The Spice That Rejuvenates Your Body
Did you know that the average American consumes between 4,000 and 5,000 mg of sodium (salt) a day. That is close to double the recommended amount we should be consuming. But how can we eat less salt without sacrificing flavor? Use spices. One tasty way to cut down on salt in your cooking is to use more spices and herbs.
In India they have been using healthy spices for thousands of years with therapeutic results. Scientists are realizing that these spices can even boost your immune system. Let’s look at the “granddaddy” of them all and see why it’s so good for you.
Turmeric
Turmeric has been used by the Indians and Chinese for thousands of years. The ancient Polynesians were said to carry turmeric with them on their incredible journeys across the Pacific Ocean, that’s why Hawaiians still use the spice.
One of the main healthful ingredients in turmeric is curcumin, which gives turmeric its rich yellow color. Here are some proven benefits of curcumin:
• Promoting your immune system
• Helping you maintain your healthy digestive system
• Supporting your healthy bones, joints, and overall skeletal system
• Helping you maintain cholesterol levels that are already within the normal range*
• Promoting your healthy blood and liver functions
The organic ingredients found in turmeric have also shown to help promote healthy skin. Curcuminoids (found in turmeric and yellow curry) also support blood and liver functions, healthy joints, and overall well-being.
Turmeric has even been called “skin food” for many years.
Turmeric helps your skin in these ways,
• Cleanse your skin and maintain its elasticity
• Provide nourishment to your skin
• Balance the effects of skin flora
Last year, scientists did tests on turmeric to see what it’s “healing” properties really were. Using a high-tech instrument termed solid-state NMR spectroscopy, the scientists discovered that molecules of curcumin act like a biochemical disciplinarian. They insert themselves into cell membranes and make the membranes more stable and orderly in a way that increases cells’ resistance to infrection by disease-causing microbes.
Scientists are finding more and more health benefits for the “healing spice” every day.
Resources
BMJ-British Medical Journal (2010, March 24). Indian spice may delay liver damage and cirrhosis, study suggests.
American Chemical Society (2009, November 16). Curry as cure? Spicing up the effectiveness of a potential disease-fighter.
Turmeric extracts containing curcuminoids prevent experimental rheumatoid arthritis,” Funk JL, Oyarzo JN, et al, J Nat Prod, 2006; 69(3): 351-5. (Address: Arizona Center for Phytomedicine Research, Department of Medicine, Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, University of Arizona, Tuscon, AZ, 85724
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Have you eaten 5-7 servings of fruits and vegetables today? Even if you have there’s a good chance you didn’t get the nutrients you need from those fruits and vegetables.
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“I can do without them, so do I really need to take them?” I have heard this argument more than a dozen times before.
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