{"id":1313,"date":"2017-03-30T09:01:13","date_gmt":"2017-03-30T07:01:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/taoofstefan.com\/blog\/?p=1313"},"modified":"2017-03-30T09:01:13","modified_gmt":"2017-03-30T07:01:13","slug":"turmeric-root","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/taoofstefan.com\/blog\/supplements\/turmeric-root\/","title":{"rendered":"Turmeric Root – Natural Supplements Series"},"content":{"rendered":"

Turmeric is probably best known as the key ingredient of curry powder. Its yellow colour makes the root easy to spot in any spice rack. Therefore, it is also often referred to as the golden spice<\/strong>. In this Natural Supplements<\/strong>\u00a0series article, I want to focus on this extraordinary root and it’s health benefits.<\/p>\n

\"Cut<\/a>

Cut turmeric root<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

Historic Origins and Use\u00a0of Turmeric<\/h1>\n

Turmeric is a very old ingredient and has been used for more than 4 millennia. Back then an Indian culture called the Vedic used it for similar purposes as we use it today too: as a\u00a0culinary spice<\/strong>. Besides that, they also used in for some religious practices. Only much later it reached China and Africa. Marco Polo made it later\u00a0known in Europe. He\u00a0attributed similar\u00a0qualities to the turmeric root as to saffron.\u00a0In Ayurvedic medicine, turmeric has been used for medical purposes already 250 BC<\/strong>. This use has been written down in Sanskrit and can be found in Susruta’s compendium. The recommended use of Turmeric back then was as an ointment against food poisoning.<\/p>\n

Fun fact<\/strong><\/a>: in Sanskrit Turmeric is known under at least 53 different names<\/span><\/strong>!<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Composition and Medical Use of Turmeric<\/h1>\n

If you make a nutritional analysis of the turmeric root you’ll have the following composition (highlights):<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
as per 100 g<\/strong>:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
354 kcal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
10 g fat<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
of which\u00a03 g saturated fats<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
65 g carbohydrates<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
of which\u00a021 g dietary fibres and\u00a03 g sugars<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
8 g proteins<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
10 mg sodium<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2500 mg potassium<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
47.5 mg iron<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Turmeric is a very versatile herbal medicine and has been frequently used to cure skin problems, arthritis, but also chicken pox, pain especially in the abdomen and anything related to digestive problems. This use is recommendable thanks to the anti-inflammatory effects of the root.\u00a0In Ayurvedic medical treatments turmeric has also been used, among other purposes, to strengthen the energetic levels of the body<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Turmeric’s Most Important Active Ingredient<\/h1>\n

All this makes the consumption of turmeric a very good idea, especially as there are no real known side-effects of turmeric<\/strong>. The one thing that makes turmeric special and very powerful is the most important ingredient<\/strong> in the root: curcumin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Curcumin is the active ingredient<\/strong> in turmeric and is the reason for its\u00a0anti-inflammatory and cancer preventative abilities. There can be found up to 6% (dry weight) of curcuminoids in the spice. Unfortunately it is difficult to get all of those curcumin benefits into your body. This is because curcumin has a very poor bio-availability<\/strong> (i.e. only a low part of what you consume will be absorbed by your body).<\/p>\n

\"turmeric<\/a>

turmeric root<\/p><\/div>\n

You could make up for this fact by eating lots and lots of turmeric<\/strong>. But that would not only be boring but also unnecessary<\/strong> as you can easily enhance bio-availability<\/strong>. The most important bio-availability enhancer would be piperine<\/strong>. Piperine is what makes black pepper<\/strong> spicy and gives it its pungency. So in order to get the benefits you simply need to add black pepper to the spice. If you want to increase bio-availability even further\u00a0make use of the fact that curcumin is a fat soluble substance<\/strong>. By adding fat<\/strong> do your dish you will therefore increase the absorption rate<\/strong>\u00a0and the benefits even further.<\/p>\n

Turmeric Use: Curry<\/h1>\n

Does\u00a0this\u00a0combination of spices\u00a0and fat surprise you? It definitely shouldn’t. Here’s why:\u00a0curry<\/strong>!<\/p>\n

\"Curry\"<\/a>

Curry<\/p><\/div>\n

The basic recipe for a curry is usually the curry paste or powder<\/strong> in which you have those spices already. The paste usually contains some fat, too. Then you have some vegetables<\/strong> and a source of protein<\/strong>. The protein is another source of fat<\/strong> (especially fish). In order to fry the dish you’ll need some fat, too,\u00a0oil\u00a0<\/strong>for instance. Many recipes ask you even to fry black pepper<\/strong> in the oil at the beginning of the cooking process. Apart from this, curries often also contain yogurt<\/strong> (here how you can make your own yogurt<\/a>) which in its natural form also contains fat. In other geographical areas, yogurt is replaced by coconut milk<\/strong>, which also contains fat.<\/p>\n

Top Health Benefits of Turmeric<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In case you’re still not convinced to have plenty of turmeric for a healthier life, best on a daily basis,\u00a0I ask you to read this list and ponder if you have to take any kind of medication to treat one or more of those issues:<\/p>\n