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Cabbage Soup Diet: Getting To Know The Cabbage

The cabbage is a famous cruciferous vegetable, just like
Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and Cauliflower, that is just
commonly used for cooking. It is also popular for its discovered
medicinal and therapeutic properties. It is even famous for its
perceived "fat-burning" effects, thus the existence of the
so-called Cabbage Soup Diet. But most especially, the vegetable
was pretty well known because like any other cruciferous
vegetables, it is believed to contain certain chemicals that can
help prevent the deadly cancer.

The History of Cabbage

The cabbage, from the Brassica oleracea Capitata Group, is a
plant that is a member of the Family Brassicaceae or Cruciferae.
It was taken from a leafy wild mustard herb that is native to
the Mediterranean region. The cabbage was recognized by the
ancient Romans and Greeks. They praised this vegetable for its
medicinal and healing properties.

The English name of the vegetable was derived from the
Normanno-Picard "caboche", which means "head". Because of its
ready availability, its being high in nutrients and because it
is inexpensive, the cabbage is among those that top the list of
healthy and nutritious foods.

The use of the cabbage was believed to have started during the
Greek era. Back then, the Greeks used newly picked white
cabbages and made juice out of them. The juice was used to
relieve painful or infected eyes. The cabbage juice was also
drunk by Romans and Egyptians because it was also believed that
the juice can prevent intoxication.

The Health Benefits of Cabbage

We can have a lot of health benefits from the cabbage. Cabbage
is anti-inflammatory vegetable, which either reduces, if not
prevents, swelling and tenderness. It has lactic acid that helps
in disinfecting the colon. Cabbage can also be utilized to
lessen headaches. One more benefit that we can get from the
cabbage is its anti-cancer properties. Cabbage is also believed
to be effective in treating other skin conditions. Also, the
cabbage juice when drunk from the stem can be a very good remedy
for treating ulcers.

If you are suffering from gastritis, the fresh cabbage juice is
very good for you. Drinking an amount of 25-50 ml cabbage juice
daily is also very useful in dealing with headache, bronchitis,
asthma, and other problems in digestion. Mouth ulcers will be
healed faster when white cabbage juice is dabbed on the mouth
ulcers.

The Varieties of Cabbages

Cabbages have several varieties according to its shape and
maturity. There are Green and Red Cabbages. There is also the
more delicate Bok Choy, which is a Chinese variety of cabbage.
The "Early Jersey Wakefield" (cone-shaped), "Late Flat Dutch",
and "Danish Ballhead" (late, round-headed) are the traditional
varieties.

Raw cabbages are commonly shredded or are sliced into thin
strips. These are used in salads, like that in coleslaw. Its
leaves are softened by placing the whole head of cabbage inside
the freezer or parboiling and then filled with chopped rice
and/or meat. Cabbage often supplements to stews or soups. The
Cabbage Soup Diet is exceptionally popular in both Eastern and
Central Europe.