What is Turmeric?
Turmeric comes from the root of the Curcuma Longa plant and the fresh root with its papery brown skin and orange flesh looks akin to ginger root. It’s more popular version is in a dried powder form and found commonly in curry powder mixes.
Turmeric is used regularly in South Asian cooking and is the source of the yellow-orange hue found in your favourite curry! Traditionally turmeric has been used as a condiment, as a health remedy, as well as a dye.
Why is Turmeric so renowned for it's health properties?
The deep yellow hue of turmeric comes from the curcumin in it which is also the source of a variety of healing properties. Curcumin is the main active ingredient in turmeric. Studies have shown that curcumin has great anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. It helps prevent brain and heart disease, tackle depression, prevent and reduce the spread of certain cancers and suppress pain from inflammation.
What are its Health Benefits?
The biggest benefit of Curcumin is that it helps prevent and reduce chronic inflammation. Inflammation is important because it helps the body fight against disease as well as helps in repairing cellular damage. However, where short term inflammation is useful for the body, chronic and long term inflammation is the leading cause of a host of diseases in the western world. These range from heart diseases, cancer, Alzheimers and arthritis to mention a few. Curcumin has been found to be a strong anti-inflammatory and helps fight inflammation at the molecular level. It helps neutralize free radicals, which are chemicals that can cause a huge amount of damage to healthy cells. It has thus found to have properties equivalent to pharmaceutical drugs but without the side effects!
It is hence found to be an effective treatment for gut health especially for those suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome. It has helped reduce pain and stiffness for those suffering from joint diseases, such as Rheumatoid Arthritis. It can also help prevent Heart disease as it prevents the oxidation of cholesterol in the body, thus preventing the development of plaque in the arteries which causes heart attacks and strokes. Studies have found that the curcumin in turmeric can help reduce the rate of lung, breast, colon and prostate cancer cells as well as prevent the growth of cancerous tumours. Turmeric’s anti-inflammatory properties also help the liver to function better with its detoxification process.
Turmeric and bio-availability:
Turmeric on its own is not very bio-available. Bio-availability refers to the extent to which nutrients are available for absorption and further utilization in the body. This is because the curcumin does not readily get absorbed by the body and it also metabolizes very quickly and gets excreted out of the body.
Studies have shown that the addition of piperine from black pepper makes the curcumin bio-available. Which is why it is advised to consume black pepper along with turmeric in order to obtain its health benefits. Curcumin is also fat-soluble as well as soluble in heat and hence it can help to absorbed by the body when mixed with hot liquids or fats such as coconut oil.
At Wunder Workshop we focus on Consumption with Purpose, which is why we always create blends that have these key components to make the benefits of turmeric more bioavailable through natural sources.
How to use Turmeric:
Traditionally in India, turmeric is used as a spice in almost every meal. It is also used as a healthy remedy with hot milk to alleviate cough and colds. Turmeric mylk (it’s vegan counterpart) has now become a popular drink in the Western health food world. Turmeric can be added to a milk of your choice, into smoothies and juices, into curries, stir-fries and as well as salad dressings. It adds a wonderful golden hue to your meals as well as to your life! The possibilities are endless and all you need is a little imagination to introduce this amazing healing spice into your life.
To obtain all the amazing health benefits of turmeric and curcumin you can try out our innovative range of products from Golden Mylk, Golden Mylk Cacao, Golden turmeric honey, Golden turmeric tea, as well as our organic turmeric powder and many more.