OK, so this post should be on the health page. BUT, I thought eh, why not here? Why there? Why anywhere for that matter. And just what is xanthohumol and where does it come from? Most of you have heard about resveratrol and the benefits it bestows on health. Xanthohumol? Sounds like something from a science fiction movie or Discovery Magazine.

This particular substance comes from hops. Yep. An extract from beer hops. And no, you won’t get drunk or high from it. There are quite a few interesting health issues that xanthohumol excels at. (the below is copy and pasted from a health post)

1 – Xanthohumol tends to protect the liver and Xanthohumol protected the liver from fibrosis when it was exposed to very harmful toxins, including cleaning fluid. That’s one of the most harmful liver toxins there is. When used, fibrosis was slowed down or reversed, so it’s
an important protectant of liver function

2 – Xanthohumol has also been found important in wound healing because of its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. .

3 – Works to slow down and cause apoptosis in some cancers.

4 – Helps with male and female hormonal issues.

5 – Probably a number five somewhere but I’ll stop here.

What about resveratrol? It’s still one of the top antioxidants, anti-aging substances found in nature. Even though xanthohumol has been said to be up to 200x stronger than resveratrol, my take is why not use both?

As we age, our bodies change. Nutrients become harder to incorporate into our bodies as we digest the food we eat. Keeping your gut healthy with fermented foods such as kefir and sauerkraut help to feed the bacteria that lives in your gut.

“Probiotic bacteria, mostly belonging to the genera Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, confer a number of health benefits, including vitamin production [5]. Probiotic bacteria, members of the gut microbiota, are able to synthesize vitamin K and most of the water‐soluble B vitamins, such as biotin, cobalamin, folates, nicotinic acid, panthotenic acid, pyridoxine, riboflavin, and thiamine”

Since I am already ingesting copious amounts of sauerkraut for my gut, adding xanthohumol and resveratrol seems like a no brainer. At least until researchers find out it causes a third hand to grow out of your belly button. That would give me pause to continue taking it…(smile)

Since it’s in the 40’s outside, I thought I would make some sourdough bread topped with miyoko butter, xanthohumol, parsley, almond butter and heaping forkfuls of sauerkraut. Add a steaming cup of mushroom coffee and the nights magic begins…