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This Is What Happens to Your Body If You Eat

Turmeric Every Day
Turmeric  is a powder that comes from the root of the Curcuma longa plant. This plant
is part of the ginger family. The powder is golden in color and has an interesting taste
and aroma. Some describe the taste as peppery, bitter, and warm. The aroma,
however, is closer to that of an orange or ginger. (Source)
 It is commonly used as a seasoning in food and can also be used as a dye for
clothes. Turmeric’s health benefits are vast, but not very well known.

What's New and Beneficial About Turmeric

 Despite its use in cooking for several thousand years, turmeric continues to surprise
researchers in terms of its wide-ranging health benefits. While once focused on anti-
inflammatory benefits, decreased cancer risk, and support of detoxification, studies on
turmeric intake now include its potential for improving cognitive function, blood sugar
balance, and kidney function, as well as lessening the degree of severity associated with
certain forms of arthritis and certain digestive disorders.
 Use of turmeric in recipes can help retain the beta-carotene in certain foods. For
example, one study has shown that the beta-carotene in carrots and pumpkins is better
retained when those vegetables are cooked using recipes that include turmeric.
 Studies on satay—the very popular grilled meat dish that is often marinated in a spice
mixture containing turmeric—have demonstrated a unique role for turmeric in providing
health benefits. The grilling of meats is well-known for its potential to produce
heterocyclic amines (HCAs) from protein substances in the meats. These HCAs are also
well-known for posing potential health risks. Researchers now know that turmeric helps
prevent formation of HCAs in grilled meat, including satay that has been marinated in a
turmeric-containing spice mixture. About 1-2 teaspoons of turmeric per 3.5 ounces of
meat was used to produce this helpful outcome in one study.
 Whole turmeric is likely to provide you with a different set of benefits than its best-
studied constituent—namely, curcumin. That's because turmeric includes three different
curcuminoids: curcumin, bisdemethoxycurcumin, and demethoxycurcumin. It also
contains volatile oils like tumerone, atlantone, and zingiberone. These different
substances are all associated with their own unique health benefits.
 The amount of turmeric that you need to receive health benefits is not a lot. While
researchers are accustomed to looking at countries like India where intake of turmeric
often reaches a level of 1-2 grams every day (2.2 grams of the turmeric powder that we
profile on our website equates to one teaspoon), studies show potential health benefits
at much lower amounts. In some situations, as little as 50 milligrams of turmeric over a
period of several months have been linked with health benefits. This small amount
would be the equivalent of approximately 1/50th of a teaspoon.
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Health Benefits
It's important to know that the vast majority of studies on turmeric have not examined the spice
itself, but rather one of its constituents called curcumin. When you hear about the benefits of
turmeric on a website or on a health news report on television, you are mostly likely hearing
about the benefits of curcumin. This aspect of the health research can be very confusing!

On the one hand, curcumin is a polyphenol in turmeric with a quite remarkable set of potential
health benefits. These potential benefits include better regulation of inflammation, oxidation, cell
signaling, blood sugar levels, blood fat levels, and brain levels of the omega-3 fatty acid called
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), among its many benefits. But at the same time, there are many
other health-supportive substances in turmeric, and the amount of curcumin in turmeric root can
be fairly small. The actual amount of curcumin in turmeric varies from species to species,
growing conditions, and timing of growth and harvest. But it typically accounts for only 2-5% of
the root weight and can drop even lower under some conditions. In short, we are delighted to
see great studies on the health benefits of curcumin, yet since we are most interested in the
spice itself (turmeric) and the potential benefits of this spice in recipes, we also realize that
some of the research on curcumin doesn't easily translate into these more practical kitchen and
recipe applications. In the remainder of this Health Benefits section, we want to tell you about
practical health benefits of turmeric in cooking based on our confidence in research about the
spice itself.

Overall Decreased Cancer Risk

The vast majority of studies on turmeric and cancer risk have been conducted on rats and mice.
In addition, the research interventions have involved curcumin rather than turmeric. Normally,
we would not try to draw any conclusions about food and your health from animal studies on
isolated food constituents! But in this case, we feel justified in making an exception due to the
large number of animal studies, the consistency of the findings, and the diverse number of
mechanisms that allow curcumin to lower cancer risk in rats and mice. These mechanisms
include: antioxidant mechanisms, anti-inflammatory mechanisms, immuno-regulatory
mechanisms, enzyme-related mechanisms, cell signaling mechanisms, and cell cycle
mechanisms. As you can surmise, we're talking about a remarkable range of potential anti-
cancer impacts with respect to curcumin intake.

In addition, animal studies on curcumin have looked at a wide variety of cancer forms, including
cancer of the prostate, pancreas, lung, colon, cervix, breast, mouth, tongue, and stomach. At
WHFoods, our research presentation policy is to avoid extrapolating from animal studies to
human diets. We like to see large-scale studies on humans eating everyday foods before we
post information on our website about the health benefits of particular foods. However, in this
case we would like to make an exception. Even though we do not have large-scale studies on
humans consuming turmeric, the repeatedly positive findings in these animal studies on
curcumin convince us that you can lower your overall cancer risk through regular consumption
of turmeric.

Of special interest in the cancer research on curcumin has been its well-documented role in
detoxification. In animal studies, curcurmin has consistently been shown to stimulate Phase II
detox activity. This phase of detoxification allows our cells to bind potential toxins together with
other molecules so that they can be excreted from the body. As more and more potentially toxic
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substances get bound together with other molecules during Phase II processing, our risk of
cancer development decreases. Research interest in curcumin and turmeric also extends into
other components of detoxification, and we look forward to future studies that will help to clarify
the unique role of this spice in cellular detoxification.

It's been especially interesting to follow research on curcumin and cancers of the digestive tract.
This component of turmeric has a relatively low level of absorption from the digestive tract. Less
absorption might logically sound like an unwanted event that would provide fewer health
benefits. However, less absorption from the gut up into the body might also mean more
curcumin remaining inside the digestive tract, allowing it to provide health benefits in that
location. Studies have shown that curcumin is relatively stable at stomach pH (the unit of
measurement for acidity) and this stability means that curcumin might be able to pass through
the stomach and onward through our intestines intact. Several animal studies actually show this
result to occur, and they also show curcumin's ability to influence cell signaling in our intestines.
In animal studies, this influence on cell signaling in the lower digestive tract has been linked to
improvement in inflammatory conditions like colitis. This same set of events is under active
study with respect to other chronic bowel problems as well as colorectal cancer.

Cardiovascular Benefits
Inclusion of turmeric as a spice in a recipe can help regulate blood fat levels after a meal.
Studies show that the activity of certain enzymes (including pancreatic lipase and
phospholipase A2) can be inhibited by incorporation of turmeric into recipes, with a result of
lower blood triglycerides following meal intake. In the studies that we have reviewed, turmeric
was not used by itself, but together with other spices including ginger, garlic, black pepper,
cinnamon, and clove. One particular interesting result in one study was the role of stress in
altering turmeric benefits. In this study, lowered levels of blood triglycerides were only seen
when study participants stayed relaxed following their turmeric-containing meals. However, if
the participants became engaged in stressful activities after their meals, blood triglyceride levels
were not reduced by the turmeric-containing meals.

The anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of curcumin have been associated with improved
regulation of blood pressure and decreased risk of several types of cardiovascular disease in
animals. There are also cholesterol-lowering studies in animals given supplemental curcumin,
but the amounts of curcumin required to see results in these studies raise questions for us
about the applicability of these studies to turmeric as a spice in recipes. That's because 500
milligrams of curcumin is a representative dose in these cholesterol studies as a whole, and that
amount would require the intake of about 7 teaspoons of turmeric per day if the plant root used
to produce the powdered and dried spice contained 5% curcumin by weight.

Other Benefits
In animal studies, increased interest has been shown in the potential for turmeric to improve
chronic digestive health problems including Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, and inflammatory
bowel disease. Most of the proposed mechanisms of actions in these studies involve changes
in cell signaling and decreased production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.
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Rheumatoid and other types of arthritis have also been active areas of animal study on
curcumin. Once again, most of the science interest here has been in decreased production of
pro-inflammatory messaging molecules.

Improved cognitive function has also been an area of increased research interest. Here one
fascinating focus has been on the ability of curcumin to stimulate production of DHA
(docosahexaenoic acid) from ALA (alpha-linolenic acid). Both ALA and DHA are omega-3 fatty
acids with a wide range of proven health benefits, but DHA has been shown to be especially
important in nervous system function both in the brain and throughout the body. (There is more
DHA in the brain than any other single type of fatty acid, and when DHA circulates around our
body, the brain receives a higher percentage of this fatty acid than any other single organ.)

A fairly large number of foods contain small to moderate amounts of ALA. However, it is more
difficult to get significant amounts of pre-formed DHA from food. (The best sources of pre-
formed DHA on our website are fish, especially salmon and sardines.) Fortunately, under the
right circumstances, our bodies can make DHA from ALA using enzymes called desaturases
and elongases. It's precisely these enzymes that curcumin can stimulate in their activity,
increasing the likelihood of more DHA production—and along with it, improved brain function in
areas especially reliant on DHA. Given this set of events, it has not been surprising to see more
animal studies focusing on the ability of curcumin and turmeric to potentially improve chronic
neurodegenerative problems including Alzheimer's disease.

Finally, as mentioned in our What's New and Beneficial section, use of turmeric as a recipe
spice has been shown to lower loss of beta-carotene in certain cooked foods. The best study
that we have seen in this area involved the use of turmeric in the cooking of carrots and
pumpkin. Also studied were amaranth and the leaves of a vegetable commonly called drumstick
(Moringa oleifera). It was the antioxidant properties of numerous compounds in turmeric that
researchers pointed to as the mostly likely cause of better beta-carotene preservation.

Before leaving this Health Benefits section, it is worth noting that recent studies show the
breakdown products of curcumin to be as potentially helpful as curcumin itself. These
breakdown products include vanillin and ferulic acid—two well-studied antioxidant and anti-
inflammatory compounds. The role of curcumin breakdown products puts even further
emphasis on the unique potential for turmeric health benefits inside the digestive tract where
this breakdown process would initially occur.

Description
The dried powdered spice that many people use in recipes comes from the root (rhizome)
portion of the plant Curcuma longa. The unprocessed form of this root bears a strong
resemblance to ginger root, and that resemblance is not a coincidence! Turmeric, ginger, and
cardamom are plants all belonging to the Zingiberaceae family—also known as the ginger
family. You'll sometimes hear turmeric being referred to as Indian saffron since its deep yellow-
orange color is similar to that of saffron. You'll also sometimes hear it being referred to as
curcuma, after it's best-studied polyphenolic component, namely, curcumin. Turmeric has been
used throughout history as a culinary spice, herbal medicine, and fabric dye.

Turmeric root has a very interesting taste and aroma. Its flavor is peppery, warm, and bitter
while its fragrance is mild yet slightly reminiscent of orange and ginger.
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Consumers in the U.S. are mostly familiar with the dried, powdered form of turmeric and its
unique and unforgettable color. When purchased in fresh root form, however, turmeric looks
quite similar to ginger root, even though when cut open, its flesh is vibrant orange and
dramatically different from the color of cut ginger root.

History
Turmeric is native to India and Southeast Asia, where it has been popular in cuisines for several
thousand years. In addition to its culinary use, turmeric has remained a mainstay herb in
botanical medicine, with medical usage going back thousands of years in the Ayurvedic
tradition. In the U.S., turmeric is a substance that is included on the GRAS List (Generally
Recognized As Safe) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration where it is considered as a
natural food coloring agent.

On a worldwide basis, about 800,000 tons of turmeric are produced each year, with over 75% of
this total amount coming from India, which is also the world's largest consumer and exporter of
turmeric; in terms of exports, over 50% of all global exports come from this country. After India,
the greatest turmeric production currently occurs in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Taiwan,
China, Myanmar, and Indonesia. Turmeric is also grown commercially in many Central and
South American countries.

How to Select and Store

Even through dried herbs and spices are widely available in supermarkets, explore the local
spice stores or ethnic markets in your area. Oftentimes, these stores feature an expansive
selection of dried herbs and spices that are of superior quality and freshness than those offered
in regular markets. Just like with other dried spices, try to select organically grown turmeric
since this will give you more assurance that the dried, powdered herb has not been irradiated.
Since the color of turmeric varies among varieties, it is not a strict criterion for quality.

We would also note that fresh turmeric root is also becoming more widely available to
consumers. You'll usually find this form of turmeric in the produce section, sometimes near the
ginger root. Many people report enjoying this form of turmeric in soups, salads, and dressings
or marinades. If you bring this form of turmeric home from the grocery, it should be stored in the
refrigerator.

Be sure not to confuse turmeric with curry. "Curry" is a very generalized name for spice
combinations that typically contain turmeric alongside of numerous other spices. For example, a
dried powdered curry powder may often contain turmeric, coriander, cumin, ginger, cardamom,
cinnamon, and clove, along with other spices like nutmeg or fenugreek.

Dried turmeric powder should kept in a tightly sealed container in a cool, dark and dry place.
And as mentioned earlier, fresh turmeric rhizome (root) should be kept in the refrigerator.
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Tips for Preparing and Cooking

Tips for Preparing Turmeric

Be careful when using turmeric since its deep color can easily stain. To avoid a lasting stain,
quickly wash any area with which it has made contact with soap and water. To prevent staining
your hands, you might consider wearing kitchen gloves while handling turmeric.

If you are able to find turmeric rhizomes in the grocery store, you can make your own fresh
turmeric powder by boiling, drying and then grinding it into a fine consistency.

How to Enjoy
A Few Quick Serving Ideas
 Add turmeric to egg salad to give it an even bolder yellow color.
 Mix brown rice with raisins and cashews and season with turmeric, cumin and coriander.
 Although turmeric is generally a staple ingredient in curry powder, some people like to
add a little extra of this spice when preparing curries. And turmeric doesn't have to only
be used in curries. This spice is delicious on healthy sautéed apples, and healthy
steamed cauliflower and/or green beans and onions. Or, for a creamy, flavor-rich, low-
calorie dip, try mixing some turmeric and dried onion with a little omega-3-rich
mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Serve with raw cauliflower, celery, sweet pepper, jicama
and broccoli florets.
 Turmeric is a great spice to complement recipes that feature lentils.
 Give salad dressings an orange-yellow hue by adding some turmeric powder to them.
 For an especially delicious way to add more turmeric to your healthy way of eating, cut
cauliflower florets in half and healthy sauté with a generous spoonful of turmeric for 5
minutes. Remove from the heat and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Nutritional Profile
Turmeric is an excellent source of both iron and manganese. It is also a good source of vitamin
B6, dietary fiber, copper, and potassium. Phytonutrients in turmeric include curcumin,
demethoxycurcumin, tumerones, and tumenorols.

Here are 6 incredible benefits of daily turmeric consumption.

1. Anti-Inflammatory
 There is a compound found in  turmeric that acts as a strong anti-inflammatory. This compound
is called curcumin, and studies have found it to be an excellent compound of choice for fighting
inflammation of all kinds. Inflammation can be the cause of many diseases including
inflammatory bowel disease, pancreatitis, arthritis, and chronic anterior uveitis.

Anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin, a major constituent of Curcuma longa: a

review of preclinical and clinical research.
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Abstract
Curcuma longa (turmeric) has a long history of use in Ayurvedic medicine as a treatment for
inflammatory conditions. Turmeric constituents include the three curcuminoids: curcumin
(diferuloylmethane; the primary constituent and the one responsible for its vibrant yellow color),
demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin, as well as volatile oils (tumerone, atlantone,
and zingiberone), sugars, proteins, and resins. While numerous pharmacological activities,
including antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, have been attributed to curcumin, this article
focuses on curcumin's anti-inflammatory properties and its use for inflammatory conditions.
Curcumin's effect on cancer (from an anti-inflammatory perspective) will also be discussed;
however, an exhaustive review of its many anticancer mechanisms is outside the scope of this
article. Research has shown curcumin to be a highly pleiotropic molecule capable of interacting
with numerous molecular targets involved in inflammation. Based on early cell culture and
animal research, clinical trials indicate curcumin may have potential as a therapeutic agent in
diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, pancreatitis, arthritis, and chronic anterior
uveitis, as well as certain types of cancer. Because of curcumin's rapid plasma clearance and
conjugation, its therapeutic usefulness has been somewhat limited, leading researchers to
investigate the benefits of complexing curcumin with other substances to increase systemic
bioavailability. Numerous in-progress clinical trials should provide an even deeper
understanding of the mechanisms and therapeutic potential of curcumin.

2. Brain Protection
Curcumin, the compound mentioned above, is also shown to increase cognition in humans.
Cognition is the ability to know and understand through our senses. Cognitive disorders make
one’s ability to learn successfully from the environment difficult. Such disorders include
dementia and Alzheimer’s. These disorders are linked to lower levels of Brain-Derived
Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), and curcumin may be able to increase BDNF levels in the brain.
This could lead to a delay or even reversal in some cognitive disorders. (Source)

Curcumin Enhances Neurogenesis and Cognition 

Implications for Transcriptional Interactions Related to Growth and

Synaptic Plasticity
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Abstract
Background

Curcumin has been demonstrated to have many neuroprotective properties, including

improvement of cognition in humans and neurogenesis in animals, yet the mechanism of such
effects remains unclear.

Methodology

We assessed behavioural performance and hippocampal cell proliferation in aged rats after 6-
and 12-week curcumin-fortified diets. Curcumin enhanced non-spatial and spatial memory, as
well as dentate gyrate cell proliferation as compared to control diet rats. We also investigated
underlying mechanistic pathways that might link curcumin treatment to increased cognition and
neurogenesis via exon array analysis of cortical and hippocampal mRNA transcription. The
results revealed a transcriptional network interaction of genes involved in neurotransmission,
neuronal development, signal transduction, and metabolism in response to the curcumin
treatment.

Conclusions

The results suggest a neurogenesis- and cognition-enhancing potential of prolonged curcumin

treatment in aged rats, which may be due to its diverse effects on genes related to growth and
plasticity.

3. Can Reduce Risk of Cancer

Curcumin, which is found in turmeric, has shown the ability to fight more than one type of
cancer. This has led some researchers to look into the past to find an answer to our current
health problems.
“The activity of curcumin reported against leukemia and lymphoma, gastrointestinal cancers,
genitourinary cancers, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma,
lung cancer, melanoma, neurological cancers, and sarcoma reflects its ability to affect multiple
targets. Thus, an “old-age” disease such as cancer requires an “age-old” treatment.” 
Curcumin and cancer: an "old-age" disease with an "age-old" solution.

Abstract
Cancer is primarily a disease of old age, and that life style plays a major role in the
development of most cancers is now well recognized. While plant-based formulations have
been used to treat cancer for centuries, current treatments usually involve poisonous mustard
gas, chemotherapy, radiation, and targeted therapies. While traditional plant-derived medicines
are safe, what are the active principles in them and how do they mediate their effects against
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cancer is perhaps best illustrated by curcumin, a derivative of turmeric used for centuries to
treat a wide variety of inflammatory conditions. Curcumin is a diferuloylmethane derived from
the Indian spice, turmeric (popularly called "curry powder") that has been shown to interfere
with multiple cell signaling pathways, including cell cycle (cyclin D1 and cyclin E), apoptosis
(activation of caspases and down-regulation of antiapoptotic gene products), proliferation (HER-
2, EGFR, and AP-1), survival (PI3K/AKT pathway), invasion (MMP-9 and adhesion molecules),
angiogenesis (VEGF), metastasis (CXCR-4) and inflammation (NF-kappaB, TNF, IL-6, IL-1, COX-
2, and 5-LOX). The activity of curcumin reported against leukemia and lymphoma, gastrointestinal
cancers, genitourinary cancers, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, head and neck squamous cell
carcinoma, lung cancer, melanoma, neurological cancers, and sarcoma reflects its ability to affect
multiple targets. Thus an "old-age" disease such as cancer requires an "age-old" treatment.

4. Improved Digestion
Turmeric can be used to help treat a variety of digestive problems, including digestive tract
inflammation and reduction of gas and bloating. Just a little daily can help with almost any
condition. (However, those with gallbladder disease should not take turmeric due to over-
stimulation.)

5. Heart Health
Curcumin has also been shown to reduce bad cholesterol (LDL), remove plaque buildups in the
arteries, and prevent blood clotting. Researchers are still studying it for its heart health benefits. 
The protective role of curcumin in cardiovascular diseases.
Abstract
Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) is a polyphenol responsible for the yellow color of the curry spice
turmeric. It has been used in a variety of diseases in traditional medicine. Modern scientific
research has demonstrated its anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-carcinogenic, anti-
thrombotic, and cardiovascular protective effects. In this review, we focused mainly on the
effects of curcumin on the cardiovascular system. The antioxidant effects of curcumin have
been shown to attenuate adriamycin-induced cardiotoxicity and may prevent diabetic
cardiovascular complications. The anti-thrombotic, anti-proliferative, and anti-inflammatory
effects of curcumin and the effect of curcumin in decreasing the serum cholesterol level may
protect against the pathological changes occurring with atherosclerosis. The p300-HAT
inhibitory effects of curcumin have been demonstrated to ameliorate the development of cardiac
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hypertrophy and heart failure in animal models. The inflammatory effects of curcumin may have
the possibility of preventing atrial arrhythmias and the possible effect of curcumin for correcting
the Ca(2+) homeostasis may play a role in the prevention of some ventricular arrhythmias. The
preclinical studies from animal to clinical data in human are discussed.

6. Arthritis Help
Curcumin is known to possess anti-arthritic properties. A study was performed on a group of 45
people. Those who had curcumin in their daily regimen had the highest improvement in arthritis
symptoms.
A randomized, pilot study to assess the efficacy and safety of curcumin in patients with
active rheumatoid arthritis.
Abstract
Curcumin is known to possess potent antiinflammatory and antiarthritic properties. This pilot
clinical study evaluated the safety and effectiveness of curcumin alone, and in combination with
diclofenac sodium in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Forty-five patients diagnosed
with RA were randomized into three groups with patients receiving curcumin (500 mg) and
diclofenac sodium (50 mg) alone or their combination. The primary endpoints were reduction in
Disease Activity Score (DAS) 28. The secondary endpoints included American College of
Rheumatology (ACR) criteria for reduction in tenderness and swelling of joint scores. Patients in
all three treatment groups showed statistically significant changes in their DAS scores.
Interestingly, the curcumin group showed the highest percentage of improvement in overall
DAS and ACR scores (ACR 20, 50 and 70) and these scores were significantly better than the
patients in the diclofenac sodium group. More importantly, curcumin treatment was found to be
safe and did not relate with any adverse events. Our study provides the first evidence for the
safety and superiority of curcumin treatment in patients with active RA, and highlights the need
for future large-scale trials to validate these findings in patients with RA and other arthritic
conditions.