Is sorrel as useful as it is believed to be

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The leaves of the plant are said to increase immunity and save from cancer.

What is sorrel known for

Sorrel is a perennial herbaceous plant. Its leaves and roots are endowed with medicinal properties and are used in traditional medicine as a choleretic agent, as well as to improve appetite, stop bleeding, increase immunity and prevent cancer.

How is sorrel useful

At least it does not harm the figure and contains substances necessary for our body.

Helps to lose weight

100 g of leaves contain only 22 kcal. Therefore, salads, soups and sauces can be prepared from sorrel, even for those on a diet.

Protects cells from destruction

The plant contains various polyphenolic compounds that are natural antioxidants. They prevent aggressive free radicals from damaging body cells.

Restores vitamin deficiency

There are seven vital vitamins in sorrel. Moreover, some are quite a lot. So, if you eat 100 g of leaves, you can provide yourself with half of the daily norm of vitamin C, 28% of vitamin A and 9% of the norm of vitamins B2 and B6.

Enriches with minerals

There are still many useful micro- and macroelements in the leaf. So, 100 g contains 20% of the daily norm of iron, 15% of potassium, and 7% of calcium.

How can sorrel be useful

Scientists are carefully studying the properties of sorrel and the possibility of its use in medicine. So far, research is being conducted in test tubes and on animals. But such experiments show that the plant can be used in the creation of new drugs.

Lowers blood pressure

Researchers obtained an extract from sorrel leaves and administered it to rats with normal and high blood pressure. It turned out that the resulting solution dilates blood vessels and helps in the treatment of hypertension.

Destroys fat

Another test-tube study found that polyphenolic compounds stimulate lipolysis, or the breakdown of fats, in adipocytes and prevent them from dividing. Fats are removed from the body faster, and weight decreases.

Protects against bacteria

Sore extract dissolved in methanol was added to the colony of Escherichia coli in a laboratory dish. It turned out that the bacterium cannot reproduce due to the phenolic compounds present in the plant.

Reduces the risk of blood clots

In experiments on rats, it was found that sorrel extract reduces the ability of platelets to stick together and form clots. This reduces the risk of the appearance of dangerous blood clots and the development of heart attack and stroke.

Prevents infection with influenza A and herpes simplex viruses

Researchers discovered the substance procyanide in sorrel leaves. In laboratory conditions, it was possible to establish that it does not allow the influenza A virus to attach to the cell and penetrate inside, and therefore prevents infection.

Another study showed that procyanid and flavonoids from sorrel leaves interfere with herpes simplex virus type I from entering the cell.

Lowers cholesterol

In a study on rats, modeled carbon tetrachloride poisoning, which is toxic to the liver and increases the synthesis of triglycerides and “bad” cholesterol. Then the animals were given sorrel leaf extract. Thanks to it, the concentration of lipids in the blood of rats normalized.

Does not allow tumors to develop

Anthraquinone substances were found in sorrel leaves. In laboratory dishes, they were added to ovarian, lung, nervous system and colon tumor cells. It turned out that under the influence of such a solution, cancer cells not only die, but also stop mutating.

So should you eat more sorrel

Yes, you can try . Of course, the properties promised by folk medicine are almost never confirmed, and studies of the beneficial properties have not yet been conducted on humans. But still, sorrel has a lot of vitamins and minerals and few calories.

The main thing is not to overdo it. 50 g of leaves contain 150 mg of oxalic acid, or oxalate. This substance is not harmful if consumed in moderation. But if you eat 25 g of oxalate together, you can get severe kidney damage. True, it is unlikely that anyone will succeed: after all, it is about 8 kg of sorrel.

It is better not to eat a lot of sorrel with kidney stones. Intestinal diseases increase the absorption of oxalates, so with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis, the risk of kidney damage is also higher.