Turmeric helps you be healthy. Is it a superfood?
They are called this way, because of the great importance they have for our body, for their properties and the benefits they offer us.
These are not new foods, in fact many of them are ancient. There are many. Fortunately, we echo wise and ancient cultures that had already discovered these valuable and powerful sources of nutrients such as plants, fruits, vegetables, spices or cereals. All of them have been part of their cuisine and traditional medicine, based on the products that nature gives us.
Research has been carried out on many of these superfoods to verify and test their properties, to know their benefits for our body both in their consumption and prevention of diseases and relief and improvement of them. At the bottom of the page we leave you links where you can expand the information.
Today we start with a star product. You will be surprised how it will benefit your health and how little it costs to introduce it into your diet.
Turmeric is considered a superfood. Today we tell you the importance of regularly introducing turmeric into our diet. A Superfood? We consider its regular consumption essential for our body. We inform you why.
Turmeric
In the eastern area, in China, Japan and India, several millennia ago they already used it both in their cuisine and in their traditional medicine.
It is a perennial plant and native to southeast Asia. Its green leaves bloom and have a height of 60 cm to 1.50 m. It grows horizontally and underground in the form of rhizomes, from which roots and shoots emerge. Turmeric is from the ginger family and the rhizomes are what we consume as a spice and colorant.
Its name comes from kurkum which means saffron in Arabic. The spice is also known as Indian Gold, for its brilliant golden hue. In the Eastern world, turmeric is the main colorant in the curry mixture. It is one of the most researched and most recommended medicinal plants for almost all types of ailments.
Medicinal properties of Turmeric
- Protects the liver: it has been shown that both curcumin such as eugenol and other compounds (contained in turmeric), have the ability to act as a bile tonic and protect the liver. It is considered a digestive plant and natural antacid. According to traditional Chinese medicine, it decongests the liver, which in turn controls the tendons and causes the flexibility of the ligaments to increase. It has numerous compounds that protect the liver. It is effective in reducing cholesterol.
- Carminative: is a spice that promotes digestion (prevents gases). Spices like turmeric are very important in hot countries to help digest food and the use of these spices is an example of the popular wisdom of the people.
- Antioxidants: the bright color that this spice has announces its active ingredients with its pigments or vegetable dyes. It is a powerful antioxidant and anti-aging, with which we can eliminate free radicals in our body, prevent diseases and premature aging in our skin.
- Anti-inflammatory properties. Curcumin is a compound with anti-inflammatory properties for CTS, menstrual pain (emmenagogue: used to regulate menstrual cycles), obesity (regulates and controls weight loss along with a healthy diet)
- Natural antibiotic: it has bactericidal and fungicidal components that have been shown to be effective even when administering small amounts of extract.
- Arthritis: in people with rheumatoid arthritis, it improves flexibility and reduces joint inflammation.
- Reduces blood sugar levels.
- Helps eliminate toxins and is an excellent diuretic.
- Bronchitis: relieves cough and eliminates mucus from the airways.
- It is an antidepressant: the latest research1 on curcumin and prozac carried out With a group of 60 patients diagnosed with depression, he demonstrated that curcumin in its corresponding doses and as a supplement prescribed by a medical professional, was an effective method in depressive treatments.
- It is of great help to the brain, increasing memory retention and clarity and protecting its cells against aging.
- Alzheimer : its properties help prevent neurodegenerative diseases (Parkinson's and Alzheimer's). Recent studies have proven that populations that consume abundant amounts of turmeric in their diet have a lower rate of people with neurodegenerative diseases.
- Turmeric as an adjuvant in cancer treatment: a great support in the natural treatment of cancer, to improve therapy (always consulting with the doctor for the appropriate doses). The research carried out on this medicinal plant gives extraordinary results. We found more than 10 anti-tumor properties in turmeric rhizome, curcumin, curcuminoids, beta-carotenes, curcumenol, limonene, curdione and turmenone are the most important.
- The active ingredients have been shown to have very effective benefits anti-cancer , always acting from prevention and in cases of suffering from disease relieve and reduce ailments as much as possible.
- They also call it the cancer blocker, currently many researchers claim that it is the most anti-cancer food by discovering that curcumin inhibits the growth of tumor cells. We collect a few words from the blog of Odile Fernández 2
1. “…stops the progression of metastases, induces autolysis of tumor cells (the suicide of cancer cells).”
2. “It reduces peritumoral inflammation.It inhibits the NF-kappaB factor, which is what protects tumor cells against the mechanisms of our immune system to eliminate them…”
It is important to emphasize that it is an excellent prevention and help for the disease, recommending that we introduce it as another important food to a healthy diet, physical exercise and the appropriate medical circumstances for each patient. Turmeric alone does not work miracles, like any another nutritional supplement.
Side effects of Turmeric
Only when the recommended doses are exceeded. Treatments with turmeric to expel stones are contraindicated in people with gallstones.
- Gallbladder problems: Turmeric can worsen gallbladder problems. Do not use if you have colic or bile duct obstruction.
- Contact dermatitis: rhizome powder can cause reactions in contact with the skin.
- Allergy: some people may be allergic to turmeric rhizome powder.
- Pregnancy: Taking turmeric supplements during pregnancy is not recommended, although there is not enough information.
Therapeutic dose
Turmeric can be taken as a supplement (extract). In this case, it is recommended not to exceed 1.2 g of curcumin per day of the active ingredient.
It is advisable not to use it as a skin mask, due to its coloring effect it can leave a yellowish color on the skin for a few days.
How to take it
The best way to consume it according to experts is through food, this way we obtain all its properties and active ingredients, introducing it into our diet regularly and in moderation.
We give you some tricks
- Maximum 3 teaspoons of ground turmeric/day per person.
- Always add the spice in the last minutes of cooking the dish (to avoid losing its properties)
- To enhance its effects it should ALWAYS be accompanied with a little black pepper.
The best form is in powder form, as a spice, in cooking, infusion or as a supplement.
FLAVOR: in very low doses it has practically no flavor, for this reason its use as a colorant is ideal to highlight recipes with its bright golden tone. With larger doses its flavor is somewhat spicy, slightly bitter, giving a soft and warm touch to dishes.
Where to buy it
We recommend that if it is in powder form, buy it packaged to preserve its properties and be able to verify the content on its label.
- It is always better to buy it packaged so we can read its label, check its origin and ensure its quality.
- Ground in bulk, it is very important if we do not know well what authentic turmeric looks like, to read the labels on the containers where the spices are found or ask the seller to make sure that it is not another very typical colorant and similar due to the color called tatrazine (which we do not recommend because it is chemical and not beneficial for our health).
- You can find it in the Markets in the condiments and spices area.
- Eco specialized stores, (many of them online) and in Asian establishments.
In the kitchen
- Important tricks: so that it does not lose its properties, we will incorporate it at the end of our stews, rice dishes or other recipes, at the last moment of cooking when turning off the heat, add turmeric. If we do it at the beginning it would lose 80% of its active ingredients.
- Natural coloring (1/4 teaspoon per ½ liter of water or broth) in rice and cooked dishes.
- Enriches: to rice or couscous, quinoa amaranth, to give flavor to pasta, to boiled cereal, with oil and salt or in stir-fries, to mashed vegetables, to various soups, to tortillas , vegetable burgers, etc.
- Combined with seitan, tofu or tempeh.
- Battered and fried: by adding turmeric to flour, tempura or coating foods in curry powder, you can prepare delicious recipes. To give a spicy touch, combine with cayenne pepper. We recommend fried/battered foods be in small doses in your diet due to the high fat content.
- Natural butter: it is a common colorant to obtain a butter with more properties. Herbal butter can be prepared with turmeric and fresh crushed leaves of aromatic herbs, ideal for breakfast.
- Seasoning perfect for meats and fish.
- Teas and infusions: combines well with cloves, cinnamon and star anise (to infuse it, we will use fresh, grated turmeric)
- Fresh turmeric: in native countries they consume it fresh by adding it to soups and stews. It has a mild flavor that combines with all foods.
