Foods That Double As Medicine

Buckwheat honey for a cough

Buckwheat honey is better than cough syrup for nocturnal cough in kids. This is an especially useful food-as-medicine for children under 6 but older than age 1, who are ill-advised to take over-the-counter cough medicines.



Pickled foods for diarrhea

Fermented foods include yogurt, kefir, pickled vegetables, miso, kimchi and poi. These foods contain living bacteria that help maintain the health of the digestive tract, said Dr. Gerard Mullin, associate professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and author of "The Gut Balance Revolution."

These bacteria-filled foods can be used to prevent and treat antibiotic-associated diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, infantile diarrhea, eczema and allergies. The hottest use of fermented foods is to burn stubborn fat.



Ginger for menstrual cramps

Ginger is a pungent spice originating from Southeast Asia. "As a digestive disease specialist I frequently recommend the spice ginger in the form of tea for nausea and abdominal discomfort," said Mullin.

Ginger could also be a helpful food-as-medicine for women. Ginger works as well as ibuprofen for menstrual cramps. It works taken as a ginger capsule or chewed.


Peppermint for IBS

Think beyond candy canes and chewing gum. Peppermint is also found in supplement, essential oil and tea forms. When used medicinally, peppermint is prescribed to help treat abdominal cramping and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

The most interesting about peppermint is that when compared to the various medical therapies for IBS, peppermint is the most effective and the least toxic.

Peppermint oil is effective -- and could be the first line of treatment -- against irritable bowel syndrome, according to a 2005 scientific review of 16 clinical trials.



Hibiscus tea for high blood pressure

"Hibiscus tea has a greater anti-hypertensive effect than blueberries," said La Puma. Infused as an herbal tea, hibiscus flowers contain anthocyanins, which could help to lower blood pressure.

The steeples of the flower are dried and made into a tea drink, which has a tart cranberry taste, La Puma said.

Multiple studies back up the blood-pressure-lowering abilities of hibiscus, including one published in the Nigerian Journal of Physiological Sciences.



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