Coriander: a condiment plant to purify contaminated water
Coriander: a condiment plant to purify contaminated water
With global warming, it is very important that our priority is to take care of our planet. In many countries around the world, water is contaminated by heavy metals that seriously affect the well-being of our environment. On this observation, we must find alternative solutions to fight against pollution and purify contaminated water. It is a priority, because it is our future and that of our children that is at stake.
Many researchers, aware of this problem, work tirelessly to find ecological and economic solutions to save the planet. It has been observed that in developing countries, water purification methods are extremely expensive. We must find new methods that adapt to their needs. In various scientific studies, it is also noted, that some plants can be very useful for purifying waters. In this article, we will focus particularly on the case of coriander.
Coriander an effective plant for the purification of contaminated waters.
In Mexican and Asian dishes, coriander is a commonly used plant. This condiment plant is very tasty, but it also helps purify the water.
In traditional methods of water purification, activated charcoal is used. But for many developing countries, this technique is extremely expensive. As a result of the various environmental problems, we are looking for economical, ecological and very inexpensive solutions.
- Surprising properties to clean human body.
Coriander leaves, also known as “Cilantro”, are effective in cleansing the body of unwanted elements, according to several herbalists. Studies have shown that levels of mercury, lead and aluminum in urine increase significantly after consuming large amounts of coriander. Thanks to these biochemical elements, this plant can be useful to purify our organism and our brain. This is an important point for prevention against certain degenerative diseases.
- An absorbent plant against heavy metals.
The research team of scientist Douglas Schauer of Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana and those of the Polytechnic University of Francisco I Madero in Hidalgo, Mexico, pooled their expertise to find inexpensive ways to filter water in the Tule Valley area near Mexico City. Through their studies, they discovered that coriander is a plant that absorbs heavy metals in contaminated water. It is an excellent filter to turn polluted water into drinking water.
Heavy metals such as nickel and lead pollute the waters of the Mexico Valley. They infiltrate into the water. Farmers use the same water to irrigate crops. And all this waste is found in our food. These heavy metals are the cause of many neurological problems in humans. Usually, the waters are treated with activated charcoal, but this conventional method is expensive for the inhabitants of this region.
“The organic toxins we can take care of pretty easily with a number of different methods, but the only way to really get rid of those heavy metals is to treat them with filtering agents like activated charcoal (like what’s found in a Brita filter), but those types of materials are kind of expensive,” says Schauer. “They are a little expensive for us to use, but they are very expensive to the people living in that region.”
The research team is continuing their studies. They test different plant samples like parsley, flowering cacti, etc. Researchers soon realize that coriander is a very effective bio-absorbent material. Schauer explains that. :
“Coriander grows wild in large quantities in countries that have problems with water pollution, etc.”
6 benefits of Coriander:
- cheap
- biosorbent
- Available for many developing countries
- easy to grow at home and in nature
- has an incredible wall architecture
- more effective than conventional methods of water purification.
Indeed, coriander grows wild in third world countries. It is a very easy plant to cultivate at home or in the wild. Its real success comes from the fact that the architecture of its outer cell walls is ideal for absorbing heavy metals such as lead or nickel. These 100% natural materials (microbes or plants) include both absorption and adsorption to heavy metals.
The results of the experiments showed that coriander was much more effective than conventional methods. According to the researchers, a simple handful of coriander leaves may be enough for a pitcher of contaminated water.
Schauer.Schauer says that coriander crushed can be inserted into a tube in which water passes. Coriander lets water flow, but absorbs metals, leaving clean drinking water. The dried coriander can also be placed in tea bags that are placed in a pitcher of water for a few minutes to suck the heavy metals. “It’s something they already have there, it takes a minimum of transformation, and just take the plants and dry them on a rock in the sun for a few days,” says Schauer.
Other plants such as dandelion, parsley, culantro have similar characteristics. They have biosorbent qualities.
What is the method for purifying water with coriander?
1 / Purification process
According to the coriander filtering method, the coriander is ground up, then it is poured into the water using a tube. All this allows clean water to flow to the opposite end of the tube.
2 / Drying coriander
The second method is to dry the coriander and put it in tea bags. These tea bags are then placed in a jug of water, in order to absorb some toxic metals.
“It’s something they already have, there, it takes a minimum of treatment, and it’s just a matter of taking the plants and drying them on a rock in the sun for a few days,” says Schauer .
Following the success of cilantro on heavy metals such as nickel and lead, researchers are actively studying how cilantro can remove heavy metals such as mercury and arsenic. “We have to look at metal mixtures to see if coriander is evenly pulling on all metals,” says Schauer.
3 / ways to use it?
A handful (about one uncut cup) of coriander leaves in a pitcher of water. You can include stems. Let stand for a few hours. Remove the coriander before drinking.
Use with a purifying water filter. When a charcoal filter is used, use coriander instead. A new coriander should be used for each pitcher of water.
Put the coriander into the baking balls used to make the tea. Just put it in the pitcher of water and let the cilantro act magically. The infusion balls allow easy removal of coriander before drinking.
How much coriander would it take to clean the water?
Schauer says “a handful of coriander will be enough to clean a pitcher full of water heavily contaminated with lead.” The researchers presented their findings at the national meeting of the American Chemical Society. See in this article TIME.com!
