by Rachael Shugars, AAP Food Writer
February is my birthday. My birthday falls on the biggest “Lovers” holiday of the year. I celebration of this wonderous holiday (Valentine’s Day, not my birthday), I’m going to drop some knowledge for my readers of the foods of love, aphrodisiacs. The word itself resonates with anyone slightly familiar with the Greek goddess of Love herself, Aphrodite. She embodied anything related to love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation and she’s the perfect gals to have representing the foods I’ll be mentioning.
I suppose anything can be an aphrodisiac for anyone but there are a specific group of foods that will stir the soul and ruffle up any well-intentioned individual. The following group of foods is not limited to the list I am providing but simply a hand-picked selection of some of my favorites.
I’ll start with the sweeter senses and mention strawberries, figs, honey, beets, chocolate, and pomegranates. Pomegranates even don another name at times, the Love Apple. It’s believed that the pomegranate was actually what the Bible’s Eve picked from the tree and fed to Adam rather than a regular apple thus creating original sin. I’ll argue however that pomegranates and every other food I just listed are utterly heavenly on the palate. I would bet that any of the sweets I listed have been tried by some of my readers. Recipes for these ingredients also span over hundreds of years. Figs, for example, were made into jams, cakes, pies, stews, etc.
On the savory side there’s avocado, oysters, olive oil, and truffles. I’ll admit, the thought of eating an oyster isn’t something I prefer but I added this because it’s widely known for its love enhancing properties. Truffles are one of my absolute favorite things to accompany a dish. Who would have thought that fungus was such an enchanting item of love? Truffles can be found everywhere in the word. In America, places like Washington and Oregon are the truest truffle destination spots. Truffle can fetch a hefty price as well with some auctioning for over $300,000!
Now for my next favorite part. The WHY factor. Why do people react a certain way after consuming these foods? It’s all about the amino acids and nutrients in these foods. First, we have the happy guy, Betaine. This trimethylglycine (Tri-meth-il-gli-seen) not only makes you feel good, but it’s also been known to fight hearth disease, promote muscle gain and fat loss, and has anti-inflammatory effects. This is the short list. The more well-known amino acids if Tryptophan. This is the stuff in turkey that makes you feel relaxed enough to take a nice nap after eating a huge turkey dinner. Tryptophan is also a feel good amino. Last is Boron, the Casanova, the Siren, the seductress element of these love foods. This trace mineral is responsible for getting the engine started but is not the last contributor. Vitamin E, antioxidants, potassium, even COFFEE, all create many variations of that loving feeling.
I can’t say whether a person should believe in the affects of aphrodisiacs or not. The histories behind each of the foods I listed and the dozen or so more I didn’t include have existed since recorded time began. What I can say for sure is that love producing food or not, I enjoy the foods I listed and just enjoy trying new dishes as I go. After all, the act of cooking itself is an act of love, isn’t it? Eres amodo. Bạn được yêu. Jesteś kochany. Du wirst geliebt. तुम प्यार कर रहे हैं. Vous êtes aimé. You are loved. Enjoy you Food Adventures!
Betaine Benefits, Uses, Side Effects, Foods and Deficiency – Dr. Axe (draxe.com)
10 Edible Aphrodisiacs and the Science Behind Them – Supplement View
