When it comes to adding flavor to my food, one of my absolute favorite herbs is Cilantro.  I love this stuff!!  I know there are some out there that aren’t huge fans of the flavor {who are you crazy people?!} but I can’t get enough of it.  Well when I discovered all of the wonderful things that cilantro can do for our health…my love affair with it just got stronger.  Maybe these little factoids will convince some of you cilantro haters out there to give it another shot!

One of the most amazing properties of Cilantro is that it successfully removes mercury, lead & other heavy metals from our bodies.  That’s HUGE!  It literally flushes out impurities as it goes thru your system.  These days it is 100% impossible to avoid getting heavy metals into your system {unless you live in a bubble}.  The most common source of heavy metals getting into our bodies is from coal burning power plants, which is very hard to avoid because it is in the air around us.  Other common sources of heavy metals that can potentially leach into your body is from dental fillings and certain vaccines.

Medical studies have found that patient’s with Alzheimer’s and Autism have hight levels of heavy metal toxicity in their bodies.  A healthy body can naturally release some heavy metals from the system thru waste and hair growth {among other things}.  When the hair follicles of autism patients were tested against the hair follicles of a healthy person the autism patient had almost no traces of metals in their hair, which means their bodies are unable to naturally flush out these toxins.

I think we can all agree that these days our bodies are constantly trying to fight off impurities and toxins that are a part of our every day lives.  More toxins then our bodies can always handle.  Consuming cilantro everyday will give the body a boost in eliminating these toxins from the body, can improve symptoms for those with these horrible diseases and can also help prevent future disease in our bodies from the build-up of heavy metals.

Our go to daily dose of cilantro is in our morning smoothies {more about those to come…plus why I ♥ my blender}.  But cilantro is great in so many recipes too!  I like to add it on top of rice and pasta dishes or to add a little kick of flavor to my quinoa and greek yogurt.  A great way to get that cilantro pumping thru your system  {especially if you haven’t jumped on the I Love cilantro train yet} is to boil the cilantro down into a tea and mix it with your favorite beverage {mixed in with fruit juice is a great way to get the kiddos enjoying!} Or maybe a garlic and cilantro pesto spread on crispy bread or over your favorite pasta…

{Image from Simply Recipes}

Garlic & Cilantro Pesto