High in fibre, barley is also a kidney cleanser. Better yet, regular
intake of it helps prevent heart disease. BARLEY water was always a
regular drink when we were still living at home.
Barley is good for your intestinal health too. Try to eat the barley
grains you find in your drink or sweet broth with fu chook (beancurd
skin) and ginkgo nuts.
It's high in fibre which feeds the friendly bacteria in the colon and
helps speed up the transit of fecal matter in it. In this way it helps
prevent haemorrhoids and colon cancer.
The propionic acid and beta glucan from barley's insoluble fibre also
help lower cholesterol and prevent the formation of gallstones.
Eating barley regularly is a preventive step against heart disease as,
besides the fibre content, it is also high in niacin, a B vitamin good
for lowering cholesterol.
Diabetics should eat more barley as the fibre will prevent blood sugar
levels from rising too high. It also provides relief from constipation
or diarrhoea for those suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
Barley is rich in selenium which prevents cancer and relieves symptoms
of asthma and arthritis. It is a good source of manganese, copper and
phosphorous.
Malt sugar comes from sprouted barley which, when fermented, is an
ingredient in beer and other alcoholic beverages.
Barley, whose Latin name is " hordeum vulgare" , has been cultivated
for more than 10,000 years.
Since ancient times, barley has been used for healing purposes and has
been known to the Chinese, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. Athletes in
Greece and Rome in those days were known to eat barley bread to give
them strength.
