If you are struggling to lose weight and burn belly fat, you may be looking for inspiration to get rid of stubborn belly fat while still enjoying your food. Then you have come to the right place.
On this page I will show you how and why everyday spices can accelerate your journey to a flat stomach and a healthier you. These spices are among the category of foods that burn belly fat fast, by working at the cellular level to boost metabolism and help you to burn fat. So lets go!
Lemongrass
Lemongrass is common in Thai cuisine and many Asian inspired dishes. It’s lemony flavour is down to a natural chemical, “Citral” that not only adds flavour but it has been shown to have antimicrobial properties and other health benefits such as the prevention of heart disease. This is because a component of citral, gerenial has anti-inflammatory properties that reduce the basis of many chronic ailments such as arteriosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.
How to make Lemongrass tea
You can make Lemongrass Tea by steeping the lemongrass in hot water for 2-3 minute, (not by boiling as this may reduce effectiveness of citral that is less stable at high temperatures) to supports weight loss by promoting healthy digestion and metabolism. Use two tablespoons of the chopped leaves and stem of the lemongrass and pour in about 250 mls boiling hot water and cover for about 3 minutes. Strain and drink it hot or cold. Research shows that it also has diuretic effects which may reduce blood pressure and water retention.
Active Constituents: Citral, Gerenial.
Action in the body: Fights inflammation, reduces water retention and hypertension through diuretic action , improves digestion and metabolic rate to boost weight loss.
Ginger
Ginger is well known as a thermogenic (substance that increase the rate of metabolism and weight loss by burning more energy) and also as an aid to digestion. As a midwife, I often advise pregnant women about morning sickness and ginger is the number one home remedy we recommend.
A well know remedy for morning sickness and upset stomach
But what is the biological process behind this? Ginger increases peristalsis so food passes through the digestive tract at an optimal rate. In pregnancy, hormones help to slow the passage of food through the digestive tract to ensure more nutrients are absorbed to support mother and baby. But this has varying degrees of adverse effects for some women, including morning sickness. Ginger also reduces water retention as it has diuretic properties.
In the non-pregnant adult there are other factors that may slow the passage of food through the digestive tract resulting in poor digestion and even constipation. This supports weight gain and the absorption of waste from the intestines to the liver. But Ginger tea is a proven remedy for optimal digestion and supports weight loss as part of a healthy lifestyle.
What gives Ginger its ‘zing?’
This is the result of the natural chemical constituents found in the roots of the Zingiber Officinale plant including Zingerone, Zerumbone and Shogoal among others. Studies show these active compounds to have anti-obesity, anti-diabetic and gastroprotective actions to list a few. So the humble ginger root is a power house for health seekers working on a slimmer waist line while adding a zing to your food and drink recipes. Taking the tea of this root three time daily is a good way to boost fat burn.
Active Ingredient: Zingerone, Zerumbone, Shogoal.
Action in the body: anti-obesity, anti-diabetic, gastroprotective and aids digestion and thermogenic (boost rate that the body burns fat).
Cinnamon
Who doesn’t love the aroma of cinnamon, a common spice used in both sweet and savoury dishes. Most of you will have read or heard somewhere that cinnamon supports weight loss, and I wont only repeat it but I will delve into the scientific basis for the action of this spice in shrinking belly fat. Well Ceylon cinnamon has been touted for being more potent that the common cassia that has coumarin that may cause toxic effects if used in higher volume.
What Is It That Makes Cinnamon Improve Metabolism?
Some of the active compounds found in the leaves, root and bark of the tree include cinnamaldehyde, camphor and eugenol along with other vital oils. The evidence show that these compounds interact with the cells of digestive organs (such as the liver and pancreas) as well as other non-specialised body cells to modulate metabolism of fats and carbohydrates in beneficial ways.
Cinnamon extracts also act by stimulating the pancreas to secrete more insulin and also improve the effect of insulin in transporting glucose into the body cells to be used for energy. Research also showed that using cinnamon extracts increased the rate at which the participants burned energy, was increased by up to twenty percent.
Cinnamon has a natural Insulin-like compound that boost metabolism
Here is another exciting way that cinnamon supports weight loss. Popular polyphenols such as catechin and quercetin plus rutin, kaempferol and isorhamnetin are also active substances isolated from cinnamon that were shown to have insulin like action in the body. So go ahead and extract your own tasty and healthy polyphenols (via a tea/drink discussed below)and start incinerating fat.
How To Make Cinnamon Tea/Drink
Cinnamon drink/tea can be made by boiling the bark of the tree for about 20-30 minutes and having as a tea or cooling it and drinking it as a cold drink. My personal favourite is apple and cinnamon tea, made by just adding one peeled chopped apple half way through the half hour cooking time above. Turn the heat low and simmer for 15 more minutes. Strain off the drink and enjoy hot or cold.
One note of caution: The common type of cinnamon (Cassia) contains coumarin that can potentially have adverse health effects. But you would have to take really large amounts to encounter any problems. Unless of course you find that you are allergic to this spice.
Active Ingredient: Polyphenols; catechin, rutin, kaempferol, isohamnetin, coumarin, cinnamaldehyde, camphor.
Action in the body: Insulin-like action, stimulates the pancreas to secrete insulin, up to 20% increase in fat burning action of body cells. Coumarin fights inflammation and reduce blood clotting.
Cardamom (black and green varieties)
This pod shaped spice is used in many Indian dishes, both sweet and savoury, and make a great tea too. But why is it in a list of fat burning spices? Well this spice is a power house for supplying many vitamins and minerals for nutritional balance that is important for weight management (such as magnesium, calcium, copper, manganese, zinc, iron and phosphorus, to list some of the minerals, plus vitamins A and C). And more than that it has naturally occurring menthone and melatonin.
The Benefits of Cardamom to support weight loss has scientific backing
There is evidence that these compounds found in the cardamom spice support balance in the digestive tract and boost metabolism to burn energy more effectively and also supports the body cells to utilise rather than store energy-giving macronutrients as fat. The aromatic menthone supports digestion and healthy gut flora that are also recruited to aid the break down and assimilation of food from the intestines.
The cardamom tea usually requires only 3-5 cardamom pods that you crush and steep in hot water to extract the nutrients and polyphenols that will help support weight loss at the cellular level when used as part of a healthy lifestyle. Of course you may also use the powder to make your tea.
Active ingredient: minerals (especially copper and magnesium) and vitamins, menthone and melatonin. Action in the body: Support healthy gut flora, modulate cellular activity to better utilise energy rather than store it as fat in the body cells. Melatonin promotes sleep and wake cycle and circadian rhythm.
Paprika (hot/spicy)
Paprika is another spice that adds flavour to food (especially popular among Hungarians and the native Spanish speaking people around the world like Mexicans and Brazilians) that has been proved to support abdominal weight loss and boost the rate at which the body burns energy.
What does the evidence show? Well research results show that the capsaicin and xanthophylls found in paprika reduces food cravings and burns fat at a faster rate while the carotenoids; lutein/zeaxanthin, beta-crypto-xanthin and beta-carotene provides the added benefit of protecting the health of your eyes.
Notice that I specified spicy paprika, as capsaicin which is the active constituent, is found in the hot pepper and not in the mild sweet bell peppers used for sweet/mild paprika. So while the mild version has many health benefits and may support weight loss by giving the feeling of satiety that reduces cravings, it is the hot paprika (made from hot peppers such as cayenne) that has capsaicin that speeds up how we burn fat.
Active Constituents: Xanthophyll, capsaicin, cryptoxanthin, beta-carotene. Action in the body: reduce food craving, protect eyes from macular degeneration, increase the rate at which the body burns abdominal fat as part of a healthy life style.
The main take away point
You can increase the rate at which you burn belly fat by learning to use a variety of spices that you can buy in the supermarket. As part of a healthy life style that includes regular exercise (or non-sedentary life style) and limited use of fried foods and highly processed foods (including those cooked at home at high heat) you can reduce fat around the middle section of your body (known to be associated with diabetes).
Many common spices can have potent effects on your body cells and increase the rate at which you burn stubborn fat. But if you have any medical conditions you need to use care and check how these spices’ active constituents may interact with your medication and affect your health.
One last thing…
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