Take Two Curries And Call Me In The Morning
My American readers who are not foodies are probably wondering what a “curry” is, but the British readers certainly know. A curry is a wonderful dish of chopped up everything, usually with lots of spices developed in India (although there are such dishes as Thai curries, but we’ll just focus on Indian curries here). Although there are dishes in American Chinese take-out places called “curries”, and they are quite tasty, they in no way approach a even the meanest curry available in England.
I didn’t start eating curries until I lived in England, and they were a real treat. They are one of many things I miss about England, now that I’ve moved back to Philadelphia. Now, I preferred to eat the milder curries like korma or marsala, but I if I’d gone a bit more adventorous, perhaps I could’ve avoided some nasty headaches.
A 2006 report by the Rowett Research Instituteclaims that a really firey curry like vindaloo or phal can treat a headache better than aspirin. This might be why most Englishmen crave curries after a few pints — in order to help stave of hangovers? The hope is that a curry headache cure will not cause the nasty side effects like ulcers that long-term aspirin use can.
What’s In The Curry
It is the spices in the hottest of curries that seem to trigger the body’s natural pain-releivers. Most hot curries contain cumin, tumeric and paprika, which are the spices that do the job. The spices contain salicylic acid — which is the active ingredient in aspirin. One portion of vindaloo contains more salicylic acid than one perscribed dose of regular strength aspirin. Tumeric especially has the highest levels.
Not For Everybody
However, if you eat a vindaloo a day, you probably will think a bleeding ulcer is the less painful altenative. Curries are great — but not all of the time. No matter how healthy you are, your body will not be able to handle a vindaloo a day — and certainly not your plumbing. So, the study suggests a hot curry as an occassional alternative to aspirin for mild headaches. But if your doctor has told you to avoid very spicy food, try the aspirin instead.
October 31st, 2007 at 10:07 am
[...] from plant and herb remedies, including digitalis (from foxglove) and aspirin (from willow bark and spices like tumeric). For prevention of migraines with auras, patients and healers are looking at a modest little [...]