Cooking
curry, you will always need turmeric. But if you do not like the taste of this
Indian food, turmeric will be a spice that is not-so-popular to you - until lately when the health benefits of this
lowly peppery root from the Curcuma longa plant became the subject of many
articles. Indeed, the health benefits are plenty such that turmeric is
considered the healthiest food on Earth.
Turmeric
is a root crop and is smaller than ginger. Its skin is brown and the flesh is
orange with bitter flavor with mild fragrance resembling ginger. You might then
wonder if it belongs to the ginger family. You will find the powder form in the
spice shelves of supermarkets. But when the health properties became divulged,
you can find them in the vegetable section, marketed as organic fresh rhizome.
The
original and ancient health benefits were known to the Chinese and Indian
medicine; these are potent anti-inflammatory medicines. It is a powerful
anti-oxidant found to be a treatment to various conditions like jaundice,
flatulence, menstrual disorders, toothache, colic and many more. It is also
found to provide relief to rheumatoid arthritis and help to anyone suffering
from cystic fibrosis and Alzheimer’s.
Since
I am a cancer survivor (Stage 2–A breast cancer), my interest is on how this
helps cancer-afflicted patients like me in the prevention of recurrence or
metastasis of cancer cells. Since the turmeric, powder or root form, is used in
different foods eaten by cancer patients, it may not pose harmful side-effects
to them.
Research
on turmeric and cancer disclosed some information, not really scientifically proven.
The anti-oxidant in the Curcumin content of turmeric can protect the good cells
in the body from free radicals. Some epidemiological experiments showed the
link between frequent ingestion of turmeric in any form and reduced risk to
breast, prostate, colon and lung cancer. Turmeric primarily prevents formation
of tumors. In another study made by the University of Texas on mice, it was
shown that Curcumin can prevent the spread of breast cancer, if already
existing, to the lungs. And there were other studies on mice, as published in
Biochemical Pharmacology as early as 2005 that showed the same effect. The benefit from turmeric is not only for
breast cancer patients. This also reduces risk to childhood leukemia, colon and
prostate cancer.
For
anyone who wants to consume turmeric, it would be easy. Try to love Indian
foods where turmeric is a basic ingredient. But even if you don’t enjoy such
foods, turmeric is good to use in different recipes as the taste blends well
with rice, salads and vegetables. Furthermore, turmeric is loaded with other
nutrients like iron, manganese, Vitamin B6, potassium, fiber and some amino
acids. Turmeric, incidentally has been formulated as supplement. But I would still recommend the use of the natural powder, next to fresh organic rhizome.
