Turmeric: The Miraculous Golden Spice

Turmeric is an Asian spice that is grown primarily in India. Turmeric has been used in Ayurvedic Medicine and other traditional Chinese and Indian Medicine.

This incredible super food is nowadays used in conjunction with other nutritional supplements for health conditions such as, arthritis, digestive disorders, respiratory infections, allergies, liver disease, depression, and more (2). Many of these conditions being caused by inflammation, Turmeric is seen to be a “natural anti-inflammatory” of the nutrition world, alongside being a potent antioxidant and digestive aid.

Benefits:

• Anti-Arthritic Effects

Turmeric aids in the inhibition of joint inflammation and joint destruction, which is found in people that have arthritis (2).

• Digestive Stimulant

It has been found that Turmeric also enhances the effects of our body’s enzymes such as, pancreatic lipase, chymotrypsin, and amylase. Research has also discovered that mixing Turmeric with other herbs and spices such as, coriander, red chilli, black pepper, and cumin increased the stimulation of bile secretion and flow (3).

• Antioxidant

Turmeric has been shown to reduce oxidative stress (usually caused by stress, environmental factors, etc) due to its antioxidant properties. Curcumin, the active component found in Turmeric, has been found to scavenge different free radicals and therefore lowering incidence of oxidative stress caused by external and internal factors (1).

Personally, I have used Curcumin tablets for years as my family have a genetic predisposition to Autoimmune Disease such as Ankylosing Spondylitis, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Crohn’s Disease (highly inflammatory conditions) and have found it exceptionally useful especially for joint pain during those cold winter months.

Fantastic nutritional supplements that contain Turmeric or its active component Curcumin are as follows (just at slightly different dosages):

• Bio Curcumin 5400 (Herbs of Gold). Contains equivalent 100mg Curcumin.
• Curcumin Advanced (Fusion). Contains equivalent 190mg Curcumin, plus 5.1mg of Black Pepper for absorption.
• Turmeric (Fusion). Contains equivalent 375mg Curcuminoids, plus 4mg of black pepper for absorption.

Written by our in-house Nutritionist.

If you have any queries or questions, please do not hesitate to contact us on (03) 9318 3455 or come visit us in-store.

REFERENCES:

1. Hewlings, S.J. & Kalman, D.S. 2017, “Curcumin: a review on its effects on human health”, Foods, 6, no. 10, accessed on 25^th July 2020 from <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5664031/>
2. National Center for Complementary Medicine 2020, “Turmeric”, accessed on 25^th July 2020 from <https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/turmeric>
3. Prasad, S & Aggarwal, B 2011, “Turmeric, the golden spice”, Herbal Medicine: Biomolecular and Clinical Aspects, 2^nd edn, accessed on 25^th July 2020 from <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92752/>
4. Prasad, S, Tyagi, A & Aggarwal, B 2014, “Recent developments in delivery, bioavailability, absorption and metabolism of curcumin: the golden pigment from golden spice”, Cancer Research and Treatment, 46, no. 1, pp. 2 – 18, accessed on 25^th July 2020 from <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3918523/>