Chicory, the contraindications and beneficial properties of which are discussed below, is an inconspicuous ornamental plant with a fairly strong dense stem and blue flowers. In some cases, they may be white or pink. The useful properties of this plant are mainly associated with the presence in its tissues of natural plant insulin, so necessary for people with metabolic disorders in the body and, in particular, diabetes.
In addition to it, chicory also contains vitamins and substances that dilate blood vessels and have a beneficial effect on the nervous system. So its stems can simply be brewed and consumed as tea as a sedative. In folk medicine, a decoction of the leaves and stems of this plant is also used to improve digestion, increase appetite, and inflorescences - to normalize the work of the heart.
In classical pharmaceuticals, its rhizome is used in the manufacture of certain antipyretic, choleretic, diuretic and sedative drugs. Dried chicory is often sold in pharmacies in dried form. Its application mainly consists in the preparation of tinctures, which are subsequently consumed as tea or externally for various rashes.
In many supermarkets, the dietary department sells powder used as a substitute for
instant coffee. This is also chicory. Contraindications and
beneficial properties of this drink have been known since Soviet times. Then many people used it simply because coffee was in short supply. However,
soluble chicory is much more useful than an incomprehensible surrogate. Firstly, this drink is able to charge the body with energy, while not increasing blood pressure and without affecting the cardiovascular system (it can be drunk even for hypertensive patients, pregnant women and diabetics). Secondly, chicory is able to dissolve kidney stones and remove them from the body gently and painlessly. And thirdly, by adding powder to the pastries, you can achieve excellent taste and aroma, while benefiting the body.
Despite such a number of positive qualities of this product, do not use chicory uncontrollably in large volumes. Contraindications and useful properties of this product sometimes border on each other. So, for example, having a beneficial effect on the heart, it negatively affects weakened vessels. In particular, you should not use it for those who suffer from varicose veins in any of its manifestations.
If we consider the use of this plant in cooking, then it is somewhat wider than just making a hot drink. Chicory with milk and sugar, no doubt, many will like, but it turns out that its rhizomes can be used in vegetable salads, baked in the oven with cheese and apples, or added to the filling of pies.
But all these qualities are possessed by those very inconspicuous flowers that grow in almost every garden and front garden and are destroyed like a weed. Although in fact this is the very chicory, the contraindications and useful properties of which are so wide. Simply, many do not know how it looks, and do not identify this plant with something that is needed in the household or suitable for food.