2023-06-30 11:42:57
The leaves of the kitchen sage smell strongly aromatic when crushed. They taste spicy to bitter.
Photo: stock.adobe/Fabian Jakobi
Common sage was named medicinal plant of the year. New findings, such as on dosage and duration of use, prompted the study group for the history of medicinal plants to pay new attention to the traditionally used medicinal and aromatic herb, which is known almost all over the world.
The oblong, egg-shaped leaves of common sage (botanical: Salvia officinalis) have a very characteristic smell and taste, caused by essential oils containing cineol, thujone and linalool as well as flavonoids such as rosmarinic acid. The genus of sage includes more than 300 known species. Not all develop the same characteristic scent and medicinal effect.
A special feature points to the Greek sage (botanical: Salvia triloba): Its essential oil has a higher proportion of cineol and camphor compared to common sage, which creates a smell of eucalyptus.
All of these ingredients, to which the sage leaves owe their distinctive smell, inhibit the growth of a wide variety of microbial pathogens. The tannins, which are responsible for the slightly bitter taste of Salvia officinalis, even inhibit viruses with a sensitive protein shell, including Sars-Cov-2 viruses. Gargling with cooled sage tea at the first sign of a sore throat as a result of a flu infection can help to slow down the proliferation of viruses or bacteria in the mouth and throat.
Furthermore, the medicinally effective sage is traditionally used once morest flatulence, abdominal pain and heartburn. Mild inflammation of the gums, skin and mucous membranes can also be treated with diluted sage preparations.
In the Mediterranean cuisine of Italy, fresh sage leaves are also often used to flavor dishes. Its use as a spice, for example for sage butter or for fish dishes, has its origins in the fact that people have observed since the 4th century BC that sage and rosemary prevent food from spoiling quickly in the summer heat. The rosmarinic acid contained in sage or rosemary acts as an antioxidant, especially once morest rancidity of oils and fats.
The taste of sage-spiced dishes is unpleasantly reminiscent of medicines and therefore takes some getting used to. However, a good cook doses herbs, spices, sugar, salt and citric or acetic acid in such a way that a harmonious taste is created and individual herbs are not dominant.
Healthy adults should not consume more than 15 sage leaves per day. The reason for the restriction is the thujone content, which can have a neurotoxic effect. It should be noted that this ingredient, which is also found in some other herbs, especially in wormwood, mugwort or yarrow, is easily soluble in alcohol. The limit for healthy people is already reached with 150 grams of such an alcoholic beverage. People who are prone to epileptic seizures must therefore strictly avoid wormwood wine, absinthe and a wide variety of herbal schnapps.
When prepared as a tea or cold water extract, however, no dangerous amounts of thujone are transferred into the drink. However, herbalists still recommend limiting it to six grams of sage leaves per day, or the equivalent of three to four cups of sage tea.
This is different with sage butter, which may contain up to 25 milligrams of thujone per kilogram. The limit for healthy adults is 6 milligrams of thujone per day; accordingly, consumption amounts of up to 200 grams of sage butter would be conceivable, which probably nobody would eat in one day. However, as a precaution, pregnant and breastfeeding women should eat no more than 10 grams of sage butter in one day, on the one hand not to endanger their child, on the other hand sage can reduce the amount of milk in breastfeeding women. In the past, sage was even used for weaning.
Taking these precautions into account, there is nothing to prevent long-term use of sage. Beneficiaries of these changed recommendations can be people who suffer from heavy sweating. Obesity should also be considered as a cause of profuse sweating, which requires medical recognition of the problem, as well as long-term therapy.
Outdated recommendations, such as those unfortunately given in the current Apotheken-Umschau (June 2023), to use over-the-counter aluminum deodorants here, should be viewed critically. Because aluminum compounds are suspected of causing cancer and accelerating the development of dementia. Unfortunately, some aluminum-containing deodorants are still available for purchase in drugstores. Again, the consumer is held responsible for being fully informed and avoiding these risky products.
Sage in the form of deodorants, rinses, washes or drunk as a tea would be the safer alternative if you sweat heavily. In addition, the drop in female hormone levels for women around the age of 50 often begins a year-long adjustment process. This is associated with outbreaks of sweat that occur several times a day, often followed by chills. Sage can be of good service here, even in the phase when hormone replacement therapy has to be ended.
If women do not have the opportunity to change their sweaty clothes following a heavy sweating attack, they are at higher risk of catching a cold in a draft. Here, too, sage can help to prevent sore throats and hoarseness from occurring too often. However, a cooled sage tea that you have brought with you is preferable to the sage sweets that are often offered.
Sage extract is often processed into so-called throat drops or lozenges. In the case of incipient infections with a scratchy throat, these can be very useful for a limited time and when used sparingly. However, diabetics or overweight people should be aware that in this way they take in a lot of additional sugar.
Sugar-free throat lozenges with sugar substitutes such as sorbitol or maltitol must also be strictly limited in quantity, otherwise they can lead to diarrhea. The best use once morest a sore throat is the gargle, which can be made from fresh, crushed sage leaves in a cold water extract. Adding some table salt can make the liquid even more effective.
Gnocchi with green peas and sage butter
Recipe for two people: Put 50 grams of butter in a bowl, let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil. Wash 10 grams each of fresh sage, basil, oregano and parsley leaves in cold water, shake dry and finely chop, immediately mix with 50 grams of butter, a tablespoon of olive oil and a little salt. Boil 300 grams of green peas for two minutes, heat 300 grams of gnocchi in the vegetable cooking water and cook for another 2 minutes, drain, add the herb butter, toss the gnocchi in the melting butter.thingumajig
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