Cooling thermal nature; sweet-and-bitter flavour; benefits the stomach and spleen-pancreas and calms an aggravated liver; improves digestion; dries damp excesses; purifies the blood; reduces wind conditions such as vertigo  and nervousness;  and  promotes  sweating. Also used for heat excesses such as eye inflammations, burning urine, blood in the  urine,  acne,  and canker  sores and  to  cool  internal  heat in  the  liver and stomach, which often contributes to headaches and excessive appetite, among other  maladies.

For appetite control, raw celery can be eaten between and during meals. To slow down and encourage  more thorough  chewing of food, eat celery  with  a meal. Celery is one of the few vegetables (lettuce is the other) that combines  well with fruit, as it  has an ability  to dry damp conditions, including those associated with eating fruit  and  concentrated sweeteners.

Celery juice combined with a little lemon juice is a remedy for the common cold when fever is more prominent than chills. This combination is also helpful in headaches caused by high blood pressure or by heat conditions (red face, head feels hot, red tongue, and/or irritability). Celery juice alone or in combination with lemon is useful for diabetes and helps clear the acidosis commonly caused by diabetes. For this purpose, drink 2-4 cups of the juice daily.

Very high in silicon, celery helps renew joints, bones, arteries, and all connective tissues. Because of these effects and the capacity of celery to clear digestive fermentation (dampness) and acidic blood that frequently  accompany  tissue  inflammations,  it is  useful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, gout, and nerve inflammations.

Both the stalks and roots are used in the East and West to treat high blood pressure and are a safe remedy for high blood pressure during pregnancy.

Notes:

Recommended Dietary Amount (RDA) is based upon recommendations for a 40 year old very active man that I have adapted from USDA’s Dietary Intake Recommendations. Using this link you can make your own calculations

Adapted from:

Murray, M. (2005). Encyclopedia of Healing Food. New York, N.Y.: Atria Books

Paul Pitchford (2002). Healing With Whole Foods: Asian Traditions and Modern Nutrition, North Atlantic BooksUSDA food database: http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/

Technical University of Denmark, National Food Institute: http://www.foodcomp.dk/v7/fcdb_details.asp?FoodId=1156

Other information sources:

Online database of the World’s Healthiest Foods

Online nutrient breakdown of foods: http://nutritiondata.self.com/