Drinking bone broth seems to be a new fad for healthy living. Let’s take a look at when you should drink bone broth and some of the benefits that it brings. Even though many people have taken up this new healthy way of drinking, a lot of people seem to feel in disbelief that plain bone broth can actually be beneficial to our health. My goal for this post is to help you learn the benefits and basics of drinking bone broth. And don’t forget to read to the end of the post because there will be a wonderful and easy to follow bone broth recipe for you to enjoy!
Should I drink bone broth on an empty stomach? Yes, it is very beneficial to drink bone broth on an empty stomach or during a fast. In fact, it’s highly recommended due to all the nutrients that it has. There really isn’t any specific time when you shouldn’t drink bone broth. Most people report that it even helps them sleep. There are several benefits to bone broth, which include but are not limited to easing joint pains in the body, making your skin glow, replacing electrolytes in the body, and being a great source of gut repair.
Have you ever felt that you need to find a product to help strengthen your hair? Well, drinking bone broth on a regular basis can do help with this too. On top of this, bone broth is known to aid in digestion, assist in detoxification of the liver, and also help fight infection. Yes, if you feel you’re getting sick or you are sick, drinking bone broth can help in making you feel better.
When You Can Drink Bone Broth And Is There A Time You Shouldn’t?
One of the main concerns and hardest pieces of information to find about bone broth is when you shouldn’t drink it. In fact, there’s more information on how you should drink a minimum of 8 oz a day and there really is no suggestion on when you should stop drinking the bone broth. However, how often you drink bone broth depends on what type of benefits you wish to gain from the bone broth.
For instance, if you’re having trouble with your digestive system, you should drink bone broth on a daily basis. No matter if you struggle with irritable bowel syndrome, absorption or digestion, bone broth can help boost your digestive system’s overall performance.
While some people feel you should limit the amount of bone broth that you drink because you need nutrients from other foods as well, other people feel the opposite. They believe that as long as you maintain a healthy diet, you can drink as much bone broth as you want. However, there is something everyone needs to be cautious of when drinking bone broth and that’s regarding how long you simmer the bone broth. Many people simmer the bone broth for too long because the longer the bones are simmered, the more nutrients you can get out of the broth. However, this can also cause sensitivity to glutamates. When you have an increase of glutamates in your system, you can have negative reactions both physically and mentally. You may see an increase in mood swings, seizures, headaches, and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) /ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder).
The Body’s Internal Benefits To Bone Broth
Bone broth helps the body internally in many ways from fighting against illnesses to strengthening one’s bones and teeth. Because of all the amino acids bone broth holds, it can help boost your immunity, which can help you fight off diseases such as the common cold or bronchitis. Think of it this way – we often turn to chicken noodle soup when we’re not feeling well because it helps us open our breathing pathways, helping digestion, and breaking up mucus. When looking at the basics, there isn’t much difference between bone broth and chicken noodle soup.
Just like how chicken noodle soup can help aid in inflammation, so can bone broth. However, many people believe that bone broth works better in helping with anti-inflammation as compared to chicken noodle soup. Because of all the amino acids in bone broth, such as glycine, cysteine, and histidine, bone broth decreases inflammation caused by illnesses and even arthritis. Therefore, whether you have a common cold, flu, headache, or arthritis, drinking bone broth on a daily basis can help ease the symptoms of inflammation.
In regards to using bone broth to strengthen one’s bones and teeth, it is recommended to add a variety of vegetables as well as fish to the broth, so that you can maximize on nutritional benefits. You will need a variety of nutrients from zinc, magnesium, protein, iron, calcium, potassium, copper, and vitamins A, B, C, D, and K. Switching up a simple bone broth recipe by adding a few vegetables of sources of protein like fish will take the benefits of the broth to a whole new level. Not only does bone broth improve your hydration due to all the electrolytes that it contains, but it also has a positive impact on your overall mood. Part of this contributes to all the nutrients that you gain while drinking the bone broth. The other part stems from the fact that bone broth influences some of the bacteria in your gut. In return, your gut bacteria communicate with your brain stimulating it to make you feel better. This, in turn, has a good impact on your mood.
There are Even More Benefits to Bone Broth
The list of benefits for bone broth is like never-ending. Along with working as an anti-inflammatory benefit, bone broth can also help you sleep. Part of this could be because certain health problems, such as arthritis, were keeping you awake. And while bone broth won’t completely take away the arthritis pain and swelling, it can act as an aid and make you feel better enabling you to get a sound sleep. Another part of this is because of the glycine content in the bone broth. Glycine helps improve sleep. The trick is to drink bone broth before a few hours before bed. Meaning, you could drink bone broth during your evening meal or even as an evening snack. People who have done this state that not only do they sleep better but they also feel more awake the following day.
Another benefit of bone broth that’s made people jump on the bandwagon is that it helps in weight loss. Because bone broth is so rich with nutrients, especially protein, this helps a body stay full for a longer period of time. Also, because there are very little calories in bone broth, people don’t have to worry about their calorie intake. This is one of the reasons why drinking bone broth has become a popular way to help people lose weight. Some people drink bone broth during one of their meals, such as breakfast, and then continue to eat a regular lunch and evening meal. Other people have turned to a stricter bone broth diet, which includes a fast from all other foods and consumption of bone broth only.
Both collagen and gelatin are found in bone broth and both of these nutrients are known to benefit the health, look, and feel of your skin. The nutrients can help protect the skin from any damage from UV light and they can also keep the skin hydrated. On top of this, the skin is able to produce more moisture, so you don’t have to suffer from dry skin. Other people believe that bone broth has also helped boost their skin’s elasticity.
Another major health benefit that can make many people turn to drink bone broth regularly is that it’s known to help your cardiovascular health. The main part of bone broth which helps decrease the intensity of heart attacks is glycine. On top of this, drinking bone broth regularly can also decrease many other diseases, such as mental illness, strokes, and heart disease. But the benefits don’t end here. Bone broth can also help in brain function because the bone marrow present in the broth can give the brain added fuel for functioning.
A Delicious Bone Broth Recipe
There are a variety of great bone broth recipes online which make deciding your favorite one even harder! While some people like to make bone broth on the stove, other people like to make bone broth with their slow cooker. No matter how you decide to make the bone broth, here is one of the many great recipes.
This recipe has around 379 calories per serving with one serving size at three quarts. You can simmer this recipe for as long as you want, but many people say it should be around 24 hours or more.
The ingredients for this recipe include:
- 3 quartered onions
- 3 halved carrots
- 1/2 cup raw Dr. Mercola’s apple cider vinegar
- Sea salt
- 3 halved celery stocks
- 3 to 4 pounds of knucklebones and bone marrow
- 2 pounds of meaty bones, such as ribs
- Handful of parsley
First, you want to add the water, apple cider vinegar, and bones into a crockpot and let it sit for an hour. Then, you will want to add more water so all the bones are covered and also add the vegetables. You will then bring the mixture to a boil. Throw away any scum from the top of the mixture and simmer for 24-72 hours. About 10 minutes before the bone broth is done simmering, you will want to throw in the parsley. You will then drain the broth and add the sea salt according to your taste.
You can store the cooled broth in the fridge for up to a week or six months in the freezer.
Related Questions You Might Have
Is there a broth for vegetarians and vegans similar to bone broth?
Yes. Instead of bone broth, you can make a vegetable broth which can give you most of the same nutrients found in bone broth. In order to make vegetable broth, you can take scraps from vegetables or just use whole vegetables and simmer them with water. You’ll want to simmer the broth for as long as 8 to 24 hours. Remember, the longer you simmer the broth, the more nutrients will be released. After you’ve finished simmering, you can toss the vegetables as the nutrients needed for your system will now be in the water, which has turned into a delicious broth.
What are the best bones for bone broth and where can I get the bones?
First, you want to pick bones from animals who ate the healthiest, such as grass-fed and pastured animals. For beef, you want to pick knucklebones, feet, marrow, and joint bones. Meaty bones, such as ribs and oxtail are always good to use for broth. For chicken and turkeys, you can use feet, neck, carcass, and backs. There are many different places you can get bones, such as the butcher, from your cooking, or from a farmer’s markets.