Fennel is a plant that has unique abilities and is used in official medicine as an additional therapy for certain health problems. Relatively recently, the fruits, greens and bulbs of this representative of the flora have become popular among those who want to lose weight. And the use of fennel is approved by nutritionists, albeit with some “amendments.”
Useful properties of fennel
The perennial plant fennel belongs to the celery family. The appearance of the herb resembles dill and can reach a height of up to 2 m, and the sweetish taste and aroma of the fruit is similar to anise. The seeds of the plant are rich in microelements and vitamins:
- calcium;
- magnesium;
- zinc;
- potassium;
- iron;
- chromium;
- aluminum;
- copper;
- vitamin C;
- vitamin E;
- vitamin PP (nicotinic acid);
- vitamin B;
- vitamin A;
- vitamin D;
- anethole (a substance that is an aromatic ester);
- essential oils;
- fixed oils.
Fennel seeds are widely used in medicine to treat diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, gallstones and kidney stones, as an anti-inflammatory and expectorant, and an antispasmodic for intestinal colic. The latter property is especially in demand among mothers to eliminate abdominal pain in newborn babies.
The plant is known for its ability to increase the secretory activity of glands involved in digestion. It contains substances that help remove fluid and deposited salts from the body. Preparations based on this herb are prescribed to pregnant and lactating women to reduce spasms and increase lactation.
Due to the plant’s ability to speed up metabolism, improve digestion, and reduce appetite, nutritionists recommend using fennel stems and seeds for weight loss.
How to choose fennel?
Remember that fresh fennel must be really fresh, recently picked, otherwise it loses all its valuable qualities. If fennel doesn't smell, it's stale. It can be stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 4 days. You should choose a fresh plant very carefully:
- there should be no faded buds on it,
- the bulb should be pale green or almost white,
- leaves and stems should be elastic and juicy,
- the plant should have a strong scent of anise or licorice.
Fresh fennel is perfect as an addition to salads and first courses or as a side dish for main courses. Salads should be consumed with a drop of lemon juice and a small amount of olive oil, adding a minimum of salt if desired. Dry fennel seeds are no less useful, but they can be stored in a vacuum bag in the refrigerator for up to six months. After this period, all useful components of the plant are destroyed.
Chopped fennel root goes well with a variety of dishes
Types for consumption
To achieve a slim figure, nutrition experts recommend including bulbs (the light, dense round part at the base), stems and leaves in your diet. The plant is low in calories: 100 g of the green part of the herbaceous plant contains only 31 calories, and 100 g of fruits (seeds) contain less than 50 calories.
The product can be consumed in various forms for weight loss purposes.
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Powder
Fennel powder comes in the form of ground seeds. You can prepare it yourself or purchase it ready-made. Ground grain is rarely found on the open market. It can be bought in spice departments, ordered in online stores, and some large pharmacies in the city.
The powder can be sold in pure form or in combination with other herbal medicines. It is used as a raw material for medicinal decoction and tea.
The crushed seeds have a spicy taste and pleasant aroma. The powder is added to sauces, salads, soups, broths and borscht, stews, and baked vegetables.
Seeds
The fruits of the plant are used in folk, traditional medicine and cooking. The seeds serve as a spice for dishes made from fish, pork, beef and other types of meat.
The seeds are brewed as tea and used to solve various health problems. Weight loss is one of the many goals that can be achieved by consuming grass seeds. Their action is to normalize metabolic processes, have a diuretic effect, and strengthen the body’s protective properties. Due to the presence of these qualities, fennel fruits are often included in various diets for weight loss.
Oil
Fennel seeds are rich in essential oil, the content of which is about 6.5%. It has a pronounced anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial effect. It is widely used in the pharmaceutical industry for the preparation of drugs.
Essential oil is used in soap making and the production of cosmetic products. The well-known “dill water” for babies contains fennel essential oil and has a calming, antispasmodic effect, relieving babies from bloating and colic in the stomach.
The oil is also used for weight loss - externally and internally. With his participation, anti-cellulite massages and baths are performed. A few drops (2-3) per 200 ml of water are taken orally as a laxative. You can add 1 teaspoon of honey for a pleasant taste. This drink is able to remove toxins and have a general strengthening effect on the body.
Fennel essential oil has a sedative effect and can reduce appetite that occurs due to stress and anxiety.
Bulbs, leaves and stems of the cultivated plant are used fresh and dried.
The bulbs and stems are used as food in the form of salads; the leaves serve more as a seasoning for meat, fish, first courses and side dishes.
Dry leaves act as spices and raw materials for making tea for weight loss.
Aromatherapy with fennel
The plant can be an excellent remedy not only for weight loss, but also for stabilizing the psycho-emotional background. If you conduct a 10-minute aromatherapy session with fennel seed oil in the evening, you can get rid of irritability and even stress due to the lack of a late dinner and hunger.
We recommend reading about beets for weight loss. You will learn about the beneficial properties of beets, diet options with beets, recipes for healthy dishes, contraindications, weight loss results. And here is more information about cabbage juice for weight loss.
Fennel is a fairly popular product in cooking. Thanks to its sweetish taste, it can be present not only in salads, but also in dessert-like dishes. By preparing fennel dishes according to the suggested recipes, you can speed up the process of losing weight and diversify your diet menu.
Recipes for making decoctions and teas
There are many recipes for making fennel teas and decoctions for weight loss. The plant may be the only component or part of a medicinal collection.
- 2 teaspoons of fennel seeds and the same amount of mint leaves are placed in an enamel saucepan, filled with 0.5 liters of water and placed on low heat. The composition is covered with a lid and brought to a boil, boiled for 5-7 minutes, left to infuse for 20-30 minutes. Then the broth is filtered and taken 150-200 ml 2-3 times a day.
- 1 tbsp. l. dry fennel fruits mixed with 1 tsp. chopped stems or leaves of the same herb, add 1 tbsp. l. corn silk and the same amount of green tea. The herbal composition is poured into 1 liter. boiling water and infuse for 40 minutes. Then the finished infusion is filtered and used as tea leaves.
- Dry powder from fennel leaves and green tea for weight loss in equal quantities (1 tsp each) are poured into 500 ml of boiling water, infused for 30 minutes and consumed with a small amount of lemon juice.
- The seeds and green tea are mixed in a 1:2 ratio and poured with boiling water. Infuse for 20 minutes, then add a couple of lemon slices to the teapot and infuse for another 10 minutes. Ready-made tea should be drunk between meals 3-5 times a day.
- Fennel fruits (2 tsp) are poured with 0.5 liters of water and placed on low heat, boiled for 7 minutes and left to infuse. After 15-20 minutes, the broth should be filtered and taken 0.5 cups 4 times a day.
The healing properties of fennel have long been known and used in Tibetan medicine. One of the popular recipes is a weight loss smoothie, which contains this plant and several other fruits that help burn fat, speed up the absorption of food and eliminate toxins.
Fennel, instructions for making a drink at home
For one serving you will need:
- one glass of water;
- one teaspoon of fennel seeds;
- Place the seeds in a small saucepan and cover them with water.
- Boil the broth in a water bath for fifteen minutes.
- Cover with a lid and let sit for about 30 minutes.
- If desired, you can add honey or sugar.
To make your tea drink even healthier, add grated fresh ginger. It will serve as an anti-cold and general strengthening remedy.
Rules of use
Weight loss tea with fennel is recommended to be taken between meals or no later than 30 minutes before meals. You should take into account the diuretic effect of the plant and not get carried away with the drink if you have problems with kidney health.
Despite the healing properties of fennel and the absence of a long list of serious contraindications, you should not overuse doses of tea, infusions and decoctions. Manifestations of individual intolerance to the grass are possible. You need to start drinking tea for weight loss with 100 ml of liquid. In the absence of signs of allergy, you can consume no more than 500-700 ml per day.
Exceeding the dosage can cause problems with the digestive system. An overdose can lead to nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and an allergic reaction.
Nutritionists' opinions on fennel
According to leading nutritionists, diuretics of plant origin, which are used for weight loss, may not always be safe for people with kidney and liver problems, so consumption of fennel can cause significant harm to the body in case of problems with the functioning of the excretory system.
By consuming fennel rhizome in your diet for quick weight loss, a healthy person with a balanced diet can significantly reduce weight due to its low calorie content and diuretic properties. However, before experimenting, it is better to consult a doctor.
What components can be combined with?
Fennel can be combined with many other types of herbs to make teas and infusions. The seeds or leaves of the plant are brewed with nettle, which is used to reduce body weight, ginger, lemon, and green tea.
You can add honey and berries (currants, strawberries, wild strawberries, raspberries, dogwoods) to the fennel broth.
For more active weight loss, it is combined with herbs that help reduce appetite, remove excess fluid and toxins from the body, accelerate metabolic processes and provide a laxative effect. Such herbs include: dandelions, plantain, rose hips, mate (Paraguayan tea). The following will help improve the result: turmeric, rosemary, ginseng root, horsetail, barberry, flax seeds, angelica, lingonberry leaves, lemongrass.
The solution to the mysterious power of the plant
The reason for the complex effect lies in the many useful biologically active compounds contained in the stems, fruits, seeds and bulbs of the plant.
Essential oils, of which there are more than 6% in fruits, promote the gentle removal of toxins from the intestines, and their pleasant aroma and taste help fight addiction to sweets. A rich combination of fatty oils (about 18%) allows you to normalize fat metabolism and establish the normal functioning of cell membranes.
Fennel seeds are very useful for weight loss, since the flavonoids they are rich in are natural antioxidants that help quickly saturate cells with oxygen and actively burn calories. Minerals, vitamins A, B and C replenish the body's needs for valuable nutrients, thereby reducing the frequency of signals to the brain about the need to eat.
Contraindications
A contraindication to the use of fennel as a means of losing weight is the presence of a disease of the central nervous system - epilepsy.
During pregnancy, fennel tea can be taken in small quantities on the recommendation of a doctor, if the expected benefit outweighs the risk for the further course of pregnancy and the health of the unborn child.
It is not recommended to consume teas and decoctions from this herb in significant doses for people with kidney problems.
The article has been verified by the editors
How to choose for weight loss
All parts of fennel can be purchased in stores, but to obtain maximum benefits in the fight for a slim figure, you will need to use a completely fresh product. Things to remember:
- The fennel fruit (bulb) is white, a slightly greenish tint may be present only at the bottom, at the location of the roots;
- if a stem with leaves is required, then the main indicator of their freshness will be the bright green color and visually detectable juiciness;
- It is better to purchase seeds in pharmacies - there the expiration dates are strictly controlled, and the collection/procurement of raw materials is carried out competently.
Fennel seeds
Reviews
Anastasia, 32 years old, Yekaterinburg: I brew fennel for my child to improve digestion; I decided to try taking tea too. I didn’t know that the plant promotes weight loss. Lost 3 kg in 3 months. Considering that I didn’t change my diet and level of physical activity, this is a lot. I got inspired and decided to consolidate the result. I began to exercise more often and reduced my portions a little. I lost 5 kg in a month. I recommend fennel to anyone who wants to lose weight, but is afraid of hunger and irritability.
Elena, 28 years old, Perm: For me, fennel is a way to maintain a good mood while following a diet. I haven’t noticed that it itself causes weight loss, but with active sports and dietary restrictions, the product allows you to maintain motivation. Less often there is a desire to eat something harmful or sweet. Sharp attacks of hunger disappear. I noticed that after several courses I began to feel full after small portions of food.
