When you’re on a raw food diet, you’ve made the right choice to put your health first. We know it’s not always easy to give up the Standard American Diet that you were raised on, but it is so worth it to help your body live the best life it can. It may seem like the raw food diet could be rather bland, but with all the different spices available, that could not be further from the truth. One nutritional powerhouse that you can add to a variety of raw foods is turmeric. Turmeric may even be the most effective spice for nutrition in existence and there are plenty of benefits of turmeric that should interest anyone who has taken a step toward a healthier lifestyle.
Benefits of Turmeric and Curcumin
- Turmeric has powerful medicinal properties. In India, this spice is often used in curry and other foods because it is well known to have medicinal properties. Turmeric contains compounds called curcumin, which has anti-inflammatory effects and antioxidants, both of which are good for your health. To get the benefits of this, it’s recommended to consume in supplement form, though it can also be added to smoothies, salads, and other prepared dishes. Keep in mind it is best absorbed with black pepper, so if you’re putting it in your smoothie, add some black pepper to help with absorption.
- It’s an anti-inflammatory. Inflammation can occur in our bodies for many reasons, be it an illness or injury or even exposure to certain elements. In small, acute instances, inflammation is beneficial, but in chronic cases, it can cause serious illness and disease, such as heart disease, potential cancer, and even Alzheimer’s. Adding a supplement that can fight is very important to keep yourself healthy. Curcumin is a strong anti-inflammatory that fights inflammation at a molecular level. This makes it a perfect addition to your meals.
- Linked to improving brain function. Turmeric itself won’t improve your brain function, but it can increase brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a type of growth hormone in your brain. This is beneficial in helping with brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, and even depression, and by improving this you can delay age-related brain function decreases.
- May lower the risk of heart disease. That’s right, while several things contribute to heart disease and it is certainly a complicated disease, there is evidence that curcumin can be as effective as exercise in improving endothelial dysfunction.
- Can help prevent and possibly treat cancer. This is a huge thing to be noted, as it’s not a very common statement to make about anything. However, there is evidence that it may prevent cancer from occurring, to begin with, as well as studies showing it can contribute to the death of cancerous cells, and even reduce metastasis of cancer cells, thus not allowing it to grow and spread. While it is not used in cancer treatments yet, it is certainly recommended that people add some turmeric to their diets. It won’t hurt to add it in, and the potential benefits are wide.
