the production of digestive enzymes. Most people have indigestion because they don’t produce the right amount of digestive enzymes to break down carbohydrates, fats, and proteins from their meals effectively.

Try making a simple salad with tomato, onion, a pinch of chili powder, and roasted curry leaves. It is not only great in taste but acts as a nice appetizer to your meal to stimulate digestive enzymes.

For cognitive disorders

We also recommend using curry leaves extensively for those with Alzheimer’s, dementia, Parkinson’s, and other cognitive brain disorders. Anything rich in the spectrum of B vitamins is good for your brain. This may explain why I constantly emphasize that you check your Vitamin B12 levels. It plays an important role in your cognitive brain and neurological functions. We have observed how those with chronically low B12 levels are more likely to end up with Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other cognitive disorders.

The bottom line

Start adding curry leaves to your meals creatively. Encourage your kids to chew on them or if they do not like eating them, add curry leaf powder to their preparations. They will ingest it without even knowing! If you have unique recipes that use curry leaves, share them in the comments.

Shop for quality and ethically grown curry leaves here.