Cow ghee has been part of a staple diet in Asian and Middle Eastern countries. Recently Western countries are slowly adopting this too. And rightly so! Because after decades of research it’s proven that cow ghee comes with many nutritional concentrations, and despite being ‘fat’ it is the most important fat our body needs, especially if you think to lose weight.
Cow ghee for weight loss isn’t a new theory. The fat percentage in cow ghee is between 99 to 99.5% with just 0.5% moisture. Carotene is between 3.2 to 7.4 mg/g; vitamin A is 19 to 34 IU/g, cholesterol 302 to 362 mg/100g, Tocopherol 26 to 48 mg/g and free fatty acid is just 2.8%. CLA is just 1% in cow ghee while palmitic, and stearic acids are dominant.
How Does Cow Ghee Help in Weight Loss?
Cow ghee for weight loss? Yes, you read it right. Now questions like how to use and how does cow ghee help in weight loss brainstorm our minds. Before reaching conclusions let us learn some facts and understand the concept behind cow ghee and weight loss:
The general notion goes like this: Fat has to be avoided as a part of the diet, but then there are healthy fats. If you thought fats were bad for your health, it’s not true. Healthy fats, like ghee, are what our body needs for its overall wellbeing. These good fats absorb nutrients like fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) which help to regulate the hormones in our body.
Bad fats are found in pre-processed and packed foods like pastries, chips, processed meats like sausages, and other junk foods. Clogged arteries, diabetes, weight gain, acne, hair loss are some side effects of consuming unhealthy fats.
According to Ayurveda, the ancient science of India, desi ghee can be credited as the storehouse of nutrients. It is also known to improve metabolism in the body, thus speeding up weight loss.
Ghee is known to:
- Reduce fat concentrations in our body
- Burn fat cells
- Prevent arthritis and heart attack
- Speed up the digestion process
- Help with memory as it is high in Omega-3
Function of Ghee in Weight Loss:
- Aids in digestion: Metabolism and digestion increases due to the short-chain fatty acids present in ghee. One or two teaspoons of ghee per meal improve digestion capacities which further helps in losing weight.
- Reshape: Body gets back in shape if we add ghee to the diet as it contains Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids which reduce the levels of fat in our body.
- Energy: Ghee converts the stored fat cells into energy, which directly helps in faster weight loss.
- Shrink the fat: Amino acids present in desi ghee shrink the fat cells, which means weight loss.
- Memory power and overall well-being: The omega-3 in ghee is known to improve memory, and the DHA (di-hydroxy anisole) component helps prevent major illnesses like heart attacks, and arthritis due to weight loss.
- Thyroid health: Vitamin D is better assimilated by ghee, which keeps thyroid health in check, and directly helps in weight loss.
In 2010, the effect of ghee on serum lipid levels and microsomal lipid peroxidation was studied, and the results are mentioned below:
- In the mice model, dietary ghee (10%) consumed for four weeks did not have any effect on total serum cholesterol, but triglyceride levels were reduced.
- Microsomal lipid peroxidation levels were not affected.
- Decreased low-density lipoprotein
- A lower level of nonenzymatic-induced lipid peroxidation in liver homogenate was reported.
- Clinical study of a preliminary nature showed that medicated ghee successfully reduced serum cholesterol, triglycerides, cholesterol esters, and phospholipids in patients treated for psoriasis.
- Rural men reported lesser coronary heart diseases despite high ghee intake in their diet.
Benefits of Cow Ghee in Everyday Life
- Helps in keeping the body warm from within, hence extensively used in winters.
- According to Ayurveda, a few drops of warm cow ghee in clogged nostrils will help open them up. One should do this right after waking up early in the morning.
- Want to reduce the Glycemic index of wheat Rotis? Apply a tablespoon of ghee over it, and you are good to go.
- Ghee is an excellent ingredient for intestinal health and keeps constipation in check. Colon uses the butyric acid in ghee to source energy, which is excellent at keeping the colon healthy.
- Great for the heart, skin, and gives healthy energy to the body.
Various Ways to Use Cow Ghee for Weight Loss
1. Consume with milk: Cosy up to cow ghee and warm milk to show hostility towards weight gain. Cow ghee relaxes the digestive system, relieves constipation, and works against bloating. Drinking warm milk and ghee an hour before bedtime every night soothes the stomach, eases bowels and accelerates weight loss.
2. Include with diet meals: Glam up your diet meal by adding a dash of desi ghee. It is neither a guilty pleasure nor extravagant. Ghee in soups, ragi dosa, or even oatmeal is a good fit. Brushing it on top of grilled paneer is another tasty way of consuming ghee, and by doing all this, you are just giving your body a chance to reshape.
3. Consume with Curries: Traditional consumption of ghee is another more comfortable way of including it in the diet. People on a strict diet stay away from traditional foods and get cranky about them. Desi ghee neither adds the calories nor does it add inches to your waist. One spoon of ghee over your traditional curries makes it tasty and diet-worthy. This one spoon of ghee works by shrinking the fat cells and breaking down stubborn fat accumulation.
4. Cow ghee for cooking: Using ghee for ‘tadkas’ makes it another exciting variant in our meals. Sauté pulses or veggies or khichdi in ghee to absorb its benefits. It will only help you in reaching weight loss goals.
5. Cow ghee with regular meals: Ghee in regular meals like rice or dal is also a good combination. One doesn’t have to go the extra mile of preparing extravagant diet meals to enjoy ghee.
6. Add with detox drinks: Ghee in smoothies and detox drinks also helps. By adding just a spoonful of ghee in protein smoothies instead of peanut butter or almond butter does the same amount of goodness.
7. Replace cooking oil with cow ghee: Adding organic cow ghee to your regular meals means using less fat from other oily sources like your regular cooking oil. Use less mustard oil when ghee is being added to the diet.
8. Cow ghee in facemasks: Cow ghee for skin can be used either as facemasks or added to diet so that all nutrients are absorbed, and one gets clean skin. One tablespoon of ghee with Haldi or besan can be made into a paste and applied to the face. This facemask gives a lasting glow to the face.
What Makes Cow Ghee Nutritious?
- Ghee is clarified butter but has more fat percentage in it as the moisture contents like milk and water have been removed.
- People who are lactose sensitive can opt for ghee which has zero amounts of milk sugar lactose and milk protein casein. Butter, on the other hand, has small percentages of lactose and casein.
- Compared to vegetable and seed oil, ghee is known to produce less toxic compounds (acrylamide) when heated at 320 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Owing to its high smoking point, ghee has a better advantage over butter. Also, ghee is more stable to cook at high temperatures while butter is restricted to baking.
- Ghee is a naturally occurring delicacy that has been used since time immemorial in Ayurvedic sciences and cooking. Being healthier than other fatty sources, ghee is well tolerated by the lactose-intolerant crowd as well.
- Other healthy fats like olive oil and avocado are more like a meal itself, while ghee is an add-on. Ghee is a calorie-dense macronutrient; hence consuming it aids in weight loss.
- Desi ghee improves the absorption rates of minerals and vitamins; hence it is recommended to sauté vegetables.
Apart from its chemical composition and various health benefits, ghee stands apart when compared to other varieties of fat.
Indian culture values cow ghee as a sacred entity. It is used in poojas, sweet making, and also in traditional ceremonies. Recently, research has extended a friendly hand towards ghee and made it a health-essential.
If you want those stubborn inches of fat to melt away, all you need is one tablespoon of ghee.
Sometimes, the answer to everything is found in little things that we never considered important. Cow ghee is something that has over-exaggerated just because it is ‘fat’.
So we hope this read has been an eye-opener and you include cow ghee for weight loss in your diet regularly and in the right proportions.
