Chicory gained particular popularity in Europe in the 18th century, when in Germany the gardener Tamme from Thuringia first made a drink from the root of this plant, which began to be used as an alternative to coffee. Although its cost was high, Europeans fell in love with it for its unusual taste and aroma.
The cultivation of chicory in Belarus and Russia began in the 17th and 18th centuries. It was used not only for its own needs, but also as an export product. So, from 1889 until the beginning of the First World War, 400 pounds of dry root were sent annually from Russia.
There are two varieties of the plant : common chicory (the root of which is used to prepare a drink) and lettuce (or endive, its leaves are used as food).
Today, interest in chicory has revived, and in this article we will talk about all the advantages, disadvantages and methods of preparing this plant.
Useful properties of chicory
The benefits of chicory for the body are primarily related to its composition. For example, its significant content of inulin (50-70%), used as a sweetener , makes it possible for people with diabetes to drink chicory drink without harm to their health. On the one hand, it is naturally sweet, and on the other, it does not increase blood glucose levels. In addition, inulin helps normalize the gastrointestinal tract and reduce cholesterol levels.
Chicory root is often used as a coffee substitute , as they are similar in taste and color. But there is no caffeine in it, so a drink from this plant can be used by people with cardiovascular diseases.
Eating chicory has undoubted benefits for people with diseases of the cardiovascular system: it helps dilate blood vessels, relieve attacks of tachycardia, and lower blood pressure.
The positive effect of chicory decoctions and tinctures in the treatment of skin diseases, inflammation, and wound healing is also known. The drink is rich in vitamins B, C, microelements (iron, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium). Thanks to this, the positive effects of chicory include a calming effect on the nervous system, increasing vitality and mood, and preventing anemia.
Chicory helps normalize liver function, remove gallstones and toxins from the blood.
To strengthen the muscular system of the eyes, a unique cocktail consisting of carrot, parsley and chicory juice is useful.
What are the benefits of chicory? Medicinal and beneficial properties of chicory for the human body
- Just one cup of chicory drink before eating will help improve appetite and also have a beneficial effect on the functioning of the digestive system in the human body. Chicory helps digest food better, promotes the production of gastric juice and helps with heartburn.
- The beneficial properties of chicory root for the liver are expressed in its cleansing and choleretic effect. Regular consumption of chicory drink helps dissolve gallstones.
- For diabetes mellitus, chicory is useful due to the high content of inulin in its composition (a natural sugar substitute), it helps to normalize metabolic processes and reduce blood sugar levels.
- A drink made from chicory will be useful for hypertension, as well as heart problems, as it has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the cardiovascular system and lowers blood pressure.
- Chicory-based tinctures are used to prepare lotions for wounds, as it has healing and disinfecting properties.
- Chicory coffee is good for the nervous system, has a calming effect and does not contain caffeine.
- The beneficial substances contained in chicory root make it a good anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial agent.
- Chicory is even useful for teeth; in some countries, toothpastes are made from it, which effectively clean plaque from tooth enamel and have an anti-inflammatory effect for gums.
The benefits and harms of chicory with milk
There is no clear answer to the benefits of chicory with milk; a lot depends on your body. With milk, this drink does not become healthier, the taste simply changes, and according to some opinions, drinking instant chicory with milk is even harmful, since they do not combine well with each other.
Benefits of chicory for men
For men, a drink made from soluble chicory will be useful for an active lifestyle. This coffee drink has a beneficial effect on the functioning of many organs, helps cleanse the body of toxins (relevant if alcohol is often consumed), and a drink made from chicory will be a useful replacement for those who like to drink coffee frequently throughout the day.
Benefits of chicory for women's health
- During pregnancy, chicory can be consumed in small quantities and not often, as an alternative if you want coffee, while the chicory drink will help cleanse the expectant mother’s body of toxins and harmful substances.
- When breastfeeding (nursing mothers), it is not recommended to use chicory, as it can affect lactation (reduce it) and cause allergies in the baby.
- Chicory is also used for weight loss, as this drink helps improve digestive processes and remove harmful substances and toxins from the body.
- Chicory for female beauty. The vitamin and mineral complex that is part of chicory has a beneficial effect on the health and beauty of the skin, while not only a coffee drink made from chicory is useful, but also various masks and medicinal baths based on the roots and leaves of this plant, and chicory-based shampoos will help improve health hair.
The benefits and harms of chicory for children
First, let's figure out at what age can children drink chicory? A drink made from soluble chicory begins to be given to children over the age of one year in small quantities and not often. In any case, before doing this, it is better to consult a doctor, and also, when your child drinks this drink for the first time, monitor his reaction (in rare cases, individual intolerance is possible).
A drink made from chicory root will help replenish the child’s body with some vitamins and microelements, improve appetite, and also help remove harmful substances from the body. In any case, chicory with milk will be a good substitute for coffee with milk, which many people like to drink.
Harmful properties and contraindications to the use of soluble chicory
Many healthy drinks and foods need to be taken in moderation, the same goes for chicory drink. Basically, there are no contraindications to its use; in rare cases, individual intolerance to this healthy drink is possible.
People who suffer from gastritis and have stomach or duodenal ulcers should be careful when consuming “green coffee” from chicory. Also, this coffee drink is not recommended for varicose veins (varicose veins), hemorrhoids and low blood pressure.
What is instant chicory made from?
To prepare a coffee drink from chicory, use ground roasted chicory root in the form of a powder, which in turn is made from a sublimated saturated infusion based on roasted chicory root, in other words, the sequence of production of chicory powder is as follows: grind the chicory root - fry it - brew a rich, strong infusion - from chicory infusion, the process of sublimation produces chicory powder, which is sold in stores and pharmacies.
You will also be interested in the articles: which chicory is better to buy and what are the benefits of instant coffee for human health.
In conclusion to the article, it can be noted that when choosing whether chicory is beneficial or harmful to human health, its beneficial properties will still win out, especially if you drink this drink instead of coffee. We leave our reviews about the beneficial properties of the chicory drink in the comments to the article and share it on social networks if it was useful to you.
Yulia Sabinova
Chief editor of the site. Cook, technologist, traveler. I love to cook, read interesting articles about cooking and proper nutrition, learn new things and share the most interesting things with others. I am glad to see you on the pages of the InfoEda website.
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Harm of chicory to the body
There are no contraindications to the use of chicory as such, but it should be taken with caution by people suffering from:
- liver diseases,
- respiratory system (chronic bronchitis, cough, asthma),
- gastrointestinal tract (gastritis, ulcer),
- urolithiasis,
- allergies.
People with a history of varicose veins, vascular disease, hemorrhoids, thrombophlebitis, asthma, bronchitis, and chronic cough should be careful. Due to the high content of vitamin C, chicory can cause aggravation of allergies.
When used simultaneously with antibiotics, their absorption in the gastrointestinal tract may be reduced. Therefore, it is better not to combine them with each other.
Particular attention should be paid to the quality of the product. Thus, if the quality of raw materials is low, unscrupulous manufacturers can add apple pectin instead of inulin and artificially enrich the drink with vitamins.
Contraindications
We know what benefits chicory has and now we will also determine the harm. The drink does not contain caffeine, but its intake has restrictions. Caution should be taken when drinking the drink if you have low blood pressure. People prone to varicose veins also need to drink chicory in limited quantities. Taking the infusion is prohibited for people with individual intolerance.
Drinks made from chicory
Most often, chicory root is used as food in one of three forms :
- liquid;
- soluble;
- ground fried.
Due to the peculiarities of production, liquid chicory retains a large amount of useful substances . In addition, it is in this form that it is most convenient to store it. How is liquid chicory made?
At the first stage of production, beneficial substances are extracted from the root of the plant, which, in fact, give the taste and aroma to the drink. This process is repeated several times. Each time, the extract obtained at the previous extraction stage is taken as the starting product. After several cycles, a large amount of water is obtained, which is not recycled, but is evaporated using a special evaporation unit. And only after all these manipulations are completed, liquid chicory extract is obtained.
The first stages of making soluble chicory are similar to the production of liquid chicory. First, the beneficial substances from the plant root are extracted, but instead of evaporating the remaining liquid, spray drying is performed. As a result, excess water disappears, and the dry residue is chicory powder.
It should be noted that soluble chicory is sensitive to storage conditions. At high humidity, it oxidizes with loss of beneficial properties and the formation of lumps. Therefore, preference should be given to vacuum packaging, which prevents the penetration of moisture.
Ground (or roasted) chicory is the most natural, healthy, tasty and aromatic of all types of chicory. As the name suggests, to make it, the root of the plant is crushed and fried. Actually, this is all the processing.
Beneficial properties of chicory, its composition and use in food
The plant is considered to be a weed. However, its leaves and roots contain: a large number of chemical ingredients that provide benefits. There are vitamins and organic compounds. People know about this and try to use it for health purposes.
What does chicory powder contain:
- A substance called inulin (roots contain 40-45%). What is inulin? This is a sweet carbohydrate. It consists of polysaccharide residues and, like starch, functions as an additional carbohydrate in the body.
By the way, it is not digested by intestinal enzymes. It is for this reason that he introduces a group called dietary fiber.
Inulin is an excellent environment for a group of bacteria called “prebiotics”, whose habitat is the intestines. You can learn about what function prebiotics perform in the human body from the article, which talks about how prebiotics differ from probiotics.
Due to its sweet taste, it is used in the manufacture of products as a sweetener. For this reason, the drink can be consumed by diabetics.
- Squirrels. They are assigned structural and mechanical tasks. They must maintain the cell shape in the desired state and participate in the nutrition process.
Proteins must supply the body with all the important amino acids involved in the biosynthesis of its proteins, or be broken down into energy. That is why, after drinking the drink, a person feels more energetic. It is worth watching a video about the benefits of chicory and how it can harm.
The presence of intibin glycoside gives the drink a certain bitterness. The content of this substance in the plant helps accelerate oxidation processes. In the human body, this component helps the process of fat breakdown.
- The tannins present in chicory should reduce the inflammatory process. These components also have the property of viscosity.
- Chicory contains many types of acids. This includes milk, sorrel, and benzoin.
There is also malic acid. The task of acids of organic origin is to maintain pH balance in the body, have a positive effect on the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, and reduce the risk of possible diseases.
How to use chicory correctly?
Whatever type of drink you choose, its preparation is based on the brewing process. To do this, pour 1-3 teaspoons of chicory (depending on taste preferences) into 200 ml of boiling water and let it brew for 10 minutes.
Since a distinctive feature of chicory drinks is a characteristic bitterness, you can neutralize it with a spoon of sugar. But adding sweeteners is not at all necessary, since the drink itself is sweet (contains inulin).
You can add milk or cream to taste. But remember that this will add additional calories to the drink. Some fans add honey, lemon, and rose hips to the drink. All this only increases the benefits of the drink and gives an additional boost of vitamin C to strengthen the immune system.
If, for medical reasons, you are prohibited from drinking coffee and you would like to replace it with a drink made from chicory, at first you may be disappointed in the taste, which in the case of chicory is not so bright and rich. In order to get used to it, you can initially add coffee to chicory in a ratio of 5:1.
When choosing liquid chicory, read labels carefully. In addition to the root itself, it may contain many unnecessary additives.
You can drink 1-2 cups of chicory per day - this is a safe norm for the body.
The benefits of instant chicory for weight loss
It is impossible to say that instant chicory for weight loss is an ideal remedy. Chicory contains inulin - it prevents constipation, absorbs toxins, promoting the development of bifidobacteria, and has a diuretic effect. Passing through the digestive system, inulin, like a sponge, removes heavy metals. Changing your diet, adding sports or exercise plus - consuming chicory without sugar will have a positive effect on your figure. Soluble chicory has beneficial properties and contraindications that must be taken into account when using it for any purpose.
Features of using chicory
During pregnancy
A pregnant woman approaches the issue of eating food with special attention, often giving up her favorite foods for the sake of the baby’s health. But we will please you: chicory can be consumed during pregnancy. In this regard, it becomes an indispensable assistant for expectant mothers who are accustomed to coffee, since the taste of the drink is similar to coffee, but does not contain caffeine.
The beneficial properties of chicory, such as improving digestion, eliminating heartburn and constipation, calming the nervous system, accelerating the formation of red blood cells, and removing toxins from the body, make it an extremely useful drink for the expectant mother.
Just remember that there are some contraindications to consuming chicory during pregnancy : you can drink no more than two cups per day.
In childhood
Children can also be given a drink made from chicory (best from the age of three, but not earlier than one year). Although in some cases it can be prescribed as a prophylactic against diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, blood vessels, nervous system, as well as reduced body weight. Chicory helps regulate circadian rhythms in children.
A one-and-a-half-year-old child can be given no more than 100 ml of the drink per day; after two years, the dose can be increased to 200 ml.
When losing weight
Chicory root is also used for weight loss
. Drinking two cups of the drink a day will help improve metabolism, activate the growth of beneficial microflora in the intestines, increase the feeling of fullness, and reduce insulin levels in the blood.
Chicory and coffee for pregnant and lactating women
Contraindications to drinking natural or instant coffee are pregnancy and lactation. An alternative is a drink made from chicory root, which vaguely resembles an aromatic drink, but does not have a negative effect on the baby. During these periods you should not drink it only if you are intolerant and have contraindications. During lactation, chicory coffee should be added to your menu with caution, in small doses, observing the baby’s reaction.
Coffee during pregnancy can be allowed by the attending physician in case of severe toxicosis in the amount of 0.5 coffee cups per day. In other cases, its use is undesirable. Chicory can be drunk in the morning to awaken and give strength, and in the evening to calm the nervous system.
Attention! Excessive consumption of both drinks during pregnancy and lactation can cause harm to the woman and child.
Interesting facts about chicory
- Chicory was eaten in ancient Egypt and Rome, both in the form of salads and as a medicine. Thus, the Romans used chicory as a means of normalizing digestion, and the Egyptians used it as an antidote against the venom of snakes and spiders.
- In some countries they believe that chicory can make a person invisible.
- Chicory flowers are an excellent honey plant, as they contain a lot of pollen.
- Avicenna in his medical practice used chicory root to prepare medicines for diseases of the digestive organs, joints, and eyes.
Chemical composition
The popularity of chicory drink is due to its positive effect on the body. It contains the following elements:
- vegetable proteins;
- vitamins of group B, A, C and PP;
- pectin;
- organic acids;
- potassium;
- iron;
- calcium;
- magnesium.
The root of the plant contains a large amount of inulin, a polysaccharide that reduces sugar levels. For this reason, the drink is useful for people with diabetes.
