How Turmeric Supplements May Improve Your Health?
Today’s post on some of the health benefits of the spice, tumeric, was submitted by Maria Rainer–find out more about Maria at the end of the post.
You may have heard of turmeric, a spice used in Indian and Caribbean cuisine to add bold flavor – it’s often manifested as curry powder, which gives food a characteristic yellow color. But what you may not know about turmeric is that it’s full of curcumin. And curcumin has been found by experts to have anticarcinogenic effects on animals, increasing the likelihood that it could have these cancer-fighting effects in humans.
In her article on the health benefits of herbs and spices, Dr. Linda C. Tapsell cites research done on mice that has produced promising results: turmeric has chemopreventive effects against oral cancer and cancers of the skin, forestomach, liver, and colon in mice. There’s no guarantee that taking a curcumin supplement will even affect cancer in humans, much less cure it, but there is good reason to believe that it has the potential to help. There are many other health benefits to taking curcumin and eating turmeric, which are listed below, so you can talk to your doctor about starting a supplement.
Potential health benefits of curcumin:
Whether you prefer to enjoy turmeric as a regular part of your diet or you’re partial to taking a curcumin supplement, you may experience at least some of these benefits:
- Natural treatment for arthritis, resulting from curcumin’s anti-inflammatory properties;
- Faster healing of wounds and damaged skin;
- Prevention or reduction of amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain, which causes Alzheimer’s disease;
- Reduction of insulin resistance due to antioxidant properties, contributing to the prevention of Type 2 diabetes;
- Increased immune function due to curcumin’s natural antioxidant properties, which attack both bacteria and viruses, as well as fungi;
- More successful weight management due to stimulation of the metabolism
How to choose your supplement
Some people have trouble absorbing curcumin in pill form, but you can still find a good supplement that includes piperine to aid digestion. Alternatively, you can start eating turmeric as a food spice and you can even make turmeric tea. If you keep ground turmeric in your spice cabinet, be sure to replace it at least every six months so you’ll get the strongest benefits. Stumped on how to cook with turmeric? It tastes great with any poultry, vegetables, rice, and even salad dressing – simply add as much as you like for flavor and health benefits.
Bio: Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education and performs research surrounding online degrees. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.
Additional References:
Kate
October 7, 2011 at 9:08 am
Great article. What is more, turmeric can also be used topically for skin rejuvenation. It seems that it can reduce inflammation, neutralize free radicals and prevent the formation of age-related pigmentation. There is also some evidence that curcumin used topically can reduce the incidence of skin tumors in mice. So, you can also use turmeric on your skin, if you don’t mind the yellowish tint.
Manny
August 16, 2011 at 11:08 pm
People in India have known about the health benefits of turmeric for a long time. Apparently it can improve memory in older people, among the other benefits it provides.
Raymund
July 31, 2011 at 7:18 pm
That is my grandma’s favorite spice. I always love foods she cooked with that spice – delicious.
ehealthyone
July 29, 2011 at 11:30 pm
Great post! This confirms what I have heard from other sources. The primary benefits of taking a tumeric supplement are lower cholesterol, a healthier circulatory system and improved mental clarity.
Some researchers have found that eating turmeric or taking a tumeric supplement does not significantly increase curcumin levels in the blood. Digestive acids have a damaging effect that basically renders it useless for anything other than stomach complaints. An enteric coating is necessary to allow the nutrients to make it through the stomach, undamaged. Once in the upper intestine, the nutrients can pass through the intestinal wall and enter the bloodstream.
Bootscharter
March 28, 2011 at 2:56 pm
I have to admit i’ve never heard of tumeric… this is a sort of acai bery:D can heal everything, can’t help you do waht ever you want:D build muscle, lose weight, etc… I’ll google it and see what’s with it… I’m quite shocked, because I haven’t heard of it till now…
Uttoran Sen
March 19, 2011 at 5:12 am
Yes, in Indian foods, tumeric is very common, and so is the rest of the spices. I have been recently to the southern parts of India where tumeric is used a bit excessively. Though i agree that on some foods, it improves the taste.
Good to know the benefits, i remember to have compiled an article on it some time back, but that was mainly on the spice tumeric and not the supplement.
Jhon Palmer
January 27, 2011 at 8:03 am
Pretty excellent info. old is gold men. Really work perfect. Thanks
Ethan
January 21, 2011 at 12:42 am
I like to eat Indian food, most of Indian foods have spice which consist of turmeric.
I didn’t know turmeric is so good to the body, i think i should encourage my family eat more Indian food. thanks for the information.
Susan
January 10, 2011 at 9:45 am
This is awesome information. We so often forget about all the great spices and herbs we have available to us that have amazing health benefits. Tumeric is sort of a strong one that I can’t really eat a lot of but I have clients who do and will enjoy adding it to their diets to improve their health.
Fred Green
January 10, 2011 at 3:57 am
Awesome info!! This is the older procession but works properly. Thanks