High blood sugar? Use Oregano & Rosemary to lower your blood sugar!
Keeping your blood sugar at healthy levels is extremely important for the overall health of your body. Healthy sugar levels mean very low inflammation. Yes inflammation and sugar go hand in hand. The higher the sugar is in your body the higher the level of inflammation will be. Well, I have good news for you. Did you know that a new study published on the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry from the University of Illinois has found that some aromatic spices can help you keep your blood sugar low?
The powerful spices seem to be Greek oregano (Origanum vulgare), Mexican oregano (Lippia graveolens), marjoram (Origanum majorana) and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Apparently they are concentrated sources of bioactive compounds called flavonoids that work by inhibiting specific enzymes called PTP1B and DPP-IV that promote high blood sugar, therefore associated to diabetes. These enzymes inhibit the secretion of insulin and it seems that some flavonoids contained in these spices, whether the herbs are fresh or dried, are capable of stopping the action of these enzymes just like some anti-diabetes drugs do. Overall, the herbs contain several flavonoids that inhibit DPP-IV and should be investigated further regarding their potential in diabetes management.
Today we can start adding oregano and rosemary to our dishes. Oregano goes very well with tomatoes, cucumber, zucchini, eggplants, meats and fish. A simple sauce with oregano that we do in Italy is Pizzaiola. All you do is sauté’ one or more garlic cloves (peeled and chopped for a stronger flavor) and a tsp. of oregano in a tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil on medium heat. After a minute or so add a pint of fresh cherry tomatoes halves, stir fast and smash the tomatoes. Lower the heat and cook for about 10 minutes. Add sea salt and black pepper to taste. You can use this sauce over pasta, fish, poultry, meat and eggs.
Really it goes with everything. You can also make the same sauce using rosemary which goes very well over chicken, potatoes and lamb. For more recipes with these beautiful spices to help you keep your blood sugar low check our website www.healthylivingbylucia.com and if you have a recipe of your own that you would like to share please post it, we would love to try it!
