Turmeric Medicinal Uses Have Been Around Thousands of Years But What Can it Do For You Now?
The turmeric medicinal uses have been well-known in some cultures for thousands of years.
The plant is native to Asia and the sub-continent of India.
So, it is traditional medicine from those areas that mainly made use of the plant in the past.
But, things are changing, ever so slowly.
An article published in the Wall Street Journal in 2005 stated that research concerning the plant was "booming".
It's true that a number of studies were ongoing and still are concerning the benefits in cancer treatment and Alzheimer's disease.
But, when it comes to preventive medicine, studies are difficult to conduct.
Researchers believe that the active compound in the spice plant is curcumin.
Curcumin is also responsible for the bright orange-yellow color of the rhizomes.
It has been used as a food coloring and a dye, for years.
It is also used in cuisine to lend a golden color to boiled white rice, to spice up meat dumplings, make curry sauces and for many other Asian and Indian style dishes.
In the cosmetic world, the plant is used in sunscreen formulas and hair-removal aids to give a glow to the skin and to keep harmful bacteria away.
The turmeric medicinal uses vary as greatly as its usefulness in other areas.
It was used traditionally as an antiseptic for cuts and burns, as an aid to digestion and stomach problems, as an anti-inflammatory agent to relieve pain and swelling in joints, to reduce irritable bowel syndrome, and to treat infections of all kinds.
Modern research supports many of the traditional uses.
Curcumin does have anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal activity.
It is also an antioxidant.
Antioxidants act to prevent free radical damage caused by UV radiation from the sun.
Free radical damage plays a role in various kinds of cancer.
Clearly, investigating the turmeric medicinal uses in cancer treatment makes sense.
If it surprises you that a plant could be so beneficial to human health, you may not be aware that plants of all kinds were our first medicines.
Pharmaceutical companies have taken naturally occurring compounds found in plants,and extracted, isolated and concentrated them.
In many cases, they have learned how to synthesize them in order to gain patent rights.
One of the more popular cancer drugs on the market today was originally found in the bark of the Pacific Yew tree.
Researchers eventually learned how to grow it in the laboratory, which made foresters and environmentalists happy.
The turmeric medicinal uses have yet to become a part of mainstream medical practices in the US.
The University of Mississippi applied for a patent in the area of wound healing in 1993.
The patent was originally granted, but later canceled when the Indian government produced records concerning the use in wound healing dating back hundreds of years.
Other Indian plants that are medicinally active include black pepper and ginger.
From the Mediterranean, we get olive oil extracts.
From Asia, we get gingko biloba, green tea and many other medicinal plants.
Luckily, we live at a time when the turmeric medicinal uses are well known throughout the world, if only because of the internet.
The plant is native to Asia and the sub-continent of India.
So, it is traditional medicine from those areas that mainly made use of the plant in the past.
But, things are changing, ever so slowly.
An article published in the Wall Street Journal in 2005 stated that research concerning the plant was "booming".
It's true that a number of studies were ongoing and still are concerning the benefits in cancer treatment and Alzheimer's disease.
But, when it comes to preventive medicine, studies are difficult to conduct.
Researchers believe that the active compound in the spice plant is curcumin.
Curcumin is also responsible for the bright orange-yellow color of the rhizomes.
It has been used as a food coloring and a dye, for years.
It is also used in cuisine to lend a golden color to boiled white rice, to spice up meat dumplings, make curry sauces and for many other Asian and Indian style dishes.
In the cosmetic world, the plant is used in sunscreen formulas and hair-removal aids to give a glow to the skin and to keep harmful bacteria away.
The turmeric medicinal uses vary as greatly as its usefulness in other areas.
It was used traditionally as an antiseptic for cuts and burns, as an aid to digestion and stomach problems, as an anti-inflammatory agent to relieve pain and swelling in joints, to reduce irritable bowel syndrome, and to treat infections of all kinds.
Modern research supports many of the traditional uses.
Curcumin does have anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal activity.
It is also an antioxidant.
Antioxidants act to prevent free radical damage caused by UV radiation from the sun.
Free radical damage plays a role in various kinds of cancer.
Clearly, investigating the turmeric medicinal uses in cancer treatment makes sense.
If it surprises you that a plant could be so beneficial to human health, you may not be aware that plants of all kinds were our first medicines.
Pharmaceutical companies have taken naturally occurring compounds found in plants,and extracted, isolated and concentrated them.
In many cases, they have learned how to synthesize them in order to gain patent rights.
One of the more popular cancer drugs on the market today was originally found in the bark of the Pacific Yew tree.
Researchers eventually learned how to grow it in the laboratory, which made foresters and environmentalists happy.
The turmeric medicinal uses have yet to become a part of mainstream medical practices in the US.
The University of Mississippi applied for a patent in the area of wound healing in 1993.
The patent was originally granted, but later canceled when the Indian government produced records concerning the use in wound healing dating back hundreds of years.
Other Indian plants that are medicinally active include black pepper and ginger.
From the Mediterranean, we get olive oil extracts.
From Asia, we get gingko biloba, green tea and many other medicinal plants.
Luckily, we live at a time when the turmeric medicinal uses are well known throughout the world, if only because of the internet.
