Health

What is Barley, Benefits, and Use it?

Barley is a famous ingredient because it is found in drinks such as beer or whiskey. However, it is also a component of various dishes. Let’s discover its characteristics and some recipes to prepare it at home.

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What are the Health Benefits of Barley?

Barley is a cereal grain for bread, drinks, stews, and other dishes. As a whole grain, barley provides fiber, vitamins, and minerals. These nutrients can improve heart health, help prevent cancer, and reduce inflammation, among other benefits.

A diet rich in whole grains can help decrease the risk of obesity, certain cancers, heart disease, and other chronic health problems.

Barley Characteristics

This cereal is a herb with a sweet taste. Its spikelets are long and flexible and are sown in autumn and spring in western Asia and northeast Africa (places of origin).

Wheat, corn, and rice form a group of cereals “famous” worldwide. It can be planted on barren land and at different heights. Currently, the largest producers of this cereal are Canada and Russia, as indicated in this study.

This cereal has been used to make bread for thousands of years, which is now replaced by wheat.

People seeking a healthier diet choose barley. Stews, soups, pasta, stews, salads, etc., are cooked with it. It’s a good breakfast option with milk, yogurt, or orange juice, just like any cereal.

Curiosity About Barley

Its most popular use is in the making of malted milk and wort.
In some countries, it is recommend for pregnant women.
It is the basis for making beer, syrup, vinegar, whiskey and gin.
In traditional Chinese medicine, it is use to treat the liver and allergies.
It is said that Pythagoras and Plato believe that it helps to think and concentrate.
Legend has it that Galen and Hippocrates believed drinking barley water helped cure diseases.
It is said to be the oldest cereal collected and use by man.

The Benefits of Barley

According to the USDA, this cereal is a source of vitamin B. It also contains vitamin K and folic acid. Here are some of the benefits it is thought to offer:

It regulates cholesterol levels. A study by St. Michael’s Hospital found that those who ate barley regularly saw their LDL and HDL cholesterol levels drop by 7%.

It eats an antioxidant effect that helps fight free radicals, preventing disease.
And avoid capillary stiffness.
It will prevent the accumulation of fat in the liver.
They protect the nervous system, helping to fight depression and anxiety.
Its consumption is generally recommend for children with growth problems.

Barley also contains certain minerals such as potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, and trace elements such as copper, zinc, sulfur, iron, and iodine.

The Properties of This Cereal Barley

Now that we consume seen some of the curiosities and benefits of this grain, we are going to see the properties that it has, according to an article published in Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, that make it an indispensable part of our diet:

Digestive and detoxifying.
Anti-inflammatory, diuretic, laxative, vasoconstrictor.
Antiseptic and also emollient.

For these reasons, its consumption is generally recommended. In addition, it will stimulate the autonomic nervous system and protect the nervous and cardiac systems.

Barley Recipe for Intestinal Infections.

When we suffer from diarrheic due to an intestinal infection such as gastroenteritis, barley can help us. In these cases, it is recommended to prepare the following recipe.

Ingredients