Chicory Root and Powder Profile
Also known as
Cichorium intybus, Blue Sailors, Common Chicory, Wild Chicory, Succory, and Wild Succory.
Introduction
Chicory is a larger relative of the dandelion. Its large tap root has been used as a coffee substitute for generations, especially when coffee was unavailable. Chicory’s leaves are used in salads and spring tonics in the same way as dandelion greens. It has been cultivated along the Nile in Egypt for thousands of years, and was used to assist with liver problems. Pliny the Elder wrote that chicory juice, when combined with rose oil and vinegar, was a good headache remedy. Charlemagne listed it as one of the herbs he required be grown in his garden. It was brought to North America from Europe in the 18th century, and is now established quite well here. Chicory can also be eaten as a food, and consumes as a beverage making it the number one coffee substitute. It is high in vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant, and has the highest concentration of inulin of any other plant that contains inulin.
Constituents
Up to one-third inulin (not to be confused with insulin)
Parts Used
Root and leaves, dried. The root is usually granulated and roasted for a near precise coffee like flavor.
Typical Preparations
Teas, and heated beverages very rarely used in capsule form.
Summary
Chicory is nutritionally important for what it does rather than what it contains. It contains a special class of carbohydrates known as fructans, a group containing inulin (not to be confused with insulin) and oligofructoses. These carbohydrates feed the symbiotic bacteria living in the intestine rather than the human body itself. They allow the healthy bacteria in the colon to produce short chain fatty acids that help prevent colon cancer, but they do not serve as a food source of pathogenic bacteria. The bacterial fermentation of fructans in the intestine changes its chemistry so that the human body absorbs calcium and magnesium much more readily from other foods, so much so that consuming endive and similar vegetables demonstrably builds stronger bones. These complex sugars also lower cholesterol and triglycerides.
Precautions
Avoid excessive consumption if you have gallstones.
This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
