Even when our food choices aren't the best, herbs and spices do more than just improve taste. They give any meal a nutrition boost. And according to one study they may even reverse the damage from an unhealthy meal. 

Researchers from Penn State University cooked up coconut chicken, cheese bread and a dessert biscuit for six men. The subjects were aged 30 to 65 and overweight but otherwise healthy. On one day the meal was served plain. On another day researchers added two tablespoons of a blend of nine herbs and spices to the meal. 

After each meal the researchers drew blood from the subjects every 30 minutes for four hours. They found that antioxidant activity in the blood increased 13% after the spicy meal compared to the plain meal. 

This article is copyrighted by Jeffrey Dach MD, 2016
Republished with permission from JeffreyDachMD.com

One of the most common kitchen staples could prove to also be one of the most effective natural treatments for heart disease

Sesame seeds are one of the most powerful healing foods on the planet.  For thousands of years they have been used by traditional peoples for food and medicine. Chinese medicine suggests this ancient food may help relieve the epidemic of liver damage from modern drugs. 

Hepatotoxicity is liver damage caused by chemicals.  It's a significant problem related to pharmaceutical use since the liver's job is to clear chemicals from the body.  That makes the liver particularly susceptible to injury from drug use.