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Why
should you eat turmeric? The natural super-spice known as turmeric keeps on
gaining popularity, and it most certainly deserves it!
The
active compound it contains, curcumin, is mostly to thank for the many health
benefits. This ingredient is also what gives turmeric its natural yellow color.
Many
studies have proven so far that turmeric may have as many as 600 potential
health benefits!
That’s
definitely a reason to add it to your daily diet, wouldn’t you say?
Still,
before you decide to do so, there are a certain number of things you need to
know about this spice.
Curcumin,
the active compound in turmeric is not easily absorbed.
Furthermore,
both animal and human studies have discovered that the concentrations of
turmeric in one’s urine, blood plasma and peripheral tissues is extremely low.
And
this doesn’t depend on the dosage. Still, there are various ways to boost
turmeric’s bioavailability.
Eat Turmeric Tip #1 -
Combine with Black Pepper
Pepper
is a powerful natural medicine on its own, but when combined with turmeric, it
takes on the role of an adjuvant.
Let
us explain how this works. When we consume turmeric, after about an hour there
is a small bump in our bloodstream levels.
It
is so little because our liver works hard to get rid of it. But what if one
could suppress this process simply by consuming ¼ of a teaspoon of black
pepper?
The
result is that one’s curcumin levels soar. And this with the same amount you
consumed as before, only the bioavailability is now up by 2000%!
So,
can you guess what other ingredient curry
has besides turmeric? That’s right – black pepper!
Eat Turmeric Tip #2 -
Combine with a Healthy Fat
Did
you know that this spice is
fat-soluble?
That
means that in order to boost its absorption rate, you need to combine it with a
healthy fat. Such fats include coconut oil, ghee and olive oil.
With
their help, one directly absorbs curcumin
into the blood stream by going through the lymphatic system and partially
avoiding one’s liver.
This
means it can remain in its free form and stay in your body for longer!
Eat Turmeric Tip #3 -
Boost The Bioavailability Using Heat
The
best way to take turmeric, according to some experts, is to integrate it into
your cooking on a daily basis. In other words, as much as you can.
Add
it to any dish you want or sprinkle it on a sauté. The moment you heat up some healthy oil and add turmeric to it, the bioavailability of this spice
skyrockets.
And
don’t worry about using too much, you can add just half a teaspoon or use it as
lavishly as you want!
To Sum Up
So, are
once again the three things you need to do to improve your body’s absorption of
turmeric:
·
Boost
its bioavailability by 2000% by combining it with black pepper. Freshly ground
pepper is best.
·
Combine
it with some healthy fat in order for it to bypass your liver.
·
Activate
its full potential by heating it up and using it in cooking!
·
That
way you’ll get to enjoy all of the health benefits because its effectiveness
will be much larger than when taken by itself.
One
more thing, you should know that the University of Maryland Medical Center’s
guidelines on daily dosage are the following:
·
Powdered,
dry root – 1 to 3 g a day
·
Cut
root – 1,5 to 3 g a day
That’s
all folks. Now go and add turmeric to whatever your next meal is, reaping the
best results you can get! Stay healthy!
