Cloves: flower buds for your health

It's soup and casserole season. Perhaps you already use cloves to perfume your kitchen? Part of the traditional Asian pharmacopoeia for centuries, the clove contains many virtues. Discover in the next lines the many advantages and benefits of clove.


Présentation du clou de girofle : un peu de botanique

The clove, eugenia caryophyllus by its botanical name, comes from the myrtaceae family. It is native to the Moluccas in Indonesia and has been used since the dawn of time by the Chinese. In its many uses, the clove allowed to purify the breath.

It landed on our lands in the fourth century and its reputation as an antiseptic and anesthetic was not long in coming.

The giroflier is an evergreen tree that can grow up to 20 meters tall. The flowers are grouped in small compact and branched cymes. They are pinkish-white in color and will bear fruit: small dark red berries with two small seeds inside.

Cloves are actually unbloomed flower buds. They are picked during the ripening process and then dried in the sun.

Composition chimique des clous de girofle

The cloves are mainly composed of:

  • flavonoids (natural antioxidants of plant origin): quercetol, kaempferol

  • hydrolyzable tannins: gallic and ellagic tannins.

  • triterpenic acids: oleanolic acid.

  • essential oil: eugenol.


Principales indications du clou de girofle

  • NORL and pulmonary pathologies: viral angina, rhinopharyngitis, laryngitis, mouth ulcers, periodontal conditions, dental neuralgia, dry coughs

  • digestive disorders: bloating, intestinal spasms, chronic gastritis, ulcer prevention, type 2 diabetes prevention

  • lower libido


Propriétés pharmacologiques du clou de girofle au niveau digestif

The cloves are aperitif and digestive. Infused into your dishes, they open up your appetite and facilitate digestion. The essential oil in cloves is carminative, meaning they help expel gas for those who suffer from bloating.

Cloves stimulate mucus production in the stomach and promote bile secretion.


Le clou de girofle comme un anti-infectieux naturel

The reputation of clove in terms of health is well established. It has been recognized for centuries as a powerful natural anti-infective. The eugenol contained in its essential oil slows down the multiplication of the herpes virus and also acts on staphylococcus epidermidis, escherichia coli, candida albicans , helicobacter pylori and porphyromonas gingivalis.


Activité anti-inflammatoire du clou de girofle

In rats, aqueous extract of clove inhibits the anaphylactic reaction by decreasing histamine release from mast cells.


Clou de girofle et insuline...

Clove has insulin-like properties. It limits glucose production in the liver, thereby relieving liver and digestive functions.


Mal aux dents ? Essayez le clou de girofle !

One of the uses of clove in folk medicine is undoubtedly as a dental analgesic... Eugenol and polyphenols help relieve pain, headaches and toothaches by acting as local anesthetic. Put a clove on the tooth that is hurting, bite down and let the essential oil diffuse. The effect is almost immediate by the time you get to your dentist!


Clou de girofle, un aphrodisiaque ? 

In cases of cravings, lower libido, the clove reactivates the fire. Like ginger, it warms and stimulates the flow of life energy. One study showed that in vivo, a clove extractincreased sexual activity in rats!


Pour conclure

Clove is safe at commonly used doses. It also has no contraindications except when used in the form of essential oil. Beware of burns and skin allergies.

In infusion for a warming and spicy drink, in your soups and sauces to flavor, in essential oil to act as a concentrate, in liquid extract to improve digestive disorders, clove invites itself into your kitchen-healthy!

Alexia Bernard 14 December, 2020
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