TURMERIC IS A POTENT INFLAMMATION AND CANCER FIGHTER

Spices are used for centuries, due to their amazing properties to enrich out food, as well as their numerous medicinal effects. Most spices give some medical advantages.
However, one spice that stands out for its medical advantages is turmeric.
You might have seen turmeric in the news as a potential treatment for infections such as joint pain, cancer, diabetes, coronary illness, psoriasis, and Alzheimer’s. Turmeric is a spice commonly used in Indian cuisine. Find out the best ways to get therapeutic benefits for a variety of mental and physical conditions. This amazing spice comes from the root of Curcuma longa, which is a flowering tropical plant native to India, and its healing properties have been used for thousands of years in Ayurveda. This is the natural Healing system of India, old 5,000 years. Moreover, scientists discovered cooking residue on pottery shards, which indicate that turmeric was used for cooking in Asia 4,500 years ago.

Turmeric is also used in the preparation of curry powder, which is a vital spice in the south Asian cuisine. Although turmeric is commonly used dry, its root may also be grated and used.

This yellow gold is extremely effective in the case of various health issues, including diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, psoriasis, Alzheimer’s, and cancer.

Turmeric and curcumin are often used interchangeably. What’s the difference between them?

Here’s everything you need to know about the health benefits of turmeric.

Health Benefits of Turmeric

Turmeric has a peppery, warm and bitter flavor and a mild fragrance slightly reminiscent of orange and ginger, and while it is best known as one of the ingredients used to make curry, it also gives ballpark mustard its bright yellow color.

Turmeric comes from the root of the Curcuma longa plant and has a tough brown skin and a deep orange flesh. Turmeric has long been used as a powerful anti-inflammatory in both the Chinese and Indian systems of medicine. Turmeric was traditionally called “Indian saffron” because of its deep yellow-orange color and has been used throughout history as a condiment, healing remedy and textile dye. Powerful medicine that has long been used in the Chinese and Indian systems of medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent to treat a wide variety of conditions, including flatulence, jaundice, menstrual difficulties, bloody urine, hemorrhage, toothache, bruises, chest pain, and colic.

The Relationship Between Turmeric and Curcumin

The plant turmeric (Curcuma longa) is very well known in India. The root is harvested, cleaned, dried, and powdered to be used as a spice (turmeric gives curry its beautiful golden yellow color) and as a medicine. Traditionally, turmeric was used for nearly every health condition known – from smallpox to a sprained ankle. The reason for its health effects is the compound known as curcumin. Just as oranges are a source of vitamin C, turmeric is a source of curcumin. Today, we extract curcumin from turmeric to use as a natural medicine.

But, a typical turmeric root contains about 2-5% curcumin, so taking an unstandardized, powdered turmeric root product means that very large amounts would be required to get a beneficial amount of curcumin. Additionally, curcumin is poorly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. While turmeric is excellent when used as a spice, a curcumin extract is a better choice for health benefits.

As a separate, identifiable substance, curcumin was first isolated in 1815. But it would take almost another hundred years before its full chemical structure was accurately mapped in 1910.

Since then, research on curcumin has exploded. It works on multiple pathways at multiple levels of those pathways all simultaneously. It’s like a whole pharmacy of nutrients working harmoniously.

Because of its many beneficial effects, curcumin is well regarded for many health concerns. It stops pain and inflammation, and is being currently investigated for inhibiting tumors and fighting cancer, preventing fat growth and accumulation, regulating blood sugar, stopping depression and slowing the effects of Alzheimer’s disease.

Curcumin is like a pharmacy unto itself working harmoniously in many different ways.

Natural Enhancement of Turmeric

The truth is that the turmeric’s active ingredient, curcumin, is not very well absorbed bu our body, as it may pass through the intestines being not fully used.

Therefore, you should mix it with black pepper, in order to stimulate its absorption. Namely, piperine, which is an ingredient in black pepper, increases its absorption by  2,000%!

Moreover, curcumin is fat soluble, so its bioavailability is improved when turmeric is cooked in oil. Therefore, the Indian cuisine knows this aspect of the spice and uses sesame, peanut, and coconut oil, as well as butter-derived ghee.

Turmeric for Alzheimer’s

Evidence for the positive effects of curcumin on the brain go back more than a decade — centuries, if one includes the wisdom of traditional systems of medicine like Ayurveda. More recent investigations are looking at the contribution another of turmeric’s essential components might have on brain health. A study published in the journal of Stem Cell Research & Therapy, Sept. 2014, reported that Aromatic (ar-) turmerone might actually regenerate neural stem cells. In other words, turmeric may eventually prove not only to protect us against the onslaught of neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s, but actually reverse damage done by those diseases by actually regrowing brain cells. Curcumin is available in a pill, but a small amount of turmeric powder is all that is required to show the benefits we have reviewed here. Turmeric spice is reasonably priced and  available in any grocery store. Many stores even carry an organic brand. Furthermore, fresh turmeric root is becoming increasingly available. There is evidence that it is the combination of compounds available in turmeric that make it so effective against neurological damage. That combination of coumpounds might not be available in pill form. The short YouTube video below recaps on of the studies referenced here, and emphasizes the point that the whole form of the spice may be more beneficial than anything that is extracted or synthesized.

Turmeric for Arthritis

One research, from Italy, was a three-month trial involving 50 patients diagnosed by x-ray with osteoarthritis of the knee. The Italian team was investigating the effect on arthritis symptoms of a special formulation of turmeric designed to improve its absorption by the body. Half the participating patients took the turmeric formulation in addition to standard medical treatment; those in the second group continued following their physicians’ recommendations.

After 90 days, the researchers found a 58 percent decrease in overall reported pain and stiffness as well as an improvement in physical functioning among the turmeric group compared to the controls. These changes were documented with a standard medical scoring method used to assess symptoms of knee and hip osteoarthritis. In addition, another scoring method showed a 300 percent improvement in the emotional well being of the turmeric patients compared with the others. And blood tests showed a 16-fold decline in C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation. Patients in the turmeric group were able to reduce their use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs by 63 percent, compared to the other group. Results of this study are very good news for the millions of people worldwide who suffer from osteoarthritis and haven’t been adequately helped by available treatments. The dose of the turmeric formulation used in the study was one gram per day. It is now commercially available in the United States and Europe.

Turmeric may also be useful for prevention of symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, but this evidence comes from animal studies, not human trials.

Turmeric for Cancer

Turmeric’s active ingredient is an extracted compound called curcumin. Studies have shown that curcumin helps prevent several forms of cancer including breast, lung, stomach, liver, and colon because of its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. It stops the development of cancer by interfering with the cellular signaling aspects of the chronic disease. Dr. Saraswati Sukumar is a medical oncologist at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and has been involved in hundreds of studies on the effects of turmeric on cancer.

She has found that eating turmeric prepared in food provides more benefits than taking either curcumin or turmeric supplements.

Turmeric Is Better than Prozac for Depression

This anti-inflammatory, cancer fighting, antioxidant packed, anti-bacterial and anti-viral superfood, turmeric has now been found to help relieve depression more effectively then conventional drugs.

The magic compound in turmeric that makes it so effective at treating a host of diseases is curcumin a natural phenol compound that has been proven to reduce inflammation and even block the development of tumors. Researchers found that those taking the combination improved 77.8%, those taking just Prozac improved 64.7% and those taking just turmeric improved 62.5%.

The difference when it comes to turmeric however is that it does not have any side effects unlike Prozac, making it more effective and safer when it comes to the treatment of depression.

Enhancing Turmeric Naturally

You would be overlooking one crucial fact about turmeric that could mean the difference between simple consumption and full-absorption. That fact: turmeric is fat-soluble, and you want to be able to absorb is magnificent food to experience all of the health benefits it has to offer.

When something is fat-soluble, that means it dissolves in fat. Without fat, the active component in turmeric, curcumin, has a difficult time making it past the stomach, into the small intestine, and into the blood where it can offer the greatest benefits.

In order to make the most of turmeric, you must take it with a bit of fat.

With curry (where turmeric is most popular), your body is able to make the most of the curcumin because there is usually some oil in the recipe. We can learn from this by trying to take turmeric as part of a healing synergistic whole—one healing piece of an overall healthful meal.

But even when curry isn’t on the menu or when you simply want a “hit” of curcumin, you can use it’s fat-soluble qualities to ensure your body makes the most of it.

Turmeric Tea

The good news about this cross-cultural spice is that elderly villagers in India, who eat turmeric in their daily curries, have the world’s lowest rate of Alzheimer’s disease. That does not appear to be a coincidence. In a study at the University of California at Los Angeles, scientists fed curcumin, an active compound in turmeric tea, to rats prone to accumulate beta-amyloid plaque in their brains – the abnormality associated with Alzheimer’s disease in humans. Curcumin blocked the plaque’s accumulation. It also appeared to reduce inflammation related to Alzheimer’s disease in neural tissue. The rats fed curcumin also performed better on memory tests than rats on normal diets.

Other studies have suggested turmeric and turmeric tea have broad anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer benefits, as well. But few Americans eat enough curry to achieve these protective effects. Although Dr. Weil does not recommend daily mustard-laden hot dogs as the ideal turmeric delivery device, he found a potential solution during one of his many trips to Okinawa, the island nation with the world’s longest average life span, 81.2 years.

Okinawans drink copious quantities of turmeric tea. Some brew it fresh, but others simply buy cans or powdered instant versions of unsweetened tea from their local stores.

If you would like to try it, here’s a turmeric tea recipe. Feel free to experiment with the ingredients and flavorings until you find a combination that suits your taste.

Liquid Gold Turmeric Tea

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon coconut oil

Honey or stevia to taste

Bring water to a boil. Add turmeric powder and simmer gently for 10 minutes.

Add coconut milk and coconut oil. Heat until warmed through.

Sweeten with honey or stevia to taste.

Feel free to experiment with the ingredients and proportions to create the brew that is just right for you. You can substitute almond milk or regular milk for coconut milk, as long as it contains some fat.

Ghee, traditional clarified Indian butter, works great instead of coconut oil and adds a rich buttery flavor.

Turmeric Dosage

Most commonly, we use turmeric in the form of a dried spice. Yet, you can buy it as a root. The University of Maryland’s Complementary and Alternative Medicine Guide suggests these dosages of turmeric for adults:

  • Tincture (1:2): 15-30 drops, 4 times a day
  • Dried, powdered root: 1-3 grams a day
  • Fluid extract (1:1): 30-90 drops a day
  • Cut root: 1.5-3 grams a day

In the case of the intake of a standardized powder supplement, the recommended dosage is 400-600 mg, 3 times a day. Moreover, always choose products standardized for 95% curcuminoids, and also have black pepper extract or piperine.

Side Effects

While the pros of turmeric health benefits usually outweigh the cons, it’s important to know that there can be some side effects with turmeric. Some people report allergic reactions to turmeric, especially after skin exposure. Typically, this is experienced as a mild, itchy rash. In addition, high doses of turmeric have been observed to cause:

  • Indigestion
  • Heart burn
  • Nausea
  • Diarrhea
  • Liver problems
  • Increased risk of bleeding
  • Increased liver function tests
  • Hyperactive gallbladder contractions
  • Alopecia (hair loss)
  • Hypotension (lowered blood pressure)
  • Uterine contractions in pregnant women
  • Increased menstrual flow

People taking certain medications should also be careful when using turmeric in their food or supplementing with it. Turmeric may interfere with anti-coagulants like aspirin, clopidogrel and warfarin. It also can affect medications such as nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs. As with any herb or supplement, use as directed. All three sites were in agreement that you should not take either curcumin or turmeric supplements if:

You are pregnant. Curcumin stimulates the uterus and raises the risk of a miscarriage. The safety of this spice while breastfeeding has not been established.

You are trying to conceive. If you are having trouble conceiving, turmeric could add to your difficulties.

You have a hormone-sensitive condition. Turmeric can act like estrogen so should be avoided if you have reproductive cancer, endometriosis, or uterine fibroids.

You have gallstones or gallbladder disease. Turmeric can make gallbladder problems worse.

You are scheduled for surgery in the next two weeks. Turmeric increases the risk of bleeding.

You take medications that slow clotting such as aspirin, clopidogrel, diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, and warfarin. Turmeric increases the risk of bruising and bleeding.

You have GERD, ulcers, or other stomach problems. Turmeric can make GERD worse and cause gastric irritation, stomach upset, nausea, and diarrhea.

You take drugs to reduce stomach acid. Turmeric can interfere with the actions of medications like Zantac, Tagamet, and Nexium, increasing the production of stomach acid.

You take diabetes medication. Turmeric increases the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).

You have an iron deficiency. Turmeric can prevent the absorption of iron.

According to Drugs.com, 70 drugs interact adversely with turmeric and curcumin supplements.

Turmeric Benefits: The Bottom Line

Turmeric may be the most effective nutritional supplement in existence.

Many high quality studies show that it has major benefits for your body and brain. You can’t eat enough turmeric to have a real therapeutic effect — that is, to cure what ails you — but Winston notes that eating this spice regularly can help prevent inflammatory problems, such as ulcers, GI tract cancers and atherosclerosis. So add a little spice to your life and give your health a boost at the same time… not a bad combination. Some experts believe that the liberal use of turmeric in cooking is all you need to get therapeutic amounts.

We agree that it’s prudent to start first with turmeric in food and tea for that sweet spot of maximum benefits with virtually no risk of side effects.

And if you don’t get the results you want, you can try turmeric supplements.

If that still doesn’t bring the relief you’re looking for, then you can try curcumin supplements, staying mindful of interactions and side effects.

 

Source : http://www.realfarmacy.com/