Turmeric (Curcuma longa ) is a rhizomatous herbaceous plant in the family Zingiberaceae (along with ginger, cardamom, and galangal), and is native to the region of tropical south and southwest Asia. From its powdered rhizomes, the homonymous spice is extracted:turmeric. Today, we invite you to discover its main known benefits, as well as the current progress of research in this field.
What is turmeric? This yellow root is also known as “magic root », « spice of life », Indian saffron, Malabar tiger nut, talmerital or even culcuma.
Turmeric has an important place in the cuisines of Iran, Malaysia, India, China, Polynesia and Thailand, is often used as a spice and has an effect on the nature, color and taste of food. Turmeric has also been used for millennia in Ayurvedic medicine for its healing properties (especially in India and China) for diseases such as dermatological diseases, infections, stress and also depression. Nowadays, India is the largest producing country (in the world) of turmeric and consumes about 80% of the world harvest.
This is different in Europe, where turmeric is mainly known and consumed in its spice form.
What is the origin of turmeric? Although it is difficult to determine a precise date as to the very first use of turmeric, there are known traces of its presence in the writings of Sanskrit literature (note that Sanskrit is the language of Hindu and Buddhist religious texts ), dating back to more than 2000 years before our era.
Turmeric contains an essential oil (6%) and plant substances (more precisely the lipophilic polyphenol, orange-yellow in color), called curcuminoids (5%), the most important of which is curcumin. By the way, the health effects of turmeric are usually centered around curcumin.
Curcumin is known to have many positive health effects including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer effects and through these effects may also have an important role in the prevention and treatment of various diseases (including cancer, to autoimmune, neurological, cardiovascular and diabetic diseases).
Indeed, turmeric has many benefits, here are some a few:
Turmeric is a strong antioxidant (the TAC index of turmeric is 159,277 μmol/100 g). These effects suggest a protective effect against diseases related to oxidative stress (i.e. cardiovascular diseases and Alzheimer's disease, for example).
Namely, antioxidants are compounds that protect the body's cells from damage caused by free radicals. The latter are very reactive molecules that would be involved in the development of cardiovascular diseases, certain cancers and other diseases related to aging.
Some studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of turmeric in preventing the oxidation of LDL-cholesterol (the "bad" cholesterol:its increase is linked to an increased risk of development or worsening of cardiovascular disease) , as well as to reduce total cholesterol (the "good" cholesterol:high-density lipoproteins, called HDL, transport cholesterol from the arteries to the liver, so that it is then eliminated), in animals.
According to other studies, turmeric may also prevent the onset of atherosclerosis (as well as other risk factors for cardiovascular disease). However, more studies in humans are needed to confirm this suggestion.
Turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties and generates a beneficial action on the immune system:these properties could participate in the prevention of cancer.
In this regard, you should know that turmeric occupies an important place in the diet in India. Its populations consume up to 2 grams per day. Although at present, there is still a lack of evidence and specific studies on this subject, it would seem that there is a link between high consumption of turmeric and a low amount of certain cancers in India (as well as in other Asian countries where turmeric is heavily consumed).
Turmeric is used to treat various gastrointestinal disorders:inflammation, stomach ulcers, loss of appetite, bloating, stomach aches, etc.
In addition, it has been shown by scientific studies that turmeric helps inhibit the secretion of gastric acid, which has the effect of reducing the formation of ulcers in the stomach.
The active principles of turmeric seem to have a particularly beneficial effect on the liver:they stimulate liver function (hepatoprotective effect:that is to say, it stimulates all the actions that the liver performs, i.e. the production and energy storage, bile production and detoxification which renders toxic products absorbed by the intestines harmless) and protects liver cells from toxic substances.
It should also be noted that turmeric has antimicrobial properties against a wide range of bacteria, parasites and pathogenic fungi.
An excellent source of iron: Each body cell contains iron. In addition, this mineral is essential for the transport of oxygen and the formation of red blood cells in the blood. Because of this, iron plays an important role in the production of new cells, hormones and neurotransmitters.
A source of manganese: manganese acts as a cofactor for several enzymes that facilitate a dozen distinct metabolic processes. It also participates in the prevention of damage caused by free radicals. Namely that a free radical is a chemical species (atom or molecule) which has a free electron, that is to say unpaired. This characteristic makes it unstable and gives it great reactivity with respect to surrounding molecules.
In general, the consumption of turmeric does not cause adverse effects. However, its consumption in the form of a food supplement is contraindicated in certain cases, for example during pregnancy, or in the event of a stomach ulcer.
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Precautions should be taken when taking certain blood medications: indeed, some compounds contained in turmeric have an antiplatelet effect. Consuming large amounts of turmeric, along with taking blood medication (such as heparin, coumadin or aspirin), may have an additional anticoagulant effect and increase the risk of bleeding. It is therefore still very important to contact your doctor or a health care professional and learn about the various possible interactions between medications and certain spices, including turmeric.
At present, the majority of studies carried out on turmeric (or more precisely curcumin; a compound of the curcuminoid family) and its various properties, have mainly been carried out in vitro and/or on animals. Additionally, curcumin is a low bioavailability substance (i.e. bioavailability is the proportion of a substance that reaches the bloodstream in unchanged form), meaning it has a low ability to be absorbed and persist. in the organism. Because of this, the benefits of turmeric have not all been studied in humans.
Unfortunately, there are still too few human studies.
