SPICE@WORK

Don’t disregard that pepper shaker on your table. It holds the key to protection from coughs and colds, asthma and indigestion, even vitiligo, a condition in which areas of the skin lose their pigment and turn white.

Kaali mirch ka kamaal
Researchers at the King’s College in London found that piperine  a compound that gives black pepper its spicy, pungent flavour  can stimulate the skin to produce pigment more effectively than conventional therapy.

Ayurvedic miracle
Says Ayurvedic specialist Dr Ravi Kothari, “Along with Long Pepper and Ginger, Black Peppercorn forms trikatu, an important ingredient that has cleansing and antioxidant properties.

It facilitates free flow of oxygen to the brain, enhances digestion, stimulates appetite, and keeps your respiratory system well oiled.”

What it does
1) Helps transport the benefits of other herbs to different parts of the body.
2) Stimulates appetite, hence recommended for people who are underweight, or suffering from anorexia.
3) Enhances digestion.
4) Eliminates gastric problems.
5) Helps relieve gripping pain, which is caused by excessive gas.

What it cures
1) Whooping cough and common cold
2) Gastric problems and stomach ache
3) Skin allergies and skin diseases like urticaria (hives)
4) Chronic fever and cholera
5) Revives from an epileptic fit
6) Hysteria and asthma

Colour coding
Black peppercorn is picked when green, and dried in the sun until it turns black.
White peppercorn ripens fully on the vine, before it is picked. Both, white and Green peppercorn don’t have Ayurvedic uses.

Grow-it-at-home guide
1) Take a handful of cowdung and three parts of red or black mud in a pot.
2) Place a couple of black peppercorns in the pot, and pour two or three tsp lukewarm water on it, every day.
3) In a couple of days, you will see the stem of the plant.
4) Tie it to a stick. Since the plant is a creeper, it needs the support of another tree to grow well.

Black pepper

Black pepper is a key ingredient in Su Jok acupuncture therapy, a Korean healing science that uses small needles, magnets and seeds on the hands and feet, to heal the entire body. “We use black pepper to improve vision, cure eye problems, liver and stomach problems, acidity, cold and cough,” says Kavita.