Do you know such a plant? Do you know food made from it?
I have discovered it recently, and I am just in love with it now! It has a rich and powerful history, and absolutely unique use for our health!
Let me introduce it to you-)
So... AMARANTH was extremely popular among our ancestors!
There are a lot of proofs of its popularity from the very beginning of time. Amaranth was actively used in the Ancient Rus, but it was called shcheritsa.
Our ancestors made flour and baked bread from the seeds of this plant. But Peter 1 forbade the cultivation of amaranth and the use of amaranth bread, which had previously been the main food of the Russian people, thus he destroyed longevity in Russia. Why he did it - still unknown.
Let's analyze the word itself
Mara is the goddess of death, and the prefix "A" means denial in Russian, so AMARANT literally means denying death, or granting immortality !
Healing properties of amaranth are known since ancient times. Amaranth oil is a well-known source of Squalene.
Squalene is a substance that captures oxygen and saturates the tissues and organs of our body. Squalene is a powerful antitumor agent that prevents destructive cancerous effects on the cell of free radicals. In addition, Squaleneaffects the entire body and is a powerful immunostimulant.
The unique chemical composition of amaranth has determined the infinity of its use as a remedy. The ancient Aztecs used amaranth for feeding newborn children, the soldiers took amaranth seeds with them on hard hikes as a source of strength and health. Being a real pharmacy, amaranth was used to treat the royal nobility in ancient India and China.
For the first time, squalene was discovered in 1906. Dr. Mitsutaro Tsujimoto from Japan isolated an extract from the liver of a deep-sea shark, which was later identified as squalene (from the Latin squalus - shark).
From the biochemical and physiological point of view, squalene is a biological compound, a natural unsaturated hydrocarbon.
In 1931, Professor of the University of Zurich (Switzerland), Nobel Prize laureate Dr. Claire, proved that this compound lacks 12 hydrogen atoms to reach a stable state, so this unsaturated hydrocarbon captures these atoms from any source available to it. And since in the body the most common source of oxygen is water, squalene easily reacts with it, releasing oxygen and saturating the organs and tissues.
Squalene is necessary for deep-sea sharks to survive in the conditions of severe hypoxia (low oxygen content) when swimming at great depths. And people need squalane as an anticarcinogenic, antimicrobial and fungicidal agent, as it has long been proven that it is oxygen deficiency and oxidative damage to cells that are the main causes of aging of the body, as well as the emergence and development of tumors.
Entering the human body, squalene rejuvenates the cells, and also inhibits the growth and spread of malignant tumors. In addition, squalene can increase the strength of the body's immune system several times, thus ensuring its resistance to various diseases.
Early squalene was extracted exclusively from the liver of deep-sea shark. It was of the most highly deficient and expensive products. But the problem was not only in its high cost, but also in the fact that there are not so many squalene in the liver - only 1-1.5%!!
The unique antitumor properties of squalene and so great difficulties in obtaining it made scientists to intensify their search for the discovery of alternative sources of this substance. Modern studies have detected the presence of squalene in small doses in olive oil, in oil from wheat germ, in rice bran, in yeast. But in the process of the same studies it was found that the highest content of squalene in the oil from amaranth seeds. It turned out that amaranth oil contains 8-10% squalene!
Amaranth is a clear confirmation of the truth: the new is the long-forgotten old. The plant that fed the population of many lands for 8000 years now becomes a stranger!
Amaranth was forgottent for several centuries. However, justice is restored: now it is getting its popularity again!
Do you see amaranth food in the stores? Have you tried them?
For example, I like amaranth flour and some food made of it, like in the photo
It can be eaten with soup, tea, coffee, or just like fast-food at home or outside, very tasty!