Call it whatever you like: yellow ginger, haldi, turmeric or E100. This versatile herb, a spice commonly used in curries and other South Asian cuisine, is turning out to be amazingly healthy.
Even though the medicinal properties of turmeric have been known to the ancient Indians for millennia, it is only in recent years that western scientists have started to recognise the medicinal properties of this high-potency antioxidant.
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Boosting brain power
According to an article published in the August issue of New Scientist (issue 2563, page 18), Tze-Pin Ng and colleagues at the National University of Singapore discovered that curry seems to boost brain power. Reports have suggested that it inhibits the build-up of amyloid plaques in people with Alzheimer's disease.
Ng's team looked at the curry-eating habits of 1010 Asian people unaffected by Alzheimer's and aged between 60 and 93, and compared their performance in a standard test of cognitive function: the Mini Mental State Examination.
Those people who consumed curry "occasionally" (once or more in six months' time, but less than once a month) and "often" (more than once a month) had better MMSE results than those who only ate curry "never or rarely" (American Journal of Epidemiology, DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwj267).
"What is remarkable is that apparently one needs only to consume curry once in a while for the better cognitive performance to be evidenced," says Ng.
Preventing cancer
Research activity into curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, is exploding, according to a 2005 article in the Wall Street Journal titled, "Common Indian Spice Stirs Hope".
As many as two hundred and fifty-six curcumin papers were published in the past year, according to a search of the US National Library of Medicine.
Supplement sales have increased by 35% since 2004, and the US National Institutes of Health has four clinical trials underway to study curcumin treatment for pancreatic cancer, multiple myeloma, Alzheimer's disease, and colorectal cancer.
“We have not found a single cancer on which curcumin does not work,” states Dr Bharat Aggarwal, who conducts cancer research at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research in Bangalore, India.
Ayurveda particularly recommends turmeric for cancers of the female reproductive system, specifically breast and uterine cancer. It can also be used to treat benign tumours.
One of the keys to turmeric's success in destroying cancer is the ability of curcumin to inhibit the enzyme topoisomerase, which is required for the replication of cancer cells.
Wonder herb
The antioxidant properties of turmeric can be used for treating skin inflammations. It also helps to lighten skin.
Turmeric has been shown to be helpful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, injuries, trauma, and stiffness from being both under-active and over-active.
Recent studies have shown that turmeric can be used in the treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), as well as HIV/Aids.
It is also said to strengthen the blood-brain barrier against attacks that result from auto-immune diseases (such as multiple sclerosis).
The advantages of turmeric appear to be endless.
Although the results from current studies look promising, there have been very few long-term tests performed on large population groups.
Turmeric was recently nominated by the National Cancer Institute for more study, so we can look forward to many more research findings in future.
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