What a wonderfully informative and hugely valuable article. I’ve always enjoyed ‘bitter’ foods and they are a daily component of my diet. Now I can enjoy them even more fulsomely thanks to your shared research and experience. Heartfelt thanks to you.
Fascinating article. In relation to xenohormesis, just the other day I heard someone speak about the blue zone Sardinians and how the catechins in the goat milk they drink contributes to their longevity.
Judging by this image, I'd say a fair amount of xenohormesis goes on in the goat diet there.
Those hardy goats can live off virtually anything!
And yes, Italian cuisine is pretty hard to beat when it comes to bitter greens, prepared deliciously. I love radicchio and rocket, along with chicory and endive.
Another interesting article thanks. A brief trip down the nutritional anthropology lane combined with modern nutritional science. Ancient cultures and those not yet ‘westernised’ can certainly teach us a thing or two. A few more bitter foods I shall eat and drink
Robyn, why all the bitterness? 😂 Funny how bitter carries negative connotations like sarcasm and hostility. I actually like bitter foods. Been drinking black coffee since I was a kid, and since I dumped sugar years ago, I’ve found bitter foods aren’t all that bitter. Walnuts for example. Aside from all the other things I learned from this article, I didn’t know what rocket was. Arugula! Love that stuff. Thanks for all the great knowledge you share with everyone.
You Americans, calling things funny names like arugula!
You're so right about bitter foods not tasting so bitter when you stop saturating your sweet-sensing taste buds with sugar. For that matter, you can really taste the sweetness in fruits, and even vegetables, when you stop eating sugar.
I’ve known for decades that bitter foods such as radicchio, rocket and even cacao is good for digestion. Your article was so interesting Robyn. Thank you 🙏🏻
It's one of those many examples of old-timey wisdom that has turned out to be 100% true. Ask any herbalist what they recommend for digestive upset, and they'll reel off a list of bitter herbs like dandelion, chicory, oregon grape and gentian.
We are indeed fearfully and wonderfully made. All of life. I do not believe evolution as a blind and random conscious-less theory comes close to revealing the intricate wonders of life.
What really strikes me as I read this research is that ALL life forms are interdependent with each other. Whether you believe there is a designer, or whether straight Darwinian evolution is the explanation, there's an intelligence evident in the process.
My Mum always had a bottle of Swedish bitters in the cupboard. She would have a dose before and after eating out, especially if it was something greasier than she was used to (like 1970s Chinese food - those were the days 🤣).
Good ole 70's food. Fortunately my dad always had a strong aversion to fats and oils. His mum always had some swedish bitters. I bought some a few months back and have a nip from time to time, interesting taste!
Not as interesting as the herbal antimalarial brew that I took on a budget backpacking trip around Indonesia in the late 90s! No mosquito dared to come near me during that trip. I reckon my blood must have stunk to high heaven from that foul-tasting brew.
Sadly, no. But I lived in fear of the bottle smashing while my backpack was being hurled onto an ancient Merpati eggbeater, and stinking out all my clothes forever. But hey, I didn't get malaria!
On bitter herbs, the Italian Amaro Liqueur called Fernet-Branca is quite interesting also very bitter and consumed as a digestive after a meal. Said to be made with herbs an spices.
My Dad has dysentery during the 39-45 war while he was in Italy. An Italian family near Lake Como gave him this to drink and he swore it cured him.
If we children got car sick while going on our annual holiday, he would stop and give us a half tot of Fernet-Branca and Half tot of Port mixed. In a half and hour we would be fine.
Not a Kale bloke at all. Olive oil helps it off the plate into the bin, yet I love Brussels sprouts, same family - brassica oleracea
The Italians, Greeks and French have a great tradition of using bitter herbs as medicines and aperitifs. I just looked up Fernet-Branca, and found this: " its recipe includes Chinese rhubarb, Aloe ferox (bitter aloe), cinchona, chocolate,[11] quinine,[12] and angelica." That sounds like an amazing combo! I studied many of those herbs when I was in naturopathic college. Their use goes back centuries, and in some case millennia.
Of course, your Dad would be in trouble with child protection services these days, for giving you alcohol 🤣.
Kale is not everybody's cup of tea. Although some people who can't stand curly kale do like cavalo nero or red Russian kale.
Excellent work! I loved learning how bitter foods (which I enjoy) are beneficial to health and our immune system. Your work is impeccable and immensely useful!!
I'm really heartened to learn how many of my readers are already fans of bitter foods. Although I shouldn't be surprised that the people who read my stack are less under the sway of Big Food's nefarious influence than the average Joe.
Absolutely! And I am always amazed at how quickly our tastes can change.
Interestingly, my Mum said that the other day she accidentally put tumeric on her porridge instead of cinnamon, having grabbed the wrong spice jar. But then realised, she quite liked it and so will do it again!
I know a couple of people who put turmeric in their porridge and thoroughly enjoy it. I put finely shredded kale in mine; it tastes surprisingly good with banana and blueberries.
What a wonderfully informative and hugely valuable article. I’ve always enjoyed ‘bitter’ foods and they are a daily component of my diet. Now I can enjoy them even more fulsomely thanks to your shared research and experience. Heartfelt thanks to you.
I'm so glad you're already eating bitter foods. Were you brought up with them, or did you discover that you liked them later in life?
Thanks Robyn for this great article. I have learnt so much since following you on Substack.
I'm so glad to hear that - it's what I'm here for!
Fascinating article. In relation to xenohormesis, just the other day I heard someone speak about the blue zone Sardinians and how the catechins in the goat milk they drink contributes to their longevity.
Judging by this image, I'd say a fair amount of xenohormesis goes on in the goat diet there.
https://www.123rf.com/photo_35462055_goats-in-sardinia-italy.html
I've always like bitter tastes probably encouraged by my Italian father who grew his own radicchio and rocket.
Those hardy goats can live off virtually anything!
And yes, Italian cuisine is pretty hard to beat when it comes to bitter greens, prepared deliciously. I love radicchio and rocket, along with chicory and endive.
Another interesting article thanks. A brief trip down the nutritional anthropology lane combined with modern nutritional science. Ancient cultures and those not yet ‘westernised’ can certainly teach us a thing or two. A few more bitter foods I shall eat and drink
I'm sure the Maori know a thing or two about edible bitter greens!
Robyn, why all the bitterness? 😂 Funny how bitter carries negative connotations like sarcasm and hostility. I actually like bitter foods. Been drinking black coffee since I was a kid, and since I dumped sugar years ago, I’ve found bitter foods aren’t all that bitter. Walnuts for example. Aside from all the other things I learned from this article, I didn’t know what rocket was. Arugula! Love that stuff. Thanks for all the great knowledge you share with everyone.
You Americans, calling things funny names like arugula!
You're so right about bitter foods not tasting so bitter when you stop saturating your sweet-sensing taste buds with sugar. For that matter, you can really taste the sweetness in fruits, and even vegetables, when you stop eating sugar.
Apricot kernels are nice and bitter. Cancer amelioration too ? I used to enjoy of pint of bitter when I lived in old Blighty :) I guess it’s the hops.
Yes, the hops make it bitter, all right!
Laetrile is still pooh-poohed as a cancer treatment but Ralph Moss interviewed the Japanese researcher, Dr Kanematsu Sugiura, and studied his lab notebooks, and found that it was a very promising treatment that was suppressed by the usual suspects: https://www.secondopinionfilm.com/, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ajes.12480/
I’ve known for decades that bitter foods such as radicchio, rocket and even cacao is good for digestion. Your article was so interesting Robyn. Thank you 🙏🏻
It's one of those many examples of old-timey wisdom that has turned out to be 100% true. Ask any herbalist what they recommend for digestive upset, and they'll reel off a list of bitter herbs like dandelion, chicory, oregon grape and gentian.
My favourite bitters:
- Sow Thistle (esp. roots)
- Dandelion (all parts)
- Gymea lily stems
- Bittercress
- Native sarsaparilla leaf tea (glycoalkaloids)
Now there are a few more for me to sample!
Great article. Thank you, Robyn. Superb.
We are indeed fearfully and wonderfully made. All of life. I do not believe evolution as a blind and random conscious-less theory comes close to revealing the intricate wonders of life.
Adaptation as informed by design.
What really strikes me as I read this research is that ALL life forms are interdependent with each other. Whether you believe there is a designer, or whether straight Darwinian evolution is the explanation, there's an intelligence evident in the process.
Very interesting! Time for some Swedish bitters....
My Mum always had a bottle of Swedish bitters in the cupboard. She would have a dose before and after eating out, especially if it was something greasier than she was used to (like 1970s Chinese food - those were the days 🤣).
Good ole 70's food. Fortunately my dad always had a strong aversion to fats and oils. His mum always had some swedish bitters. I bought some a few months back and have a nip from time to time, interesting taste!
Not as interesting as the herbal antimalarial brew that I took on a budget backpacking trip around Indonesia in the late 90s! No mosquito dared to come near me during that trip. I reckon my blood must have stunk to high heaven from that foul-tasting brew.
Haha, that's one way to repel mozzies, was it hallucinogenic also:-)
Sadly, no. But I lived in fear of the bottle smashing while my backpack was being hurled onto an ancient Merpati eggbeater, and stinking out all my clothes forever. But hey, I didn't get malaria!
Most interesting. Ma'am.
On bitter herbs, the Italian Amaro Liqueur called Fernet-Branca is quite interesting also very bitter and consumed as a digestive after a meal. Said to be made with herbs an spices.
My Dad has dysentery during the 39-45 war while he was in Italy. An Italian family near Lake Como gave him this to drink and he swore it cured him.
If we children got car sick while going on our annual holiday, he would stop and give us a half tot of Fernet-Branca and Half tot of Port mixed. In a half and hour we would be fine.
Not a Kale bloke at all. Olive oil helps it off the plate into the bin, yet I love Brussels sprouts, same family - brassica oleracea
The Italians, Greeks and French have a great tradition of using bitter herbs as medicines and aperitifs. I just looked up Fernet-Branca, and found this: " its recipe includes Chinese rhubarb, Aloe ferox (bitter aloe), cinchona, chocolate,[11] quinine,[12] and angelica." That sounds like an amazing combo! I studied many of those herbs when I was in naturopathic college. Their use goes back centuries, and in some case millennia.
Of course, your Dad would be in trouble with child protection services these days, for giving you alcohol 🤣.
Kale is not everybody's cup of tea. Although some people who can't stand curly kale do like cavalo nero or red Russian kale.
Excellent work! I loved learning how bitter foods (which I enjoy) are beneficial to health and our immune system. Your work is impeccable and immensely useful!!
I'm really heartened to learn how many of my readers are already fans of bitter foods. Although I shouldn't be surprised that the people who read my stack are less under the sway of Big Food's nefarious influence than the average Joe.
Fascinating and entertaining as always. Thanks Robyn!
Thank you for reading, and I hope you now have some inspiration to work some more bitter foods and beverages into your daily diet!
Absolutely! And I am always amazed at how quickly our tastes can change.
Interestingly, my Mum said that the other day she accidentally put tumeric on her porridge instead of cinnamon, having grabbed the wrong spice jar. But then realised, she quite liked it and so will do it again!
I know a couple of people who put turmeric in their porridge and thoroughly enjoy it. I put finely shredded kale in mine; it tastes surprisingly good with banana and blueberries.
lol. That's one way to get greens with every meal!
But what wouldn't taste good with blueberries and banana?!
Ex-actly!