I remember when my oldest daughter was just a few months old and had the flu, my grandmother called to see how she was doing and to offer some tokens of wisdom.
Imagine my surprise when she told me to give her a chicken broth enema.
I almost hung up.... you mean to tell me I should squirt chicken noodle soup up my 6 month old's ass??????
Her reason - it would get into her intestines faster than drinking it so she could absorb the nutrients from it. Again, I don't get WTF she is talking about and start to feel bad that old Grammy has finally lost it.
I was wrong........
Besides the yellow tail roll, salmon roll and spicy tuna roll, my favorite thing to eat at my local Hibachi Grill/Sushi place is their clear soup.
Made simply from broth (I think beef, it is a bit darker and heavier in taste than chicken broth) paper-thin sliced mushrooms and crispy shallots, it is wonderful. Delish.
In my quest to make it at home, I did a little research and stumbled upon the magical world that is Bone Broth. I had no idea that bone broth was such an integral piece to the Paleo picture, and such an important component to optimal health.
In fact, since all I knew about broth was what I buy in a box off the grocery store shelf, I thought it was actually BAD for you, loaded with sodium and preservatives! How can that be good for me?
Leading into the new year and my resolution, one (of many) things I will be incorporating into my life is a daily serving of homemade bone broth.
A number of things come to mind that I am hoping a daily serving of broth will begin to improve:
- help my poor aching joints!!!!
- heal this big ol' gut of mine
- detox baby!!!!!
One of my favorite websites and writers for all things HEALTHY and educational is Underground Wellness by Sean Croxton. I get emails almost daily from him with great information and inspiration. He writes in his post, 'Top 5 Reasons Why bone Broth is The Bomb'.....
"Bone broth is loaded with glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). In fact, I’m absolutely certain that you’ve heard of one of them — glucosamine. Yep, those supplements that seemingly everyone is taking for joint health contain one of the GAGs we get from consuming bone broth."
I'm not good at referencing things, and don't want to get myself in trouble on here, nor do I have the time or ability at work to open all my favorite websites/blogs/books and link them here for a proper reference. So when I give my explanations of things, just know its based off my own research, my own understanding and is in no way professional or medical advice. In fact, I encourage you not to listen to me at all and instead conduct your own research if anything piques your interest. I'm just an old, tired fatty who is trying to lose some weight and fix this mess of a body of mine.
moving on......
So, going back to joint health, as I understand it from my own research and summarized from that article referenced above, collagen is the important factor in our bone and joint health. These GAG's, as Sean refers to them as, that are abundantly found in bone broth are absorbed by the body, rather than digested, and they are the molecules which produce collagen in our bodies where we need it.
Not only Sean, but many people I follow on Facebook and all over the Internet have testified to the amazing benefits of bone broth with regard to their aches and pains. I've even read people who suffer from arthritis and even MS alleviating symptoms. FROM SOUP. Delicious, homemade stinking soup.
The next appealing miracle that bone broth performs is gut healing. Again, the website references above puts things into my own words the best and touches on this if you need to reference back to it. I've learned bits and pieces here and there about gut health and how foods we eat which are considered staples in the SAD (Standard American Diet) are destroying the delicate system which is our gut.
In a nutshell, a terrible result of the SAD and the SAL (came up with that one myself, lol for Standard American Lifestyle) consisting of too much stress, poor diet and toxins is the fact that our intestinal lining is being attacked. Instead of allowing nutrients from what we eat to permeate our intestines to be released into our bodies, our intestinal lining is slowly eroding and becoming more permeable which allows undigested food to escape into our blood stream. This causes in a whole host of problems like allergies, food sensitivities and gastrointestinal upset.
Pretty much how I feel immediately after a fast food meal or indulgent buffet meal - upset and in the bathroom. every.stinkin.time.
The way broth helps is with the gelatin that is naturally created when you make the broth. A good batch of broth, when cooled, will jiggly and wiggle and solidify up like a bowl full of jello (slightly runnier and not bright green or red)
If you think about it - when you eat the broth, its soothing going down, and, like a nice soup should, feels like it coats your insides in a warm blanket of love... (in my stomach it does....)
Well, it is doing that. And in your intestines, it is literally coating them (the gelatin) and filling in those little holes.
Now, I imagine this will really only benefit me if I eliminate the SAD from my life and reduce living a SAL - because I can eat as much soup as I can guzzle down but if I eat processed crap and grains and fast food every day, never work out and remain in a toxic state of STRESSED all the time, it won't really do me any good. Kinda like smoking a cigarette on an oxygen machine - stupid.
So, my goal is to incorporate daily bone broth into my new lifestyle to aid in gut healing, amongst other things.
Other things like DETOXING!
There are so many different types of detox plans out there on the market. Teas, herbs, pills, diets.
Go ahead over to Sean's post and read "Reason #5: Bone Broth Helps Get the Toxins Out." I think if I have to detox, doint it by simply adding a serving of my favorite soup to my menu each day is probably the best was I can think of.
Bottom line, homemade broth is loaded with all the good things your body needs, and just doesn't get enough of. Or, all those good things are being sabotaged inside your body by other things like the SAD or the SAL. These vitamins and nutrients and essential acids and other thingy majiggers just don't stand a chance in the war zone we create within our body. We don't absorb these vital nutrients properly, or at all, because our bodies are in a constant battle and inflamed state.
And what do you do when your nose and eyes and throat are inflamed and hurt? You want a nice, warm cup of soup. So listen to your body, from the inside out. Don't leave your health up to a can of soup - make some. Its very rewarding and nostalgic watching it simmer away on the stove top.
It stinks too. Just sayin'. But regardless of the smell, I KNOW this will help.
UPDATE - RECIPE(s)!!!!!!
I meant to include a recipe for the broth I make at home. I have made beef broth using soup bones from grass-fed beef and chicken/turkey broth from the carcass of roaster chickens and the Thanksgiving turkey.
If I havent mentioned, the marrow in the bones is loaded with the nutrients. There are two types of marrow - yellow and red. Yellow marrow is found in the middle part of long bones and its where fat is stored. Red marrow however is found in flat bones like ribs, vertebrae and at the ends of bones. Red marrow is where stem cells are found. We all have heard of the miracle of stem cells. Well, here is a FREE way to fortify your body and your immune system - by drinking broth rich in red marrow. I have read that chicken bones have a lot of the extremely beneficial red marrow.
Adding an acid to the water befoe cooking will draw these minerals out of the bone itself. Lemon juice (preferably in a bottle, actually) or apple cider vinegar will work! You only need a splash and it doesnt change the flavor at all.
I actually really prefer to have a LOT of lemon juice in my chicken soup - the taste is incedible, like a warm oil and lemon dressing, I don't know. Just try it the next time you make chicken soup, add the juice of half a lemon.
BEEF BONE BROTH - Lizzie's Way
Giant pot (or a crock pot, whatever)
3 - 5 grass-fed beef soup bones, roasted (raw if prefered)
lots o' water (I use about 12 cups and 5 bones - I don't cook with measurements, don't ask me to....)
2 TBS apple cider vinegar
1 TBS Sea Salt
(later I add garlic, onion, kale for the last hour of cooking to try and draw out the flavor and some nutrients)
This is a very basic recipe and I like to keep it pretty bland as I use it in cooking, so I want it plan and clean.
I roast off the bones as it adds a great flavor and takes away the bloody mineral flavor if simmered raw. But if you are a vampire and enjoy the minerally blood taste, go raw!
The longer it simmers, the BETTER! I usually simmer this for about 36 hours, but a lot of people will simmmer beef broth for up to 48 hours. You will likely need to add more water as it reduces. Some people keep a crockpot on a low simmer and just keep adding water and never turning it off! (ehhhhhhhhh..................... not me)
Chicken broth I do the same, except I usually simmer for about 24 hours and I add celery, kale, garlic, onion, carrots and bay leaf to the last hour of simmering.
Once finished simmering, strain through wire mesh strainer, or cheesecloth for super clean broth. Cool and package and freeze! I freeze in an ice cube tray for smaller portions or in gallon baggies i can put about a cup in and freeze it for individual servings!
ENJOY!
Helicopter Parenting With Twinsx2
8 years ago
