Health benefits of parsley leaves

The plant is of South European origin, and become popular northwards, in the Middle Ages, when it was commonly grown in monasteries and imperial gardens.

Used medically in ancient times, parsley has been shown to aid in digestion and serve as a diuretic. Those diuretic properties can help relive symptoms of urinary tract infections and kidney stones, while its digestive powers can help with the stomach upset, gas and constipation.

Ancient Greeks treated it as a scare herb and wore crowns made of parsley to stimulate their appetites. Ancient Romans chewed on parsley leaves before drinking wine to prevent intoxication.

Ingesting parsley has been shown to inhibit the increase in urinary mutagenicity of humans following the ingestion of fried foods. This is mostly likely due to its chlorophyll content, but other compounds in parsley, such as vitamin C, flavonoids, and carotenes, have also been shown to inhibit the cancer causing properties of fried foods.

Parsley leaf was tested for its ability to inhibit gastric secretion and to protect the gastric mucosa against induced physical and chemical injury in vivo.
Health benefits of parsley leaves