Is potherb mustard the same as preserved mustard greens? One clear explanation of the difference between the two
Potherb mustard is the tender stems and leaves of the cruciferous plant known as leaf mustard (Brassica juncea). In autumn and winter the leaves turn purplish-red, which is why it is called “potherb mustard”. Its stems and leaves are an ordinary vegetable, usually eaten pickled. So, is potherb mustard the same as preserved mustard greens?
1. Is potherb mustard the same as preserved mustard greens?
Potherb mustard is not preserved mustard greens. Potherb mustard is the tender stems and leaves of the cruciferous plant known as leaf mustard (Brassica juncea), while preserved mustard greens are a finished product made by salting the hearts of certain vegetables.
2. What are the benefits and effects of potherb mustard?
1. Refreshes the mind and lifts spirits
Potherb mustard contains a large amount of ascorbic acid (vitamin C), a highly active reducing substance that participates in the body's important oxidation-reduction processes. It can increase the oxygen content in the brain, stimulate the brain's use of oxygen, and has the effect of refreshing the mind, lifting spirits and relieving fatigue.
2. Detoxifies and reduces swelling
Potherb mustard has a detoxifying effect; it can resist infection and prevent the occurrence of disease, inhibit the toxicity of bacterial toxins, and promote wound healing, and can be used as an auxiliary treatment for infectious diseases.
3. Stimulates the appetite and aids digestion
After pickling, potherb mustard has a special savory flavor and aroma that can promote the digestive function of the stomach and intestines and increase appetite, and can be used to stimulate the appetite and help digestion.
4. Improves eyesight and soothes the diaphragm
Potherb mustard has a relatively coarse, firm texture and contains carotene and a large amount of dietary fiber. It has the effect of improving eyesight and loosening the bowels to relieve constipation. It can serve as an excellent food therapy for eye patients, and can also prevent and treat constipation; it is especially suitable for elderly people with habitual constipation.
5. Aids weight loss and slimming
Potherb mustard is also a representative green food for weight loss. It can promote the elimination of accumulated waste matter and purify the body, making it fresh and clean. While eliminating accumulated waste matter and toxins from the body, it can also supplement vitamins and minerals, stimulate the body's original vitality, and promote the regularization of digestion, absorption and elimination. It is very effective at increasing the speed of weight loss and also has an anti-aging effect.
6. Removes lead
Vitamin C combines with lead to form a substance that is difficult to dissolve in water, so it is excreted from the body with the feces, thereby removing lead; potherb mustard is one of the foods containing vitamin C.
7. Anti-cancer
In past research, scientists proposed a model for the occurrence and development of cancer, namely the initiation stage and the promotion stage of cancer. The initiation stage is often brief and irreversible. Under the influence of carcinogenic substances such as radiation and toxic chemical elements, the seeds of cancer are planted in the human body; the promotion stage is caused by the repeated action of cancer-promoting factors, taking as long as several years or even more than ten years to cause cancerous changes. Experiments have shown that in these two stages of cancer development, the intervention of certain chemical substances can block the growth of cancer cells, thereby achieving the goal of prevention. Japanese research points to an inhibitory effect.
In addition, preserved mustard greens have effects such as relieving summer heat, cleansing the internal organs, reducing food stagnation, treating coughs, and promoting body fluids and stimulating the appetite.