Fennel, perfect for keeping you healthy

El fennel has a unique treatment within natural medicine, an aromatic plant that is mostly found in the Mediterranean. It is one of the great plants that are fully exploited, since its seeds and grass are ideal for the benefit of human beings

It can be used for many ailments that are related to digestive and respiratory problems although it is also known for its great virtues.

Belongs to the Umbelliferae family and its genus is the Foeniculum. Its scientific name is Foeniculum Vulgare. It is found in temperate zones of most of the world, although its native zone is the entire coast of the Mediterranean coast where it grows wild and naturally.

Fennel is well known within plants and medicinal herbs for its great action to calm gas and flatulence, becoming a powerful digestive. But apart from that, the fennel it has multiple properties that make it unique. Its use goes beyond folk medicine, It can also be used within the culinary world, its bulb can be roasted in the oven together with a little cheese and pine nuts, while its seeds are used to make one of the best digestive teas.

Fennel properties

• Fennel decreases colic caused by gas, the treatment that follows is very similar to that of chamomile.
• Prevents and treats digestive problems, such as heartburn, bloating or indigestion.
• Relieves respiratory problems, cough, bronchitis and asthma will be controlled thanks to fennel.
• Help the urinary incontinence. 
• Kill the kidney stones 
• Prevents gout and jaundice. 
• Perfect for the liver and gallbladder do not clog.
• For the women pregnant women and that they are in their lactation moment can be very beneficial, taking fennel can increase their levels of milk production. 
• Reduces premenstrual pain. 

Fennel tea to fully benefit you

El fennel it can be taken in the form of tea, one of the simplest and most widely used forms. We can find it in different formats, in specialized stores of natural products we can find capsules, pills or concentrated drops.

Before consuming it, it is important to know what is the daily dose Recommended so as not to endanger our body, since we should never abuse any food, no matter how beneficial it is.

To prepare fennel tea we will need the following:

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 1 cup water

Preparation

• We need to crush the seeds in a mortar. 
• Heat the cup of water in a saucepan until it reaches a boil.
• When bring to a boil turn off the heat and add the slightly crushed seeds, let the infusion rest for 10 minutes covering the saucepan.
• Once time has passed strain the mixture and it will be ready to drink.

The daily recommendation is to take three cups a day half an hour before meals main, this will help the food to settle better in the stomach and avoid poor digestion.

Nature provides great medicinal herbs and it is a great advantage to know how to consume them, how much and what their benefits are. Although as in all foods we should not abuse. Fennel may have certain contraindications and side effects that must be taken into account since we do not want the remedy to be worse than the disease.

Fennel contraindications

Consuming fennel in normal doses does not cause any harm to the body, however, it is recommended that women pregnant women do not abuse fennel or it is better not to take it directly.

Those who suffer from allergy to celery or carrot you should be careful because fennel may cause a similar reaction.

Antibiotics and fennel do not mix well, it should not be consumed when you are in full antibiotic treatment.

Although it is a medicinal plant, several aspects must be taken into account if it is to be taken for medicinal purposes:

• If you are under a hormonal treatment such as tamoxifen, it does not have to be consumed.
• You have to be careful with the Ciprofloxacin, this antibiotic does not respond well with fennel, if it must be taken it is necessary to leave a half hour of difference so that it works correctly.
• Yes for genetic issues you can suffer from breast or uterine cancer, it is better to do without fennel. Just like any woman who has suffered a breast cancer Previously, its consumption is not recommended because fennel increases the levels of scrub and can cause new tumors to form.
• Use the essential oil of this plant can directly interfere with the anticonceptive pill. 
• It is better to avoid its intake if you have sensitivity to dill, celery, parsley, or cumin.
• Without medical supervision pregnant women and children should not take fennel as they please.
• Do not abuse its intake, in children under 14 years should not exceed more than 7 days consuming it and in adults do not exceed two weeks.
• Taking high doses of fennel oil can result in toxic For the body, it is not advisable to take more than one tablespoon daily.
• Can cause vomiting and nausea. 
• Fennel tea has a very high content of iodine, a substance that increases the functional activity of the thyroid gland and secretes more of thyroid hormonesTherefore, it should not be consumed by all those who suffer from hypothyroidism.

When collecting it, you have to pay special attention since can be confused with HemlockIt has a very similar appearance but the fruits of it are very toxic. As we have been saying, you should not consume much fennel, one of the reasons is that it can be carcinogenic if you take a dose greater than 4mg daily.

Despite all the disadvantages that fennel has, we remember that it is very beneficialThen we highlight all its benefits and advantages that it provides us.

Fennel benefits

We must differentiate between gas and flatulenceGases consist of the air present in the intestine that passes through the rectum, while flatulence is the distention of the stomach and intestines as a result of the accumulation of these gases.

Gas can be a problem annoying and uncomfortable it swells our stomach and causes us colic and discomfort. To be able to solve this problem and many others.

• Helps to expel gases and maintain a good bowel function.
• Ideal for slow and heavy digestions. 
• Relieves the sensation of appetite, it gives us satiety if we have a cup of tea before meals.
• Calm the cough and bronchitis. Perfect to take it in the autumn and winter seasons, the months where the flu takes over the organisms and causes them discomfort.
• Stimulates breast milk production. It helps to produce more milk, a perfect option so that the baby can feed for a longer time and benefit from all the mother's antibodies. However, there is no scientific study that simply supports it, a large number of women who confirm it.

As we can see, Nature provides us this time with an amazing medicinal plant at the same time that it is very tricky if it is abused, we must always take into account if we begin to take a plant at our free will since we can harm our body without wishing to do so.

We recommend taking the best fennel, the one that is born wild and is collected in the most natural way, it can be found anywhere health food store.