Why we desperately need bitter compounds
Dr. med. Heinz Lüscher
Bitter compounds are important and beneficial for our bodies, but unfortunately it’s no longer so easy to include them in our diets these days. People tend to prefer sweet flavours to bitter ones, so bitter compounds have largely been bred out of plants. Bitter drops can help replenish these important compounds in the body and, amongst other things, boost digestion and liver function.
Bitter but healthy plant compounds
Bitter compounds are often secondary plant compounds such as terpenes, flavonoids, polyphenols and alkaloids, which plants use to protect themselves from predators. For humans, such bitter-tasting plants form a valuable cornerstone of a healthy diet. However, incorporating bitter foods into the daily diet is no longer so straightforward; vegetables that were originally bitter now taste barely bitter at all. Over the last few centuries, vegetable varieties have been bred to contain fewer and fewer bitter compounds. But it is worth supplementing your daily diet with a high-quality bitter compound supplement.
The effects of bitter compounds
The use of bitter substances has a long tradition. In naturopathy, bitter substances have been used for centuries to treat digestive complaints such as flatulence, bloating or constipation. They are also effective in treating gastritis (inflammation of the stomach), irritable bowel syndrome and even chronic inflammatory bowel diseases.
However, with such serious conditions, additional nutrients are definitely needed as a supplement! But how do bitter compounds work in the body? They stimulate the taste buds in the mouth, which in turn stimulates the production of digestive juices. Saliva begins to flow in the mouth, gastric juice is produced in greater quantities in the stomach, and the liver, gallbladder, pancreas and intestines are stimulated to secrete digestive juices.
Find out more about bitter compounds and their effects
bitter drops
High-quality bitter drops contain 10 (or preferably more) different types of bitter plant compounds. They may, for example, contain ethanolic extracts of juniper berries, wormwood, dandelion, artichokes, olive leaves and other plants (the alcohol acts as a solvent). However, products containing any kind of additives should be avoided. Furthermore, a product is recommended that contains not just pure bitter substances but full extracts, as these also contain important polyphenols. A slight cloudiness (not a clear liquid) is a sign of quality in such a product. If the bitter taste is too unpleasant, the drops can be diluted with a little water at the start.
When can bitter substances be used?
The main areas of application are digestive problems such as flatulence, bloating, constipation, etc. They can also be helpful when dieting, particularly for managing hunger pangs or cravings for sweet things. In this case, the drops can be taken whenever hunger or a craving for sweet things arises between meals. Bitter drops are also used to treat low stomach acid or heartburn.
Bitter compounds, together with other active ingredients, can help with these symptoms:
- Gastritis
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Chronic inflammatory bowel diseases
- Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
- Viral hepatitis
- Autoimmune hepatitis
- Primary biliary cholangitis (liver cirrhosis)
- Liver tumours
