Benefits of Consuming Bone Broth

You may have heard that consuming bone broth is good for you but you’re not sure just why. 

I already know why it’s good – take me STRAIGHT TO THE INSTRUCTIONS

Grandma knows that chicken soup is a great food if you’re unwell and it’s long been used as a go-to if you’ve come down with a respiratory infection. Interestingly, chicken soup may act as mild anti-inflammatory and it contains compounds that may help the immune system.

Consuming bone broths – for example, from chicken, beef, duck, fish, lamb, pork etc. – are staples in the traditional diets of most cultures and form the basis of fine cuisine. They are excellent sources of nutrients, easy to digest, full of flavour and provide nutrients that boost healing.

Here are some of the advantages of consuming bone broths regularly:

• Support your immune system  
• May ease irritable bowel symptoms
• Help reduce gut inflammation
• Heal from food intolerances and allergies
• May support joint health

Benefits of Consuming Bone Broth : Nutrition

Bone broth stock is packed with loads of easy-to-absorb, essential and non-essential amino acids (the building blocks of proteins), collagen/gelatine, which help form connective tissue. These nutrients all support healthy digestive function, strong immunity and joint health and other body processes.

Bone broths contain minerals in easily absorbable forms. These include calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur and others. Substances such as chondroitin sulphate and glucosamine are commonly taken as supplements to help reduce the pain and inflammation of arthritis.

Drinking bone broth or adding it to your cooking regularly enhances a healthy gut and may help reduce inflammation.

Some of the major benefits of bone broth.

1.Good for the Gut

Gelatine effectively supports intestinal health and integrity by helping to strengthen the gut lining and support the growth of probiotics (good bacteria). Individuals with digestive imbalances often have lower levels of collagen and supplementing with collagen may support healthy digestive function.

2. Maintains healthy skin

Collagen helps form compounds in the skin that are needed for firm, youthful tone, texture and appearance. The breakdown of collagen in the skin is associated with wrinkles, puffiness and other signs of aging. Taking collagen has been shown to improve skin elasticity, moisture, reduce water loss (dryness) and skin roughness. It also decreased signs of accelerated aging, without significant – all within just four weeks!

3. Supports Immune System Function

A healthy intestinal barrier keeps the contents of the gut inside the intestines until they are ready to be absorbed. This process is regulated by diet and gut bacterial. When this is compromised, intestinal hyper-permeability – in the past referred to as leaky gut – occurs. It can also occur due to inflammation in the gut lining, effectively reducing the ability of the cells to stay bunched up nice and tight. This can occur even with low levels of inflammation.

When this happens particles of food that are not fully digested (and therefore not ready for absorption) sneak through breaches in the gut lining and get into the bloodstream. This activates the immune system, increasing inflammation and can contribute to several problems in the body. Traditionally made bone broths are believed to support healthy inflammatory response and normal immune system function.

4. Detoxification Support

Bone broth is a useful support for detoxification as it provides antioxidants and nutrients that improve the liver’s ability to remove toxins and helps heal the gut lining. This prevents toxins from being reabsorbed back into the circulation and promotes the excretion of them from the body.

The nutrients potassium, sulphur and glycine – found in bone broth – all support detoxification.

5. Joint Protective

Abundant levels of natural collagen are found in the bones, skin, cartilage, ligaments, tendons and marrow of bones.  As we age, joints become more affected by “wear and tear” and loss of collagen at joint surfaces creates excessive friction, leading to the deterioration seen in osteoarthritis. Supplementation of collagen to athletes for 6 months resulted in significant improvements in joint comfort and a decrease in factors that negatively impacted performance.

Gelatine and Collagen

Collagen is behind the immune-boosting properties of stock. Collagen is abundant in bone, marrow, cartilage, tendons and ligaments, and when it is broken down it produces gelatine. And, yes, it sets or congeals when it goes cold.

• Collagen protects and soothes the lining of the digestive tract and can aid in soothing inflammatory bowel disease and settling irritable bowel symptoms
• Gelatine promotes the growth and diversity of gut flora.
• Consuming bone broth increases collagen intake. Collagen is commonly used to help tighten your skin, making you look younger
• Gelatine has a soothing effect on the gut lining,
• Gelatine also provides bone-building minerals in easily absorbable ways, preventing bone loss and reducing join pain.

Amino Acids

The collagen that is dissolved in bone broths contains a number of amino acids, including arginine, glycine, glutamine and proline – all non-essential, but are likely to be depleted if you are unwell. All contribute to the healing properties of broths.

• Glutamine is an important fuel for the cells lining the intestine and helps protect the gut lining
• Proline helps repair a damaged gut lining and may even make your skin more supple
• Arginine is needed for normal immune system function and wound healing and helps regenerate damaged liver cells. Arginine is also a growth factor for a group of bacteria called “eubacteria”. These are important in the gut for proper management of fats and bile acids and production of a substance called butyrate – which is an important energy source for the gut lining.

Glycine is used to help form glutathione – an important antioxidant. It is also used in a detoxification process called glycination. It is an important component of bile salts (needed for normal fat management in the gut).  
Section 1

HOW TO MAKE BONE BROTH

You can use pretty much any bones – we recommend getting them from organic, grass-fed animals – this way you’ll avoid the antibiotics and hormones commonly used in animal farming.

You can use any of the following:

• A piece of meat on the bone
• Fish carcasses or fish heads
• A whole chicken or chicken carcasses even left-over bones from that roast (use organic bones if you can, or bones from a small local farmer)
• Beef, lamb, pork etc – including pork trotters. For long/large bones, have the butcher cleave them into small chunks.
• Giblets from chicken, or other poultry

Recipe for Bone Broth

• Chopped celery stalks & the leafy green tops
• Carrots – chopped into chunks
• 1 onion – sliced
• Put the bones into a large saucepan and fill it with water. Add:
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar for every 4 litres of water
  • 1 tsp salt (unless using pork bones)
  • 1 teaspoon whole black peppers roughly crushed
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • Herbs: any combination of thyme, turmeric, sage, rosemary, ginger, parsley
• Bring to boil, removing foam from the surface as it forms
• Cover with lid and simmer on low heat. Let it reduce to half the volume – this will take an hour or two – then strain and reserve the liquid.
• Return the solids to the pan, add more water, herbs, veges and cider vinegar to the pot and boil again. This time simmer for 6-24 hours.
• You can also use a pressure cooker – cook the bones for some 3 hours. You can also drain and recook with fresh additives to draw out more nutrients from the bones.

After cooking, allow the broth to cool. A layer of fat will form on top. This protects the broth beneath. Discard the fat before you use the broth.

Bone broth can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days; in the freezer for 6 months.

It is recommended to have up to four cups of bone broth every day – depending on your health and reason for having it. Use it as the base for soups, or concentrate it down to use in sauces, casseroles, and so on, or simply drink as a broth before meals – just like drinking miso soup.

TIP: Soak your bones/carcasses in a weak brine with added apple cider vinegar (or white vinegar if you are histamine sensitive) overnight – in the refrigerator. Discard the brine before cooking.

ENJOY!

Note – if you find that bone broth makes your digestion, or other symptoms worse, an investigation is indicated! Please contact us for an appointment!