4 Horseradish Health Benefits You Can Easily Start Utilising Today
Horseradish is one of those plants that you either love or hate. This strong, spicy root vegetable has been cultivated and used for centuries in many cultures and has some surprising health benefits.
Commonly known for its culinary uses, horseradish has been used since the Middle Ages in primarily German and Danish cooking. By the 1600s, however, its use became more widespread, particularly as a condiment in England by those who lived in the country and field workers. This is where horseradish as a condiment to go with rich meals like roast beef originates from.
If you like horseradish, then you might be wondering about those horseradish health benefits we mentioned. Below are four ways you can use this plant to support your health.
1. Horseradish can help with digestion
If you suffer from digestion issues, stomach pain or excess wind, you could try using this plant for the following horseradish health benefits. Horseradish can help support digestive concerns - especially if you find digesting specific proteins an issue. This is because it can help promote stomach secretions (enzymes and acids) to help break them down. The active constituents within the root can also help soothe excess gas and pain, as it is a potent carminative.
2. Horseradish can help when you have a cold
If you ever find yourself with a cold, blocked sinuses, phlegm and a runny nose, remember that horseradish can help. That’s because another horseradish health benefit is its ability to dry up excess mucus and help with the symptoms of the ills and chills.
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It has a strong anticatarrhal activity. This means it helps to thin and drain mucus from the sinuses and can help reduce infection from growing in clogged sinuses. The anticatarral action is also officially recognized by the German Commission E. As well as helping with colds, these actions make it a good choice for those that suffer sinusitis from hay fever and other respiratory allergies.
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3. Horseradish can help you bring up mucus
As mentioned above, another benefit of horseradish is that it helps with excess mucus in the throat and lungs. Its ability to irritate and stimulate the lining of the lungs helps to thin and expel mucus. This is, of course, great if you have the ills and chills. But it's also helpful for long-term smokers or those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
4. Horseradish is antibacterial
Horseradish’s health benefits also stem from its high antibacterial activity. This is demonstrated by how it can help support the respiratory tract. An in vitro study showed that horseradish helped to stop Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which causes pneumonia, among other human infections.
Our Fire Cider can be used preventatively as horseradish, ginger, garlic, kawakawa and horopito all support a healthy immune system.
Safety
Care is advised if you have a stomach ulcer or are pregnant, but this mostly concerns having horseradish at higher doses (like in a tincture).
References
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Jakobsen, T.H., Bragason, S.K., Phipps, R.K., Christensen, L.D., van Gennip, M., Alhede, M., … Givskov, M. (2012). Food as a source for quorum sensing inhibitors: Iberin from horseradish revealed as a quorum sensing inhibitor of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 78(7), 2410–2421. https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.05992-11
McBride, K. (2010). The herbal kitchen. San Francisco, CA: Conari Press.
Sampliner, D., & Miller, A. (2009). Ethnobotany of horseradish (Armoracia rusticana, Brassicaceae) and its wild relatives (Armoracia spp.): Reproductive biology and local uses in their native ranges. Economic Botany, 63(3), 303-313. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-009-9088-1
Stansbury, J. (2018). Herbal formularies for health professionals, volume 1: Digestion and elimination. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing.
Stansbury, J. (2018). Herbal formularies for health professionals, volume 2: Circulation and respiration. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing
Willard, T. (1993). Textbook of modern herbology (2nd ed.). Calgary, Canada: Wild Rose College of Natural Healing.
