I love the smell of fresh lemon grass and I love it in my food. This herb is not as attractive as the others for it is a “grass”, but you may wanna give it a second look.

About the plant: Lemon grass grows well in the tropics for it likes a warmer climate. But it can also grow in temperate countries as long as the temperature will not fall below 7C. There are over 50 species of these genus native to the tropical and temperate countries of the world. Cymbopogon grasses contain citral, which is a lemon fragrance.

What I discovered: Aside from being a popular culinary ingredient in Asian cuisine, this herb is also anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. The leaves and stems are the parts being used. Boil fresh lemon grass and add to a bath for a refreshing, cooling and calming bath or if you have stubborn athlete’s foot you may want to give your feet a chance to try the “lemon grass soak.” Some also extract oil from lemon grass for cosmetic use, essential oil for incense burning and candles. Another practical use you can try is to cut fresh lemon grass leaves and form a knot and place it inside cabinets or cupboards to repel insects. Had enough lemon grass information overload? Here’s the most exciting part…

Got the article from a friend about drinking fresh lemon grass tea might cure cancer. The article entitled, “Fresh lemon grass fields in Israel become Mecca for cancer patients,” was written by Allison Kaplan Sommer (2006) (too bad I think her blog is down). It says in the story that in a research started by Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Israel – lemon aroma in herbs like lemon grass kills cancer cells in vitro, while leaving healthy cells unharmed. Drinking fresh lemon grass tea that contains enough citral prompt cancer cells to commit suicide. The process of cancer cells committing suicide is called apoptosis. The cancer patients were told to drink 8 glasses of hot water with fresh lemon grass steeped on it on the days they went for their radiation of chemotherapy treatments. Drinking lemon grass tea also help relieve digestive upset. Nobody knows for certain how it works, BGU scientists’ theorized that, “in each cell in our body, there is a genetic program which causes programmed cell death.”

What’s hot: The many practical uses of this herb. If it can cure the big C – its an added bonus.

What’s not-so-hot: I do not know anyone (yet) who was cured of the big C because of drinking fresh lemon grass tea.

But I do know of someone who drinks fresh lemon grass tea everyday. He drinks it for his ulceritis to sooth and calm his tummy.