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In Sanskrit turmeric is referred to as “Haridra”(“The Yellow One”), “Gauri” (“The One Whose Face is Light and Shining”),“Kanchani” (“Golden Goddess”) , and Aushadhi (“Herb”). India is the largest producer of turmeric in the world (93.7% of the total world production and is cultivated in 1,50000 hectares. It belongs to the genus Curcuma L. (Zingiberaceae), same as the family of ginger. Turmeric is acquired from Curcuma long L., a tuberous herbaceous perennial plant with yellow flowers and wide leaves and grows in tropical climate.
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Turmeric provides solutions for inflammation, high cholesterol, liver health, rheumatism, fibrosis, viruses, diabetes, and even cancer. Turmeric has been widely used for medical treatments of various diseases for at least 2500 years in Asian countries and in Ayurveda and traditional Chinese medicine.
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The turmeric rhizome is 70% carbohydrates, 7% protein, 4% minerals, and at least 4% essential oils. It also has vitamins, other alkaloids, and is about 1% resin. The active ingredient in turmeric is called “curcumin”, although in its raw state turmeric only contains 2-5% curcumin. Curcumin is the substance that is responsible for the biological activity of turmeric. The main component of the turmeric root is a volatile oil, containing turmerone, and there are other coloring agents called curcuminoids in turmeric.
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Curcumin - The active ingredient of turmeric
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The importance of turmeric in medical treatment primarily stems from orange-yellow colored curcumin, the most active component. Curcumin was defined as the “substance that gives the yellow color in turmeric” by Vogel and Pelletier about 200 years ago.
Curcumin is helpful in the prevention and cure of following diseases: Diabetes mellitus, cancer, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, bowel diseases, neurodegenerative disorders, allergy and asthma. According to Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reports, adequate daily intake (ADI) value of curcumin is 0–3 mg/kg.
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Curcumin is a lipophilic polyphenol substance (Jurenka, 2009), which constitutes the 2–5% of turmeric powder. The chemical structure of this substance shows antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiangiogenic, antimutagenic, and antiplatelet aggregation properties. Due to its insufficient absorption by the body, high metabolism speed, and high elimination from the body, curcumin has a limited bioavailability in the body.
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Traditional uses of turmeric
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Turmeric is a plant that has a very long history of medicinal use yet in Southeast Asia, turmeric is used not only as a principal spice but also as a component in religious ceremonies. Indians consider turmeric as auspicious and its golden colour was believed to come from the sun. Its energy is said to protect the one who wears it and in some communities a dried turmeric rhizome is worn as a talisman to ward off evil. In marraige ceremonies, the bride and groom are bathed with turmeric and in a village in Maharashtra to this day, there is an entire festival called the Haldi festival.
As a dye, turmeric is used as a food colouring and food additive in modern cuisine and the turmeric latte that has become popular these days comes from the ancient recipe of turmeric milk. Clothes dyed in turmeric are being experimented with to see if they retain the anti microbial properties of the wonder herb.
Read about the Vittal Bardev Haldi festival in PattanKodoli: Srivatsan Sankaran
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Turmeric and its medicinal applications
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Turmeric is highly beneficial for the proper functioning of brain, heart, kidney, intestine, stomach and lungs
Source: youtube.com
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- Reduces the risk of Cancer- Combating chronic inflammation, a known contributing factor to the development of cancer, turmeric promotes the body’s ability to fight the spread of cancerous cells.
- Provides Natural anti-inflammatory agents-Chemical compounds in turmeric, such as curcumin, combine with vitamins and minerals that support the body’s natural processes of fighting inflammation. Potent and able to provide relief, turmeric root or its extract can be used topically or orally to fight inflammation.
- Improves Immunity-Turmeric provides the body with antioxidants; anti-inflammatory properties; and antiviral, antibacterial, and antimicrobial compounds that improves the digestive system, ultimately improving the immune system.
- Balances hormonal levels-Turmeric provides ample nutritional support to the hormonal system of the body.The body metabolism as well as factors like sleep and mood can all be attributed to hormonal interaction.
- Good for hair and skin
- Maintains the health of the digestive system
- Aids in fat loss
- Liver cleanser-The function of the liver is to flush out toxins from the body. Turmeric helps in the proper functioning of the liver.
- Manages arthritis pain- Turmeric helps in reducing the pain due to arthritis.
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We are happy to begin a series of articles on Healing with Nature written by Dr Madhuri Sheth. Dr Sheth has offered lifetime care to three severely ill relatives , watching illnesses such as Epilepsy, Schizophrenia and Cancer, closely. She has a passion and a deep understanding of the human body and self care. Dr Sheth has a PhD in Economics and has taught Organisational Behaviour well into her seventies. Presently she is 84 and lives a full and active life.
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What is pain? Although Google will have a lot to tell you from ongoing and past research on the subject, everyone does know what pain is, because everyone will have experienced it sometime or another. Pain is a sensation, not something concrete.. It is challenging to define it precisely.
Long ago I read a quote in a book by Mahatma Gandhi. It said: “Love is a painful pleasure and pleasurable pain”. Did you ever imagine love being associated with pain? Just think of the number of songs in the languages you know talking about love and pain together.
Pain is not simply a physical discomfort. It has many associated phenomena like feeling uneasy or mental disturbance . Where can we locate love and pain together in our body system? Both are in the mind. Or, some may say : love is in the heart and pain is in the mind.
In our constant interaction with the environment, all our senses provide and collect inputs for the growth of both, our body and mind. The mind reacts to these inputs in terms of “like” and “dislike”, and in the process creates unconscious and repetitive choices for or against.. Unfortunately, since a physical organ for ‘mind’ has not yet been discovered, we continue to use it interchangeably with the ‘brain.’ Medical diagnoses around pain, focuses on the brain and does not always recognize the mind and its psychology.
At this stage, most medical and scientific research says that pain is a result of complex interactions between specialized nerves, the spinal cord and the brain. These result into bodily dis-ease with an associate called pain. It is a warning signal for survival, indicating that there may be some danger that needs to be taken care of. How do we respond to this signal?
Philosophical minds ask: Does pain really exist? Knowledge informs that dis-ease/ injury happens to the body yet pain is experienced in the mind. I came across a news item which said that a guitarist was operated upon without anesthesia; he had requested that he be allowed to play his guitar during the operation! There are many stories about freedom fighters undergoing ruthless tortures, yet surviving, because they would withdraw their minds from the pain they experienced during the torture.
In my experience, a lot of pains occurring in different parts of my body may simply be different gases trying to adjust with each other, enabling all the limbs in the body to function as a coordinated whole. This coordination takes time, which may be from a few seconds to a year. Anxiety about the pain often becomes an interference in the coordination/healing process. So, monitoring the body with patience is one of the first coping mechanism for pain.
Contact the author: [email protected]
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