Health Tips from Indonesia
«Kebiasaan yang baik sama adiktifnya dengan kebiasaan buruk. Tetapi lebih bermanfaat»
«Good habits are as addictive as bad habits. But far more rewarding.»
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Jamu - To boost immunity and to maintain good health
Jamu is a traditional herbal drink which is known to boost one’s immune system and maintain good health. Jamu has been homemade and consumed for over 1,200 years since the Mataram Kingdom in Java, using fresh and raw ingredients such as tamarind, galangal, ginger, and turmeric.
There are many benefits of Jamu and why it is perceived as an excellent health supplement.
Anti-imflammatory Properties
Turmeric contains curcumin which reduces swelling, pain, headaches, and osteoarthritis. Some people also use it for inflammatory bowel disease, itching, stress, and depression too.
It is good for the heart
Various Jamu ingredients contribute to a better, livelier heart. It is widely believed that turmeric prevents heart attacks and diabetes while tamarind, the thick gooey edible fruit, reduces blood sugar level and promotes good cardiovascular health due to its potassium content. Furthermore, honey lowers blood pressure and is great for both heart and eye health due to its naturally high levels of antioxidants. Ginger lowers cholesterol levels to aid your healthy, balanced lifestyles.
Packed with antioxidants
Jamu treats your body and mind holistically, replenishing the body with lots of powerful minerals and vitamins for optimal vitality and energy levels. Tamarind is rich in organic compounds, making it a frontrunner for its high antioxidant content.
Detoxing liver and kidneys
Ginger, turmeric, and tamarind are all excellent ingredients to help detoxify your liver and kidneys, purifying you from the inside-out to unleash your natural immunity and power. Ginger also replenishes your body's levels of iron, sodium, vitamins A and C, flavonoids and phytonutrients.
Boosting wellbeing and digestion
Tamarind is an excellent source of dietary fibre, which binds to toxins, bile salts and surplus cholesterol, and then detoxifying them out of the body safely and cleanly. It is a commonly used natural laxative, gently aiding digestion and alleviating stomach discomforts due to constipation. It is also sometimes termed the "slimming fruit" due to its effectiveness in weight loss practices. Ginger also promotes healthy weight and helps digestion. Lastly, honey soothes many minor ailments, reducing cough symptoms, and promote better sleep. Jamu truly heals you inside and out, giving you a calmer peace of mind and even a glowing skin!
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Kencur - Lifts you up!
Kencur, or aromatic ginger, is one of the common herbs in Indonesian cuisines as well as traditional Jamu drinks. Kencur is a source of zinc, starch, ethyl aster, paraeumarin, borneol, mineral, cinnamic acid, and other nutrition that explain why it is used in many folk-medicine applications.
Uplifting: Kencur is good to boost your energy. Boil 2 cm of Kencur with one glass of water, and drink every night before you go to sleep. In the next morning you’ll find yourself fresh and energetic.
Cholesterol: Jamu made of Kencur can promote the bile production in our body. The bile is responsible for nutrition absorption and eliminating toxin, including bad cholesterol.
Immunity: Your body needs antioxidant to repel dangerous free radical and viruses. You can get this benefit from Kencur, as it also contains antioxidants. This also explains why Kencur is good to increase your immunity.
As cough medicine: You can consume Kencur solution to cure the early symptoms of coughing. Simply wash Kencur roots, peel them, and grate them. Put the grated Kencur on a cloth, and wring it to get the juice. Add a dash of lime juice and honey to taste, and drink the Kencur syrup three times a day until the symptoms subside.
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Temulawak - To relieve nausea, dizziness, and symptoms of cold
Temulawak, or Java ginger, is a spice plant native to Indonesia and for centuries it has been observed to yield several health benefits. Temulawak drinks have been used to relieve nausea, dizziness, and symptoms of cold. To make a temulawak potion, mash temulawak and brew with tamarind and palm sugar, keep it boiling until only half the water remains.
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Strong family bonds - For improved wellbeing
Indonesian people are very family-oriented. Family holds the most important meaning for Indonesian culture. The relationship between each member of the family is close. Family bonding is important to individuals for various reasons, most of which are related to one's personal well-being. Family is crucial to people because it can benefit a person's physical, emotional, and mental health.
A Harvard Study looked at people's relationships, including those with family, and discovered that the individuals who valued family and friends and developed those ever-important bonds and connections experienced better health throughout their lives. Staying isolated can increase a person's chances of declining health in middle-age and later years.
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Meals - A community act for health
The most characteristic aspect of Indonesian culture is that meals are always consumed in company. Traditionally, Indonesians would sit on the floor and the food would be served on a banana leaf, or a wooden plate, often using a single container, to underline the sense of community.
The benefits of eating as a family are plenty, and one of those benefits is improved diets for family members. Across all ages, families who eat meals together have healthier diets. These healthy food choices create a foundation that lasts up to five years later for teens. Grandparents who would potentially eat alone, end up skipping meals and eat foods with decreased nutritional values; henve family meal-time is important in every generation.
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Balinese massage - For a sence of wellbeing
Traditional Balinese massage uses a combination of gentle stretches, acupressure, reflexology, and aromatherapy to stimulate the flow of blood, oxygen and "qi" (energy) around your body, and bring a sense of wellbeing, calm and deep relaxation. It helps reduce stress, stimulates the flow of blood, relieves strained muscles, helps detoxify the body, nourishes and softens the skin.
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Pencak Silat - The (un)official national sport
Pencak Silat is the (un)official national sports of Indonesia. It is basically Indonesian martial arts, and it is full-body fighting. It includes strikes, grappling, throwing, and weaponry. Every part of the body is involved in these sports.
Pencak Silat is one of the beneficial activities that suitable for everyone. It play an important role in life and culture as in past, it have been used by warriors to defend their motherland. The benefits will be such as below:
a) Moulding our character
b) Defending ourselves
c) One kind of exercise
d) Having a healthy and fit body
e) Preserving the Malays Heritage
f) Teaches you discipline
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Fruits & Season - To boost nutrition
With only two seasons, monsoon and dry seasons, Indonesia is home to various ranges of tropical fruits essential to pack up your daily nutritional intake. This is a much pivotal time to include more fruits so that your immune system is kept strong during this eerie era. Here are the top 3 tropical fruits in Indonesia you should try at least once in your life.
Durian: Durian may help alleviate digestive disorders, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.
Nangka or Jackfruit: It can help you manage your weight and blood sugar, promote healthy skin, and keep your heart healthy.
Cempedak: There are many health benefits from consuming the cempedak fruit with the biggest one being heart health.
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Eating fish - For a stronger heart
Seafood is commonly consumed across Indonesia. Seafood is usually grilled, boiled or fried. Fish is filled with omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins such as D and B2 (riboflavin). Fish is rich in calcium and phosphorus and a great source of minerals, such as iron, zinc, iodine, magnesium, and potassium. Red Snapper, Mackerel and Tuna are top three most popular types.
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A daily nap - For s sharper mind & More energy
Indonesian claimed to take naps every day. As you know, taking a timeout to sleep during the day gives us a quick energy boost. It also confers some serious cognitive and health advantages as well.
Napping itself has many benefits such as can boost our brains, including improvements to creative problem solving, verbal memory, perceptual learning, object learning, and statistical learning. Naps improve our mood and feelings of sleepiness and fatigue. Not only that, but napping is also good for our heart, blood pressure, stress levels, and surprisingly, even weight management.
Nugget: Health is defined holistically in the Javanese manuscript, the Serat Centhini, as both the physical and spiritual condition of an individual who is free from diseases and disorders. Such diseases and disorders are further categorized into two categories depending on their cause: the physical and the non-physical -originating illnesses. Accidents, poor lifestyle habits, being exposed to harmful agents and the likes, fall within the more traditional category of a physically caused illness, whereas, evil and dark forces or supernatural powers contribute to the spiritually or non-physically-related illnesses. To fight off any of these illnesses, the Javanese health drink, Jamu, a ginger-infused herbal recipe, has been passed down through generations since the 13th century.
