Westerners often associate turmeric with Asian food. A must component of the tasty curries, turmeric has been ruling the kitchen in Asian households, especially South-Asian, for centuries. But what remains unknown is that this medicinal herb is also an integral part of traditional medicines like Ayurveda.
With benefits ranging from treatment of gastrointestinal ailments, arthritis, and detoxification to its use in regulating the menstrual cycle and as a skin-care routine, turmeric played an essential part in the process of healing your body naturally. With globalization, hidden treasures are finding their way to modern society. It is hard to substantiate all the benefits scientifically, but some do have a positive result.
One such is anti-inflammatory property. Many people are now trying this alternative natural medicine to reap the benefits.
Contents
The Actual Value In Turmeric
The factor of importance that makes turmeric truly valuable is – curcumin. A biologically active compound, curcumin is classified under curcuminoids. Typically, turmeric contains anywhere between 1-5% of curcumin (i.e., if it is real without any adulteration).
Even with this little amount, turmeric is an efficient source because of the low natural availability of the compound, which is characteristic of the genus Curcuma.
What Are The Benefits
Curcuma is a rich anti-oxidant that has effective properties as an anti-inflammatory. For years, it has been used as a home remedy against inflammation. Recent studies, essentially focusing on knee osteoarthritis, have also found successful results giving a quantitative insight into the health benefit.
Based on their experiment, people who used turmeric and the other group that took medicine showed moderately the same benefits naturally, leaving little to no side effects.
Turmeric Supplements
Though the natural one is most recommended, it is hard to find an unadulterated version of turmeric. Moreover, with a maximum of 5% concentration of curcumin (the active ingredient), it is hard to make sure you get the desired amount of turmeric daily. Adding to it, the absorption power of the body to curcumin is significantly less.
These supplements bring you the most concentrated form with natural additives that increase their absorptivity in the body.
Dosage Prescribed
The experiments undertaken involved an intake of 500 mg of turmeric orally, with a frequency of four times a day. Other studies suggest it is safe to take about 6 gm of turmeric daily as a natural ingredient in various foods.
For supplements, kindly refer to the dosage prescribed by the physician or as suggested by the product manufacturers.
Side Effects
One of the listed benefits of turmeric is regulating the menstrual cycle. Thus, it is proven to aid in blood-thinning; thus, inducing an anti-coagulating effect. Hence, people who are on drugs with similar effects should avoid turmeric.
The excessive dosage has visibly minor side effects like gastric disturbances, nausea, or vomiting. Though there are very few chances of consuming high amounts (especially if you are intaking a natural one), it is better to avoid the worse situation.
Other Benefits
Apart from the anti-inflammatory effect, turmeric also controls the following.
- Protects Your Heart: With the anti-oxidant property, turmeric intake has proven to improve heart diseases, especially regarding the health of epithelium.
- Improve The Brain’s Functioning: Curcumin increases neurotrophic factors that regulate the brain’s functioning. Thus, regular intake of curcumin implies that you are delaying age-related brain disorders like Alzheimer’s.
- Anti-Bacterial Property: Applying a paste of turmeric on the skin to get radiating skin is an ancient practice. Turmeric has anti-bacterial property which also makes it useful as a cosmetic ingredient.
- Improve Immunity: As a subsequent effect of its anti-inflammatory property, turmeric also helps in improving immunity.
- Cancer: There is a possibility that turmeric decreases the risk of various cancers, especially in the gut region. They have the potency to reduce the proliferation and spread of cancer cells.
Other Anti-Inflammatory Diet Inclusions
Diet rich in protein and anti-oxidants has proved helpful in cases of rheumatoid arthritis. You can include other food options in your platter: green leafy vegetables, fruits and vegetables, and omega-three fatty acids.
Avoid consuming greasy food like red meat, which increases the number of bad cholesterols in your body.
Conclusion
Turmeric can always complement a healthy lifestyle, proper exercises, and a complete diet. For chronic cases, it is best to rely on expert advice. However, with substantial evidence from real life, it is hard to ignore the yellow-colored superfood. Try it to discover the wonders of natural medicines.
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