Have you ever looked at your spice rack or your herb garden and thought, “I love you SO much!!” Maybe not, but there’s a lot to adore about herbs and spices… and humans have thought so for centuries. This February, with love in the air, let’s give some love to the precious botanicals that help us stay happy and healthy all year round!
Our Lasting Love Affair
Cultures from around the world have loved herbs and spices for countless reasons—for seasoning, for inspiring, for enjoying. Over the centuries, people have learned how certain roots, buds, barks, and leaves give their unique qualities to our food and tickle our taste buds. We’ve also figured out, in the long tradition of herbal healing, how these helpers from the plant world support our health.
Romantic Ingredients
Herbs and spices tend to have long, colorful histories—treasured by royalty, revered by wise ones, prized by chefs. Take cinnamon, for example. From fragrant apple pie to spiced lamb shanks, from Mexican hot chocolate to crunchy granola, cinnamon is a culinary superstar. It’s played a key role in trade, with cinnamon imports recorded in Egypt as far back as 2000 BCE. At one time, cinnamon was even more valuable than gold!
Here’s another one. Can you guess which spice was described by both Confucius and Marco Polo, recommended to Henry VIII as a remedy, and is a mainstay in the Indian practice of Ayurveda? This spice is also the main flavor in a popular soft drink, is pickled for a tangy sushi condiment, and shows up as a “bread” in several fairy tales. Yes, we’re talking ginger—the beloved rhizome that brightens up everything from soup to stir-fry, from ginger ale to gingerbread. Health-wise, long tradition and current research confirm ginger’s wide variety of benefits.
And then there’s turmeric. There’s so much to love about this richly hued, richly flavored, but humble-looking root! Turmeric’s distinctive saffron color and earthy taste give many curries, pickles, and condiments their sunny color and complex character. From the ancient system of Ayurveda to hundreds of modern scientific studies, Turmeric is renowned for its unique compounds and many benefits. As generations of cooks and healers have found, the scaly Turmeric rhizome hides bright treasure!
An Herbal Valentine from New Chapter
New Chapter® has been in love with herbs since we were founded back in 1982. It is our mission to share their incredible intelligence in our herbal supplements, delivering pure and potent extracts of some fantastic botanicals—including cherished cinnamon, ginger, and turmeric. For each herb, we consider how to best offer its full symphony of valuable phytonutrients:
- Cinnamon Force™ is formulated with two types of cinnamon…and for each type, delivers two kinds of extracts. The result? A broad spectrum of beneficial compounds that help to maintain blood sugar already in the normal range.*
- Ginger Force™ delivers cardio and digestive support with gentle extracts of full-spectrum, whole ginger.* No synthetic compounds, no additives—just like our whole Force line.
- Turmeric Force™ delivers the King of Herbs, one of New Chapter’s favorites, that helps maintain a healthy inflammation response and supports cardio and liver health.* Turmeric Force is now in a liquid vegetarian capsule that lets you see the fresh, brilliant color of the Turmeric (and adds it to our growing list of 100% vegetarian products).
Please join New Chapter in offering a little love to our remarkable valentines in the plant kingdom… we promise they’ll love you back!
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.