what Ghee is: clarified butter. Clarified butter is essentially butter that has been lightly simmered on a stovetop, the process of which causes the milk fats, water and other impurities to separate out to the top and bottom of the pan. These are then filtered out removing the lactose and leaving the highly purified, medicinal oil known as ghee, which solidifies at room temperature.
The process of clarifying butter into ghee changes it from a delicious, nutritious fat into an incredibly tasty, highly medicinal powerhouse due to the concentrating and purifying effect clarification has on the butter. Ghee is literally all of the best parts of butter without any of the troublesome allergens like casein and lactose. The process of simmering the butter and filtering out the sediments and milk solids removes 99% of the lactose and casein, meaning that even those who are lactose and casein intolerant/sensitive can often eat ghee without any issue. With that being said, if you have one of these allergies, start slowly with ghee to see how your body reacts, just to be on the safe side.
Ghee is one of those special superfoods that gives you the best of both worlds: it’s deeply rejuvenating, powerfully health-boosting and has out-of-this-world flavor. It should come as no surprise that it has been revered as a prized food in India for thousands of years. In fact, many Ayurvedic practitioners consider ghee to be such a supreme health tonic that it is often recommended, in small doses, as the first food given to a newborn child, even before breast milk. in order to help kick start digestion, seed the body with life force (or
ojas) and supply deeply nourishing nutrients for
building a healthy brain and nervous system. But those incredible health benefits don’t just apply to newborn children—ghee is a wonderful health-boosting tonic at any age, the benefits of which affect nearly every system and process in the body.
In addition to all of its medicinal benefits, ghee is also rich in some harder-to-get essential nutrients:
Vitamin AUnlike most foods, the Vitamin A in ghee is in retinol form, meaning that it is in the most biocompatible form for the human body. Most of the vitamin A in our diets comes from beta-carotene, which requires the body to convert it into retinol before it can be used. However, not everyone converts beta-carotene into retinol form as efficiently, and some people run the risk of mild-to-moderate vitamin A deficiencies if there is not enough retinol-form vitamin A in their diets. Vitamin A is important for eye, skin, hair and immune health among other things.
Vitamin EGhee contains high amounts of vitamin E, one of the most powerful and important antioxidants in the human body.
Vitamin K2Essential for healthy bones and heart, vitamin K2 can be hard to get, as it is somewhat rare in most foods, but ghee is rich in it. Proper levels of vitamin K2 help to protect against tooth decay, support proper growth and development of bones, and protect against the calcification of the arteries, also known as atherosclerosis.
CholesterolDespite being demonized by the media in past decades, cholesterol is essential for proper health, hormone production, brain function, nerve function, cellular health and a number of other highly important bodily functions, the consumption of which does not cause heart disease and blood clots as previously thought. Ghee supplies high-quality cholesterol to the body and brain.
Omega-3 and Omega-9 Fatty AcidsAs long as it is from grass-fed cows, ghee contains omega-3 and omega-9 fatty acids, which play a number of vital roles in the human body and are particularly important for mood and brain health, among other things.
Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA)Abundant in ghee made from grass-fed cows’ milk, initial studies indicate that CLA may help to reduce tumors, lower cholesterol and high blood pressure, reduce inflammation and actually burn body fat.
Ghee has a lipophilic effect on other fatty acids and fatty toxins in the body (which are lipophilic, meaning they are attracted to other fats), acting like a chelating agent to pull stored fat-soluble toxins out of the body and back into the intestines for removal from the body. Molecules of emotion—which, according to Ayurveda, are also lipophilic and stored in the fat cells—can also be “pulled” out of their hiding places using this method.”Ghee also helps to lubricate the body and intestines, helping with constipation and promoting regular bowel movements in healthy individuals, which
assists in elimination and detoxification