Turmeric: The Magical Spice and Five Health Benefits of It

Turmeric does much more than just add flavour to your foods. Turmeric is usually used while cooking food as it adds flavour and colour to the food but in addition to adding flavour and colour to your food, turmeric has many health benefits due to its anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory properties.

Turmeric comes from the root of the curcuma longa plant and the health benefits of turmeric come from curcumin, an active compound found in turmeric which has various health benefits. In India, turmeric has been used for its health benefits from ancient times along with using it as a spice. In India, turmeric has been famous as a magical spice because of the many health benefits it has. At present, various studies have proved that there are many health benefits of turmeric because of the anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory properties of turmeric, and its active ingredient curcumin. In fact, turmeric might be the most effective nutritional supplement we ever knew about. Here we have listed down five health benefits of turmeric.

Anti- Inflammatory Properties

Turmeric contains curcumin which is a rich source of anti-inflammatory properties. In fact, the anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin are on par with a few of the strongest anti-inflammatory prescription medicines but without the side-effects. Inflammation is the cause of various diseases including obesity, cardiovascular diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and even various types of cancers. The anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin help to curb these diseases. Also inflammation causes lots of pain but curcumin can ease the knee pain from osteoarthritis as efficiently as ibuprofen, a strong prescription medicine.

Lowers the Risk of Heart Diseases

Turmeric can improve the function of the linings of your blood vessels and can reverse the steps of heart disease. Turmeric is useful to regulate your blood pressure, blood clotting, and other things important for the health of your heart. Bad cholesterol causes most heart-related problems and some recent researches have shown that seasoning foods with turmeric are helpful to decrease the body’s bad cholesterol. Curcumin might also decrease heart attacks that occur after bypass surgery. Curcumin also helps in decreasing inflammation and oxidation, which can cause various types of heart diseases.

Improves Anti-Oxidant Capacity of the Body

Oxidative damage is one of the main reasons behind ageing and other diseases because it contains free radicals, which tend to react with vital organic elements, like fatty acids, DNA, and proteins, and can cause many diseases including cancer. The curcumin present in turmeric has got very high anti-oxidant properties which can protect your body against free radicals by neutralising the free radicals because of its chemical structure. Curcumin can also block the activities of free radicals which helps to stimulate the function of other anti-oxidants. Turmeric might also be helpful to decrease oxidative stress on vascular tissues which increases the risk of various chronic diseases.

Prevent Brain Diseases

Curcumin increases the levels of the brain hormone BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) and boosts the growth of new neurons, and might help to combat many degenerative processes in your brain. The increase in the levels of BDNF can effectively delay and even reverse various brain and age-related diseases. Curcumin also helps to improve the memory and attention capacity of the brain. Studies have shown that curcumin might also help to prevent and treat Alzheimer’s disease along with curbing the development of dementia. Along with brain diseases, curcumin also helps to ease symptoms of various mental issues, especially depression because it can function as an antidepressant also.

Improves Functions of the Digestive System

Turmeric is quite helpful to cure stomach pain along with relieving constipation and controlling irritable bowel syndrome. The anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin might reduce your risks of developing ulcers and also help to get rid of digestive system irritation. Because of this, turmeric might help to curb an array of  gastrointestinal disorders like IBS, diarrhea, and Crohn’s disease. Some studies have shown that curcumin might prevent cancer of the digestive system such as colorectal cancer.