What Is Turmeric?
by Carly Neubert, BA, NC on October 13, 2014
Have you ever been to an Indian restaurant and noticed that most of the food has a bright yellow hue? The color is so bright that you might think the cook has soaked everything in mustard. But when you taste the dish, you know that this isn't mustard, this is something else very magical. Turmeric root has been traditionally used in Indian foods for thousands of years. I believe that ancient cultures had a lot more practical wisdom than we realize, and using turmeric is great evidence for this.
Some people use the words turmeric and curcumin interchangeably. They are not the same thing. Turmeric root is the traditional Indian spice we cook with. Curcumin is the natural phenol found in turmeric that causes that bright golden color. Curcumin is an extract from turmeric root that we use medicinally in supplement form.
Why take curcumin?
Curcumin, the extract of turmeric root has long been touted as a natural anti-inflammatory. There is a growing list of studies showing the benefit of curcumin for various ailments including Rheumatoid Arthritis, cancer (melanoma, colorectal and digestive tract cancers), arthritis, and Alzheimers' disease.
Most recently, in 2013, a new study made headlines. Curcumin was studied and proven effective for treating depression. Here is the interesting part, the study patients who took curcumin improved just as much as the study patients who took Prozac. The patients who took the Prozac were at risk for its side effects which include, but are not limited to, insomnia, loss of appetite, violence, and suicide. The patients who took curcumin had no risk of dangerous side effects.
For more on how curcumin helps with depression read Dr. Kelly Brogan's article, "Move Over Prozac: How Turmeric Helps with Depression". For depression I recommend starting with 3000mg and working up to 8000mg of Terry Naturally Curamin. By now, you are probably thinking that you should add curcumin to your healthy lifestyle. So--go for it!
What to take?
We know that all supplements are not created equally. Absorption is key to being able to fully utilize the supplements we take. That is why BCM-95 has the best reputation on the market. This curcumin is combined with natural turmeric oil to make it more absorbable. If you are going to spend the money and time to take curcumin, you might as well take the good stuff. Terry Naturally Curamed is the good stuff; containing 500mg BCM-95 curcuminoids per capsule.
See the chart below for data on why BCM-95 has the best absorption rate on the market.
For additional recipes, biohacking tips and lifestyle hacks -- check out my other blog on my coaching site www.cleancoachcarly.com! I post weekly about nutrition and lifestyle topics, all backed by science. Happy Reading!
