The Power of Turmeric Curcumin: Understanding Its Impact on Your Body

Turmeric Curcumin, the golden powder the queen of the spices, is a magnificent compound. Brightly lit with vibrant shades of yellow, it is a staple ingredient in Asian cuisine. Turmeric is also a hailing queen of traditional Ayurvedic and Chinese medicines, not just in the kitchen. From a common cold to arthritis, the spice holds power to treat a variety of ailments and ensure better health.

The spectacular applications of turmeric for its medicinal value date back to several centuries. Over 10,000 studies have been conducted to understand the relevance and reason behind these fantastic benefits by scientists. The conclusions help us know this miracle spice in detail and how we can leverage its true potential. 

They indicate that the presence of curcumin, a marvelous compound with immense health benefits, is the reason behind these wonderful effects. Today, the use of turmeric supplements by individuals across the globe, especially to soak in the worthwhile benefits of curcumin, is rapidly growing precisely due to their medicinal value. 

The Marvelous Benefits Of The Golden Herb

Anti-Inflammatory 

One of turmeric's most significant and influential benefits is its anti-inflammatory properties. Millions of adults across the globe suffer from chronic inflammatory conditions such as arthritis. From cartilage problems to Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, a variety of underlying reasons trigger painful and uncomfortable swelling in the joints that can have an intense effect on patients' lifestyle and mental health. 

Studies show that turmeric curcumin supplements can ensure relief for arthritis patients. Curcumin from the spice alleviates tissue degeneration and suppresses the elimination of healthy cells. It also reduces swelling and pain symptoms in the region and supports healthy recovery.
 

Disease Management 

Turmeric curcumin shows powerful benefits in the treatment and management of various chronic diseases. A combination of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties makes this herb a multipurpose supplement that can strengthen the immune system and ensure overall wellness.
 

Blood Pressure

Hypertension is one of the most common ailments across the globe. The condition is intricately routed to cause a variety of severe health hazards, including stroke and heart attacks. Studies show that curcumin can help balance blood pressure levels by relaxing the blood vessels. It regulates the receptors that cause constriction of the vessels, thus ensuring healthy blood flow. 

Diabetes

Over 10.5% of the overall population of the US suffers from diabetes. Research shows that regular use of curcumin can help stabilize blood sugar levels. The compound can lower blood sugar levels by enhancing the beta cells that improve insulin secretion.

Further, curcumin also reduces the risk of developing diabetes by treating the causes such as Fatty Liver, where fat tissues build up inside the liver. 

Cholesterol

LDL or the bad cholesterol deposit in the body can lead to plaque that can restrict blood flow in the vessels and increase the risk of heart failure. In contrast, HDL or good cholesterol fights against these ill effects of LDL to protect the arteries. Curcumin enables a healthy balance of these two cholesterol components to ensure a healthy body.  
 

What To Look For In Your Turmeric Supplements?

Including turmeric curcumin supplements in your everyday lifestyle can be one of the safest and natural ways of enjoying these incredible benefits. But choosing a supplement can be quite a tedious process today. Many brands have come up with various formulations and combinations, claiming excellent benefits. But only a few can deliver the right kind of benefits you might be looking for. So here are a few factors that you can use to evaluate the different products available in the market and narrow down the best choices for your use. 

Ingredients 

One of the most basic requirements for any high-quality supplement is its ingredients. As more people are moving towards natural supplements to ensure safety and efficacy, you must take a long look at the ingredients label and analyze every component and its importance in the product. 

Why is this step necessary? Many supplements that claim to contain natural ingredients typically carry only a small concentration of them compared to the overall weight. The rest is filled with sweeteners, preservatives, artificial flavors, colors, chemicals, or other fillers proper to create a competent profile.  But none of these ingredients can bring about any benefits to your overall health. Regular introduction of these ingredients could induce severe implications for your health in the long run. So, if you have only 1-2% turmeric extracts in your box, you might as well not use it.

Hence, inspect every element in the list. Choose products that predominantly use natural extracts to create the supplement for the best benefits. Also, understand the purpose of each ingredient in the list to make sure there are no risks of side effects or allergies. Also, check the ingredients used for creating vegan or vegetarian capsules or supplements to ensure they comply with your diet preference. 

Origin

The next most critical aspect to evaluating your supplement is the origin of Turmeric. Over the years, several studies indicate that turmeric supplements tend to carry concentrations of harmful chemicals, such as pesticides, solvents, and lead. While these compounds may not seem insignificant concentrations in a bottle, their cumulative effect from regular use can have dangerous effects. Lead could get stored within your body and increase the risk of developing chronic ailments.

Choose the natural way and prefer turmeric curcumin supplements originating from organic cultivation practices. This step helps eliminate the risk of exposure to harmful chemical deposits. Locally sourced, organic ingredients, in general, can enhance the potency and safety of your supplement. Also, understand the different types of extraction methods used in the supplement.

Choose products that prefer chemical-free procedures. Instead of alcohol-infused extraction methods, the use of vegetable glycerin offers better benefits in terms of safety and flavors. Look for this in your supplements.  Remember, ensuring the quality of turmeric used in the supplement can make a lot of difference to the application.  

Profile 

After ensuring the quality of ingredients, it is time to analyze how effective your supplement is. And the formula of your supplement is the way to determine this. Research shows that curcumin as a single compound, although excellent for the body, is not enough to deliver the true power of the turmeric herb in a supplement. This is because, in nature, turmeric curcumin carries a variety of other spectacular components like curcuminoids and natural oils. These chemicals work in unison to bring about the many wonderful health benefits that they are known for. 

Supplements that only nurture a specific chemical from these herbs and spices can never match the efficacy of the natural form. Therefore, look out for supplements that encompass the full spectrum of chemicals and compounds from turmeric. The presence of curcuminoids, such as bisdemethoxycurcumin and demethoxycurcumin, can offer far better benefits compared to isolated curcumin supplements. 
 

Bioavailability

What is bioavailability? Our body does not utilize 100 percent of anything that we consume. Each compound or nutrient is only absorbed in a certain percentage. For example, even if your turmeric supplement carries 95% curcumin extracts, that does not necessarily mean that your body will relish the benefits of its complete concentration. 

Curcumin absorption levels in the body have long been debated regarding turmeric supplements and their efficacy. Being a compound with low bioavailability, the absolute percentage of curcumin absorbed by the bloodstream is significantly low. It means that very little of this wonder chemical reaches the target tissues. Also, the compound only remains there for a short duration before exiting the body, thus significantly reducing healing efficiency. 

Through research, scientists have established some simple ways to enhance the bioavailability of curcumin. One such method is to utilize these supplements with a hint of fat such as olive oils, meat, or coconut oil. The lipophilic properties of the compound will enable it to attach to the fat molecule, thus increasing the absorption in the body. You can look for enhancing components in your supplement formulations to ensure the best benefits. 

Alternatively, you can consume the supplements with these ingredients for elevated benefits. Another powerful natural bioenhancer for curcumin is black pepper. It is popularly referred to as the 1st generation enhancer that promises the best value from turmeric curcumin supplements. 
 

Piperine (Black Pepper) And Curcumin

Piperine is a compound derived from black pepper extracts. The intense aromatic property of this spice comes from the presence of this extraordinary chemical. In traditional ayurvedic medicine, pepper was common in medications and concoctions containing turmeric. The primary reason behind this is that piperine acts as a natural bioavailability enhancer for curcumin. 

Piperine alleviates the speed of hepatic and intestinal glucuronidation. The chemical influences the natural timelines for eliminating different substances present in the liver and gut. This property can be favorable for the body as it can now absorb more quantities of curcumin from the supplement.

Supplements that bring together the goodness of black pepper and turmeric can thus be an excellent choice for your use. You can look for the terms piperine, black pepper extracts, or BioPerine in the label to understand the presence of this wonderful compound in your turmeric supplement product.

Apart from natural enhancers, specific scientific formulations to improve bioavailability are available today. You can explore the different methods these products use to enhance curcumin absorption in the body. 
 

Certifications 

Certifications are yet another critical factor that directly reflects on the quality of turmeric supplements. Brands that carry third-party lab-test certificates of their products are typically transparent about their formulations and quality. They tend to follow proper practices in creating incredible supplements that are both safe and efficient. Given these certifications are pretty expensive and intense, products that carry them are some of the best in the market. 

Third-party lab tests can authenticate several claims made by a product. Starting from the exact concentration levels of each ingredient, you can also know the presence of harmful chemical traces and the safety of use based on clinical trials. Remember, you must buy supplements that have gone through rigorous clinical trials. A combination of in-house and third-party testing significantly elevates the possibility of achieving good results. 
 

Form

Turmeric curcumin supplements are available in various forms, including capsules, powder, tinctures. The supplement you choose can also determine its usage for multiple applications. 

For example, supplements prepared from powdered turmeric roots in capsules or powder are commercially available. The substance in these products is pretty much the same yellow ingredient used in the kitchen to add flavors to curries. While this can help maintain good health and offer simple benefits like better digestion and relief from cold or cough, it is not the best choice for treating specific ailments like chronic inflammation.

It is critical to ensure the supplement has a spectrum of complementary chemicals, as discussed before, for the best benefits. You can look for capsules or bulk powder with these properties, both of which can provide exceptional benefits. While capsules are naturally easy to dose every day and quite subtle to consume, the powder can be mixed with coconut oil, black pepper, and water to create a golden paste brimming with turmeric goodness. The taste may not necessarily be delicious, but it is not off-putting either. 

Compared to these powders and capsules, a liquid mixture containing turmeric extracts tends to be far superior in absorption. There are two common reasons behind this. While powder and capsules have to make their way through harsh stomach acids to get absorbed, sublingual bypasses the digestion process, thus ensuring better bioavailability. Second, liquid concentrates carry enhancers like coconut oil or other forms of fat in their formula. 

These substances significantly improve curcumin availability.  Liquid supplements are also straightforward to embed into your everyday lifestyle. You can either drop some directly on your tongue and ingest or add to smoothies, juices, shakes and relish away. But remember to read through the extraction method of the product carefully to avoid any harmful chemicals. 

Conclusion

The growing research on the various benefits of turmeric curcumin and its compounds has led to a boom in its medicinal usage. The herb has grown from being a common kitchen ingredient in Asian cuisines and an ayurvedic medicine staple to becoming one of the most potent ingredients for better health and wellness all over the globe.

As more users seek the medicinal benefits of turmeric through supplements, it is crucial to understand how to differentiate and shop only the best products that can support good health. Use the factors discussed above to evaluate your turmeric curcumin supplements to make sure you always buy and use the best. Also, scoop out trusted brands following healthy practices like best quality raw materials and extraction processes to enjoy the most of this wonder herb. 

Reference:

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/turmeric-supplements#what-to-look-for

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/best-turmeric-supplements

https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/j.efsa.2020.6146

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92752/

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03530436

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5664031/

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