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With its earthy scent and warm golden color, turmeric is perfect for autumn, when we should be strengthening our immune system and keeping ourselves warm from the inside out.
A native spice in India and throughout tropical Asia, this spice has long been used in Ayurvedic (traditional Indian medicine) and Chinese medicine traditions.
Turmeric is valued not just for the flavor and beautiful color it brings to curries, but also for its healing properties. It is said, turmeric can help treat inflammatory conditions, wounds, skin diseases, liver conditions, and digestive ailments.
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Benefits of Turmeric
There’s no shortage of information on how turmeric can improve health and wellness, but very little on how to fit turmeric into your everyday wellness routine. Read on if you’d like to learn more about the benefits of turmeric and how to incorporate it into your wellness plan.
Fights Inflammation
Inflammation is the cause of many health conditions, including heart disease, cancer, and cognitive decline. Turmeric’s powerful anti-inflammatory effect can protect against these and other diseases. Inflammation is your immune system’s response to injury and illness. But sometimes, your immune system goes overboard, and inflammation causes pain and illness. By reducing inflammation, turmeric helps your body combat diseases.
Slays Free Radicals
In addition to being a potent anti-inflammatory, curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric has also been shown to help fight free radical damage by increasing antioxidant capacity. This is especially beneficial for brain function, the immune system, and protecting the skin from free-radical damage.
Boosts the Immune System
The anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial properties of turmeric make it a health and wellness powerhouse. Since the curcumin in turmeric is not absorbed very well by your body, there are two ways to increase its absorption.
When eaten with black pepper, the piperine in black pepper helps your body absorb the turmeric better. And since curcumin is fat-soluble, eating turmeric with a healthy fat such as olive or coconut oil also helps your body absorb it better.
Lessens Joint Pain
As an anti-inflammatory, you would expect turmeric to help lessen joint pain. It’s also nice to know that studies have indicated that turmeric and curcumin can help manage arthritis pain and inflammation. It may also be able to soothe the soreness of aching muscles.
Against Cancer
The role of curcumin and turmeric in cancer prevention and treatment has been extensively studied. In addition, animal and human studies have yielded promising results in this area.
Protects the Heart
Turmeric and curcumin have been shown to have a protective role in cardiovascular diseases, such as reducing free radical damage. inflammation, and improving endothelial function. Endothelial function influences blood clotting, immune function, and platelet adhesion.
Can Help Heal the Gut
Turmeric has been used to treat inflammatory bowel conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome and colitis. It is also a low-FODMAP food and can be used in elimination diets.
FODMAP stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols, which are short-chain carbohydrates and sugar alcohols that are poorly absorbed by the body, resulting in abdominal pain and bloating.
Improves Long-Term Cognitive Function
Curcumin’s ability to increase and support healthy levels of a hormone called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has been studied. BDNF plays a vital role in long-term cognitive function.
How Much Turmeric Should You Take?
By now you may be wondering if you should stock up on turmeric and how much you should be taking. You don’t have to add this aromatic spice to your cooking to get its benefits. There are turmeric supplements out that you can take.
About 500 milligrams of curcuminoids a day is a good wellness dose for keeping inflammation away and promoting gut health. When using the spice on its own, the standard guide is that there are 200 milligrams of curcumin in one teaspoon of fresh or ground turmeric. Incorporating some turmeric to your balanced diet can add up to a healthy dose of wellness.
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