15 Spices That Help You Lose Weight

Because US residents spend over $20 billion dollars each year to lose weight, it’s essential holistic remedies be offered to curb the pricey ‘quick fix’ trend and offer true remedy.

Along with lifestyle changes and dietary improvements (like exercising more, cutting out processed foods, refined sugar, and low-quality, high-fat animal products), adding certain spices to your food may also help you lose weight.

The following fifteen herbs and spices have been proven to aid in weight loss. Spice up your dinner and reap the benefits nature offers in plant-form!


Image Credit: Wikimedia

1. Turmeric

The popular Indian food spice has been shown to help reduce inflammation – high levels which may be cause of obesity and difficulty of losing weight.

Cinnamon-other2. Cinnamon

The tasty and common breakfast-food spice helps control blood sugar and reduce insulin level spikes, thereby protecting one from developing Diabetes and also assisting in managing hunger.

Mature_Chile_de_arbol_peppers3. Cayenne Pepper

The compound dihydrocapsiate has been shown to increase the body’s ability to burn fat when eaten three times per day.

black-pepper-233983_6404. Black Pepper

Piperine, the substance that gives black pepper it’s peppery flavor, has been shown to help the body burn more calories through the processes of thermogenesis. Piperine can also help your body use nutrients more effectively.

ginger15. Ginger

Fresh or powdered, this root can help reduce appetite and cravings.

coriander-166989_6406. Coriander

The common Indian food herb has been shown to increase metabolic function and heighten weight loss in animal studies.

Sa_cumin7. Cumin

Even though it has not been studied by itself, cumin has been shown to improve weight loss when mixed with other herbs and spices.

parsley-198219_6408. Parsley

Several studies on rats have shown that this herb may help reduce the amount of glucose present in the blood. If this is true for humans, then parsley may help control appetite and promote healthy processing of food into energy.

4145898809_90a589eec3_z9. Ginseng

Multiple animal studies have shown that the herb panax ginseng can help aid in weight reduction, and even slow weight gain that results from diets high in saturated fat.

800px-Cardamom_Large10. Cardamom

Studies done on rats conclude that cardamom can aid in lowering blood glucose and regulating insulin, as well as lowering levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol.

1024px-Cloves11. Cloves

Like many others listed, cloves can help you lose weight by speeding up your metabolism and helping your body burn more calories.

mustard-231302_64012. Mustard

Mustard stimulates the body’s thermogenic effect, causing one to lose weight because their metabolism is sped up and calories are burned at a faster rate.

Garlic13. Garlic

Adding garlic to your food in fresh or powdered form may help you metabolize carbohydrates and fats more efficiently. Animal studies have shown, too, that garlic may prevent the body from creating more fat.

800px-Leaves_of_green_tea14. Green Tea

This well-known plant has been proven to have a number of health benefits. In addition to helping prevent one from developing Cancer and Diabetes, green tea can also speed up the metabolism and help you lose weight.

Mint-leaves-200715. Peppermint

Fresh and stimulating, this herb (even when only smelled) can decrease appetite. In a 2009 study measuring the plant’s effectiveness, participants who spent a week smelling peppermint before they ate generally consumed 1,800 calories less throughout the week than the control group.

Nature offers a bounty of medicinal herbs that are also quite tasty. Include these 15 recommendations in your diet and you may find it easier than ever to stick to your healthy eating guidelines and shed unwanted weight.

Sources for the article include:

Daily Health Post

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