Goodness gracious ghee

Ghee is a highly prized, sacred food since indian antiquity. Ghee’s amazing health benefits can only be described in superlatives. The following quote from the Caraka Samhita: a primary classical Ayurvedic text pretty much sums it up “Ghee is sweet in taste and cooling in energy; rejuvenating, good for the eyes and vision; enkindles digestion; bestows lustre and beauty; enhances memory and stamina; increases the intellect; promotes longevity; is an aphrodisiac and protects the body from various diseases”.

Ghee is made from butter that has had all the water and milk solids removed. It has been used often in cooking, spiritual rituals and ayurvedic health care since ancient times, and for good reason. In ayurvedic medicine, ghee is considered the best form of fat available as no meal is considered balanced without it. Ghee is said to be beneficial to all body types. It ignites the fires of digestion and in doing so improves digestion of other foods.  Further, ghee aids in the development of brain, intelligence, memory power. Modern medicine has wrongly maligned ghee and fats in general, thus giving it  a bad reputation. So let us start by setting the records straight.

Not all fats are created equal, some like trans-fats are harmful whereas some fats are essential for health. Essential fatty acids (fats) are like vitamins in that they cannot be made by the body and a lack of either one of them will cause disease.  Ghee contains conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) that is an essential fatty acid. CLA is an antioxidant that helps in fighting cancers and acts as an aid in the absorption of vitamins and minerals from other food, serving to strengthen the immune system.  Ghee is a rich source of Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFA), particularly Butyric Acid. It is one of the easiest fats to digest as SCFA is metabolized very readily by the body. This fatty acid also nourishes the cells that line the digestive tract, boosts immune system and used for development of the neurological system. In the fat phobic times that we exist, essential fatty acids are collectively the number one missing nutrient in an average person’s diet thus responsible for a host of degenerative diseases such as cancer, heart disease and inflammatory ailments. This is where ghee can tremendously benefit us. 

Ghee is rich in fat soluble vitamins like A, D and K2.  Vitamin A in ghee is preformed and this helpful for the eyesight. Vitamin D is important for healthy bone development. Vitamin K2 is very important in calcium metabolism.  A body with plentiful of vitamin k2 prevents calcium  from depositing in the arteries and thereby reduces plaques formation. Vitamin K2 is also associated with a softer skin that resist wrinkling. Ghee is an excellent cooking medium because it does not break down at high temperatures like many cooking oils. Cooking at high temperatures using vegetable oils is unhealthy as it creates peroxides and other free radicals. But ghee has stable saturated bonds and is lot less likely to form the dangerous free radicals when cooking. Ghee has a very high smoke point and doesn’t burn easily during cooking. Also unlike butter and other oils, ghee has a long shelf life. Finally, on top of the health benefits, ghee is delicious and imparts a beautiful flavor to the meals you create with it. Instead of avoiding ghee, the foods to avoid are easily digestible carbohydrates that come with ingesting white rice, white sugar, white potatoes, and refined wheat flour. Ghee is not dangerous as it is wrongly thought to be, it is okay to  use ghee for cooking, but keep in mind that ghee made from pastured grass fed cows are rich in nutrient content and therefore will  provide maximum health benefits.