Kimchi – Health-Longevity Food

How can one live long in roaring health? Everyone has such wishes in his or her mind. A scientific diet is a fair working solution to this controversial question. What and how to eat is a fundamental factor for people’s health and long life and also a primary problem in one’s life. Today as the desire of man for health and longevity is growing day by day, different articles of food are becoming more popular among the masses for their value as healthy food. Kimchi, a Korean traditional dish, occupies a protuberant place in the world foodstuffs for its special efficiency. Kimchi is widely known as a typical native dish—a favourite of every member of the Korean nation and highlighted everywhere in the world—in the East and in the West. A monthly health magazine of a country selected the Korean kimchi as one of the five major articles of healthy food in the world, and at the time of the 26th Olympic Games held in July 1996 it was picked as one of key foodstuffs to be served to athletes and officials of all countries. It was made clear by scientists that kimchi was high efficacious for prevention and treatment of SARS and bird’s influenza. In addition, it is deterrent of multiplying influenza virus and cancer cells in human body, so it is prevalent on this globe as a world-wide healthy food,

a “tasty lactic fermentation foodstuff”. Its special nutritive-physiological, pharmaceutical and favorite value has brought such a worldwide prevalence. Vegetables and wild herbs of different kinds are the main ingredients of kimchi. In case of sikhye, fishes are basic materials. Such ingredients mixed with spices and nutritive auxiliary materials such as salt, red pepper, green onion, garlic, ginger and pickled shrimps are fermented by lactic bacteria to make kimchi. Kimchi is high nutritive. It has various kinds of vitamins such as vitamins C, B1, B2, PP, A (carotene) and E. In particular, it is high in vitamin C the human body requires much. The vitamins B1, B2 and B12, which the ingredients of kimchi lack or are short of, form newly or increase in quantity during its maturing. Kimchi contains Na, K, Ca, Mg and other mineral matters. It as an alkaline foodstuff secures the acid-alkaline equilibrium in human body. It also has the essential amino acid and other amino acids, adding its value to itself. It performs some favorable physiological actions on the human body. Kimchi, a source of lactic acid, inhibits the action of harmful germs in the intestines and promotes the growth of useful normal microorganism. The vitamins and minerals of kimchi promote metabolism and are good for the nervous system.

Kimchi, a preventer of acidification of humors, is efficacious for the cure and prevention of acidosis. The edible fibres of kimchi help digestion and are effective for preventing constipation and arteriosclerosis. Kimchi is also helpful to digestion and absorption of food. The different spices in kimchi quicken the secreting of digestive fluid, tempt one’s appetite and promote urination together with lactic acid and other organic acids and carbon dioxide. Besides, it is known that kimchi is efficacious for the treatment and prevention of some diseases. The elements of kimchi prevent hypertension, arteriosclerosis and obesity, improve one’s sight, promote the secreting of digestive fluid and perform the actions of anti-allergy, adjusting body-weight and beautifying one’s figure. As aforesaid, being so high nutritive, tasty and multifunctional, kimchi is a flawless nutritive foodstuff and specific remedy for one’s health and longevity. In many cases, nutritive value of food, its pharmaceutical effects and functions of foods are apt to the values of the food ingredients used in it, but kimchi finds a unique worthiness rather in its processed goods than in its ingredients.