(NaturalHealth365)  While colder weather makes warming up with a nice bowl of hot soup particularly inviting, there is at least one good reason you will want to enjoy its steamy goodness all year round.  Adding miso to your soup, a traditional Japanese all-purpose seasoning, can transform a simple serving of steamy soup into a powerful boost to your health.

Miso has been enjoyed daily by generations as a flavorful and essential component of traditional Japanese cuisine, revered for its health-promoting attributes.  Thanks to its generous store of friendly bacteria, essential amino acids, digestive enzymes, vitamins, and absorbable protein, miso has been effectively used for various diseases and conditions, including heart disease and cancer.

A great example of ‘food as medicine’

Dr. Shinichiro Akizuki, director of St. Francis Hospital, Nagasaki, describes the fermented food miso as belonging to the highest class of medicines, those preventing disease and strengthening health over time with continued usage.  While there is some scientific research on its benefits, most proponents have allowed long-held traditions to be their guide in enjoying the many health benefits of this flavoring.

Here are five of the many powerful health reasons to consume miso soup every day:

1. Give a boost to the immune system

Much like any fermented food, miso improves the population of good microflora in the digestive tract.  Not only does miso act as a natural antacid, reducing the chance of digestive upset, but good microbes help to support a healthy and effective immune system.  A healthy gut is essential for protecting against disease because of its pivotal role in the body’s immune system.

2. Protect against harmful effects of radiation

Radiation exposure is inevitable.  Increased use of consumer electronics, medical testing procedures, and home radon are just a few of the many culprits behind your likely exposure to radiation.  However, studies have shown miso to be effective at preventing radiation sickness in those exposed to potentially dangerous levels.

A Japanese study over 25 years found miso effective in preventing cancer from radiation exposure and even useful in healing radiation burns when applied directly to the skin as a paste.

3. Prevent breast cancer

According to The Japan Public Health Center-Based Prospective Study on Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases, the soy isoflavones that exist in miso have been effective in preventing breast cancer.  Fermentation is believed to be the key, as the study included subjects consuming regular soy products as well as fermented ones, such as miso.

The latter group was found to have a reduced risk of breast cancer, even when other contributing factors were taken into consideration.

4. Guard against colon cancer, intestinal disease

Miso may also provide relief to Crohn’s disease or Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) patients.  Studies have also shown some promise that miso may help prevent colon cancer.  Results published in the Journal of Toxicologic Pathology showed laboratory animals fed three-month fermented miso did not exhibit precancerous changes or colon cancer after they were exposed to a carcinogen.

5. Remove the ills of smoking

Miso has even been used by smokers in Japanese culture as a means for quickly removing nicotine from the human system.  So powerful, miso broth is routinely used in Japan to clean tar from smoker’s pipes.  Of course, this does not mean we at NaturalHealth365 recommend smoking.

A perfect food for ‘preppers’

According to South River Miso Company, this fermented seasoning is the perfect “long-term storage” food.  The company claims it isn’t technically even perishable, which is why manufacturers aren’t required to put an expiration date on the label.

Their product remains stable for as many as 20 years without refrigeration or spoilage.  While it darkens with age and becomes less sweet, the well-aged version is actually prized for its enhanced medicinal attributes.

How to add miso to your daily diet

Use miso in small amounts but regularly for best results.  Consider a teaspoon to a tablespoon per day for average use, though the most beneficial amount will vary from person to person, depending on body type, size, activity level, and age.

Begin your routine by adding a small amount – one to two teaspoons – per cup of soup.  Add more as needed for the desired taste so that the miso flavoring mingles but does not overpower the taste of the soup.  Less is needed for aged miso.

Miso is made using the traditional method at South River Miso Company and has a chunky texture with visible chunks of whole soybeans and koji.  It is regarded as having the best flavor.  It is fermented more slowly – anywhere from six months to three years – at the natural temperature of its environment.

Editor’s note: You should not buy this product if it’s pasteurized, and always look for organic (non-GMO) varieties of any brand you purchase.

Sources for this article include:

NIH.gov
Lifeextension.com
Southrivermiso.com