Turmeric – a natural health-booster

Turmeric has many medicinal properties, and can be used both inside and outside the body.

Apart from adding peppery flavour and brilliant colour to food, turmeric is renowned for its many therapeutic benefits.

This spice is part of the ginger family and is a old health remedy that most people have in their kitchen.

It is made from the root of the curcuma longa plant. Although it has been used for years to season soups, salads, rice, lentil, meat, chicken and curry dishes (and sometimes referred to as ‘Indian saffron), it is perhaps better known as nature’s anti-inflammatory.

Turmeric’s remarkable healing ability is mainly due to the active ingredient curcumin. Curcumin is a potent antioxidant which fights dangerous free radicals and reduces the damage they cause to body cells and produces no toxicity in the body.

• Curcumin is also a wonderful anti-inflammatory, which means it may reduce the enzymes in the body that triggers inflammatory conditions such as arthritis and osteoarthritis and heart disease.
• Turmeric is also a good source of iron and manganese, as well as vitamin C, vitamin B6, vitamin E, potassium, and dietary fibre. It is also a well-known preservative.
• Below is a whole list of things of what Turmeric is and what it does:
•  It is a natural painkiller, particularly useful for pain such as sprains, joint pain, toothache, chest pain and colic.
•  It is an effective liver detoxifier, thereby enhancing liver function and protecting against certain liver diseases.
•  It can be used topically to disinfect cuts and treat burns, as it is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial, and speeds up wound healing.
•  It has shown to improve many inflammatory skin conditions, such as psoriasis.
•  It has been known to treat depression, as well as other inflammatory conditions such as arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and bowel diseases such as Crohn’s and colitis.
•  It may assist in suppressing cancer cell growth and in preventing many cancerous lesions from metastasising and spreading, such as prostate, melanoma, leukaemia, colon, cervical and breast tumours, as it is a powerful antioxidant, which targets disease-causing free radicals
•  It may assist with slowing the progression of certain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, the curative ingredient in turmeric crosses the blood-brain barrier.
•  It aids heart health by assisting with the prevention of plaque in the arteries, by lowering cholesterol, and by reducing the risk of blood clots, which can lead to heart attacks and stroke.
•  It may assist with fat metabolism and, therefore, weight management, and by reducing some of the consequences of insulin resistance.

To integrate this spice into your diet you should eat it raw or add it to your food. Raw or in food is best, always use a little coconut oil if you are going to use it to cook with, however, supplements are available at selected health stores. It can also be simmered in boiling water and drunk as a tea.

It is relatively safe; however, it should not be used by people with gallstone problems. Pregnant women should check with their doctors first before adding turmeric to their diets.

Adding turmeric to your diet is one of the easiest and cheapest ways of fighting off many diseases and improving your health.

Information courtesy of: qualified Therapeutic Massage Therapist and member of the SA Natural Health Practitioners Board (SANHPB) Zelda Fourie.