About: “A healthy you”

“A healthy you” is a weekly commentary post on www.mckoysnews.com, where Amber Crowl [DJ, Host, Writer and Activist] shares health, and natural healing using foods, herbs and things of nature to heal illnesses… Amber Crowl welcomes your talk back options and conversations, and comments on Mckoy’s News. You can email Amber at irieamber@gmail.com

The average radish is red, round with a glistening white interior and roughly the size of a ping pong or golf ball. These usually come around in the spring. Another type which comes in the winter is the creamy white daikon – a true tuber with a tail to show for it. The original radish was black but with evolutions in agriculture Radishes now come in pink, dark grey, purple, two-tone green and white, and yellow.

The radish is well-traveled and ancient, mentioned in historical Chinese annals as early as 2,700 B.C. Egyptians cultivated them, Greeks and Romans liked them as large as they would grow, and served them with honey and vinegar. Radish cultivation reached England, Germany, Mexico, and Puerto Rico by the 1500s. In Britain, radishes had medicinal as well as culinary uses, usually for kidney stones, bad skin, and intestinal worms. It may have worked, because the colonists brought radish seeds with them to the New World.

Radishes are a very good source of vitamin C – 25% of the daily recommended value – helping to rebuild tissues and blood vessels, and keeping bones and teeth strong. Vitamin C fights disease and rescues the cells from an onslaught of destructive free radicals. This is done through electrolytes and natural antioxidant action of this one vitamin, increasing immunity of the body, and helping to fight against all kinds of diseases, including cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

Folate, fiber, riboflavin, and potassium, as well as good amounts of copper, vitamin B6, magnesium, manganese, and calcium are less prominent nutrients found in Radishes. They contain fiber, (indigestible carbohydrates). This keeps your system flushed and functioning with regularity and also aids in maintaining a healthy weight. Ironically, these naturally-heated veggies may help put an end to any burning sensation experienced during urination. That may be because radishes are a natural diuretic, purifying the kidney and urinary systems and relieving inflammation.

Radishes can also regulate blood pressure, relieve congestion, and prevent respiratory problems such as asthma or bronchitis. They have antibacterial, anti-fungal, and detoxifying properties, and contain compounds that soothe rashes, dryness, and other skin disorders. Another mouthful of phytochemical goodness in radishes includes detoxifying agents called indoles, and the powerful flavonoids zeaxanthin, lutein, and beta carotene. Radishes also contain an important isothiocyanate antioxidant compound called sulforaphane, a proven inhibitor of prostate, colon, breast, ovarian and other cancers.

Scientists evaluated the chemopreventive effectiveness of radish plants, including the root, stems, leaves, and extracts, and investigated the molecular mechanism leading to growth, arrest, and induced cell death of human cancer cell lines. The root showed significant cell growth inhibition and induced cell death, which substantiated the premise that radishes possess potential chemopreventive efficacy and apoptosis-inducing capabilities in some cancer cell lines. All the more reason why you should try Radishes today. Use it in soups, sandwiches, thinly shredded in salads or steamed with other veggies for a delightful zing in your diet.