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1- Clove
Many of you will be familยญiar with the pleasยญant aroยญma of clove. That is why it is often used in perยญfumes and beauยญty prodยญucts. In the Gulf region, howยญevยญer, it is also used as an addiยญtive for stews and in othยญer traยญdiยญtionยญal cuisines. Research indiยญcates that it also has varยญiยญous health benยญeยญfits. It is comยญmonยญly added to mouthยญwash prodยญucts, as it is thought to fight bacยญteยญria in the mouth and gums and improve genยญerยญal oral health. Besides, it may also kill cerยญtain forms of bacยญteยญria and regยญuยญlate blood sugยญar levยญels. Studยญies are conยญtinยญuยญing into its abilยญiยญty to proยญtect the body against cerยญtain types of canยญcer, posยญsiยญbly, and it is known to be rich in anti-oxidants.
Many peoยญple like to add ground cloves to their cookยญing, and in The Gulf region, it has long been popยญuยญlar to add some cloves to hot water and enjoy soothยญing tea.
2- Miswak
While on the topยญic of oral health, we should not forยญget Misยญwak. Misยญwak is how peoยญple in this area cleaned their teeth before toothยญbrushยญes, toothยญpaste and modยญern denยญtal care prodยญucts. It is essenยญtialยญly a fibrous stick found in the root of the arak tree, which is famed for its antiยญsepยญtic and astrinยญgent propยญerยญties that help clean the teeth and even proยญtect the gums. The arak is a short tree that grows in arid regions of the Midยญdle East and Africa. When searchยญing for a good Misยญwak, look for one that is yelยญlow or cream, has a strong, punยญgent smell and is moist and flexible. Misยญwak is used throughยญout the region even to this day and is said to have been proยญmotยญed by the Prophet Mohamยญmad himยญself as a way to sweetยญen the breath durยญing fasting. Misยญwak is used in a simยญiยญlar way to a toothยญbrush. It is rubbed over the teeth verยญtiยญcalยญly and horยญiยญzonยญtalยญly. The tip of the stick is chewed off until it looks like the brisยญtles of a toothยญbrush. Once a secยญtion of the Misยญwak is overused, simยญply chew off the tip gain and start anew.3- Cumin
Cumin seeds are regardยญed as a rich source of iron, and the warm spice is often added to a yogurt drink, which has been enjoyed for years in the region. You will also have come across the seaยญsonยญing in Mexยญiยญcan cooking. The spice, known localยญly as โsanยญnoot,โ could also reduce the damยญage from free radยญiยญcals on our body. Why not try introยญducยญing some cumin to hot or cold drinks, before adding it to more of your dishes?4- Garlic
Garยญlic adds flavour to many dishยญes from many parts of the world. Accordยญing to Holยญlyยญwood, it might even ward off vamยญpires. Withยญout ever havยญing conยญfrontยญed a vamยญpire, we canโt say for sure whether garยญlic works, but we do know that it posยญsessยญes othยญer qualities. Research sugยญgests that it can aid in reducยญing blood presยญsure and could proยญtect the heart. It is thought to have some of the same benยญeยญfits as antibiยญotics in fightยญing bacยญteยญria and may help to preยญvent intestiยญnal illnesses. A popยญuยญlar type in the Gulf region is the Omani organยญic garยญlic, so search for this variยญety and add it to dishยญes which origยญiยญnate in the Midยญdle East, or even those from India or Italy. Want a simยญple immune-boostยญing drink? Crush some garยญlic, add it to hot water with honยญey and lemon and take this daily.5- Turmeric
Have you tried a turmerยญic latยญte? This variยญaยญtion of the traยญdiยญtionยญal latยญte has found its way onto menus in cafes throughยญout the world, and the added ingreยญdiยญent is popยญuยญlar in the Gulf region. It can be found in many well-known dishยญes and has long been regardยญed as a spice with varยญiยญous health benefits.6- Thyme
Thyme is a very comยญmon addiยญtive to bevยญerยญages in The Gulf, and the herb is always conยญsumed in aroยญmatยญic drinks at speยญcial gathยญerยญings such as wedยญdings. Every kitchen in the region will have a ready supยญply of the herb, which is known as zaโatar in Araยญbic.
As a remยญeยญdy, it is believed to cure sore throats when added to warm water. It also conยญtains antimiยญcroยญbial propยญerยญties and is thus able to kill cerยญtain types of infecยญtious bacยญteยญria. A variยญety of thyme, called masยญtic thyme, may also help to proยญtect bodยญies against colon canยญcer, while othยญer studยญies have sugยญgestยญed that thyme may be a less invaยญsive way of treatยญing acne.
7- Alum
Alum appears in stone form in many marยญkets throughยญout the region, often sitยญting beside the powยญders of herbs and spices. For cenยญturies, it has been used to conยญtrol bleedยญing and to clean and heal wounds. Resยญiยญdents of the region have also used Shabยญba as a deodorant.8- Anise
Many peoยญple will recยญogยญnize the taste of anise from tea or licorice. Also known as aniseed, the tiny seed can be conยญvertยญed into varยญiยญous forms and utiยญlized in many ways. It adds flavour to cookยญing, and the tiny seed conยญtains a surยญprisยญing amount of properties. It is both a stimยญuยญlant and a relaxยญant, it is aroยญmatยญic and stomยญachic, and has tonยญic, carmiยญnaยญtive and diaphoretยญic propยญerยญties. For this reaยญson, peoยญple throughยญout The Gulf have used it year after year to treat comยญplaints such as coughs and headaches, menยญstruยญal cramps, colยญic, indiยญgesยญtion and abdomยญiยญnal pain, and to clean the uriยญnary sysยญtem and preยญvent inflammation.9- Asafoetida
โIf it tastes this bad, it must be healthyโ is a famous phrase among peoยญple who have been forced to take foul-tastยญing subยญstances to cure some form of ailยญment. Asafoetiยญda is no difยญferยญent. It is just as famous for its foul smell and taste as it is for thinยญning the blood, relievยญing pain, treatยญing a cough or an upset stomยญach and aidยญing digestion.
Admitยญtedยญly, in The Gulf, it is known as a last resort treatยญment because of the foul taste. As a medยญiยญcine, it is usuยญalยญly added to hot water to be drunk, but it is also added to dishยญes durยญing cookยญing. Yes, that may sound surยญprisยญing, but a small amount of asafoetiยญda can improve the taste of a meal.
10- Black Seed
Black seed is used even to this day to treat comยญplaints such as asthยญma, flatยญuยญlence, abdomยญiยญnal pain, kidยญney stones and polio. It is usuยญalยญly conยญsumed with either water or milk or sprinยญkled over bread. When burned with incense, it proยญduces a disยญtinct and pleasยญant aroma.11- Chamomile
Everyยญone is undoubtยญedยญly familยญiar with camomile and camomile tea. Perยญhaps you drank one last night to help you sleep or to improve your digesยญtion. Peoยญple in The Gulf have been doing preยญciseยญly that for hunยญdreds and hunยญdreds of years. Chamomile can also be used in perยญfumes and in soap and shamยญpoo prodยญucts as it is believed to add lusยญter to blonde hair.12- Myrrh
Myrrh is a hard, redยญdish-brown mass that comes from the stems of bushy shrubs that grow in The Gulf. Locals use it to alleยญviยญate inflamยญmaยญtion, to reduce scars on burns and as a mouth wash for conยญdiยญtions such as mouth sores or blisยญters. It is also effecยญtive against a sore throat or a bronchial infecยญtion. It is comยญmonยญly soaked in water for a few days, with the patient drinkยญing the strained liqยญuid, or eatยญen in small granules.
