WEBVTT - How Health-Helpful Is Turmeric?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain

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<v Speaker 1>Stuff lauringvogal bomb here. Turmeric, a particular staple of Indian

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<v Speaker 1>and Middle Eastern cuisine, has gone totally mainstream in recent years.

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<v Speaker 1>You can find recipes including it and everything from curries

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<v Speaker 1>and soups to tea and smoothies. Turmeric gives curry powder

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<v Speaker 1>it's bright yellow color, but in addition to flavoring dishes.

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<v Speaker 1>This spice has been used medicinally and in religious ceremonies

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<v Speaker 1>for more than four thousand years. The plant is a

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<v Speaker 1>relative of ginger and has grown predominantly in India, though

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<v Speaker 1>it's also farmed in other parts of Asia and Central America.

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<v Speaker 1>Of the world's crop is consumed in India, where it's

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<v Speaker 1>part of the standard daily diet. Some people are skeptical

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<v Speaker 1>of turmeric's glowing reputation. However, after all, we've gotten hyped

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<v Speaker 1>up about things like fish oil supplements and coconut oil before,

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<v Speaker 1>only to have our hopes completely dashed or at least

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<v Speaker 1>tamped down quite a bit when scientists have studied them.

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<v Speaker 1>So what about turmeric? Is it more than just a

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<v Speaker 1>food fat? Turmeric has been part of ayur Veda, a

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<v Speaker 1>branch of alternative medicine that treats mind, body, and spirit

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<v Speaker 1>together four thousands of years, it's thought to improve the

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<v Speaker 1>overall energy of the body, much like modern day prescription drugs.

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<v Speaker 1>Turmeric has an active ingredient called Kirkaman. Kirkoman is the

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<v Speaker 1>reason to umeric is claimed to help with a litany

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<v Speaker 1>of health issues like digest and regulation, hay fever, skin issues,

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<v Speaker 1>breathing problems, gas relief, PMS, back pain, and even Alzheimer's.

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<v Speaker 1>Turmeric has been hailed for its anti inflammatory properties, much

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<v Speaker 1>like ginger. Turmeric seems to block inflammatory cytokinds and enzymes

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<v Speaker 1>within cells in your body, but does science back this up.

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<v Speaker 1>One small randomized study of forty five patients with rhematoid

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<v Speaker 1>arthritis gave five milligrams of Kirkhoman to one group of patients,

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<v Speaker 1>while a second group of patients was given fifty milligrams

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<v Speaker 1>of diclofenic sodium and anti inflammatory drug. A third group

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<v Speaker 1>got both treatments. While all three groups experienced to reduction

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<v Speaker 1>in swelling and tenderness of their joints, the group that

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<v Speaker 1>got only Kirkoman had the most improvement. Another randomized study

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<v Speaker 1>from of a hundred and seven patients with osteo arthritis

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<v Speaker 1>in the knee compared a group of patients who were

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<v Speaker 1>given a thousand milligrams of Kirkhoman with patients who were

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<v Speaker 1>given eight hundred milligrams of iboprofin. The scientists found that

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<v Speaker 1>there was a similar rate of reduction in pain when

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<v Speaker 1>walking for both groups. Nevertheless, the National Institutes of Health

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<v Speaker 1>says that claims of the anti inflammatory properties of turmeric

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<v Speaker 1>and kirkoman have yet to be validated by strong studies.

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<v Speaker 1>That's not to say that turmeric doesn't relieve inflammation, just

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<v Speaker 1>that science hasn't yet definitively determined whether it does or not. Indeed,

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<v Speaker 1>turmeric is still being looked at for this and the

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<v Speaker 1>number of other benefits. The NIH also notes the preliminary

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<v Speaker 1>studies show that kirkuminoids could lower the number of post

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<v Speaker 1>surgery heart attacks and bypass patients, and also reduced the

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<v Speaker 1>skin irritation that often occurs after radiation treatments for breast cancer.

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<v Speaker 1>Another promising used for turmeric maybe depression. We spoke via

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<v Speaker 1>email with Melissa Majumdar, a registered dietitian spokesperson for the

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<v Speaker 1>Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and nutrition coordinator at Berghaman

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<v Speaker 1>Women's Hospital in Boston. She said turmeric and depression has

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<v Speaker 1>not been studied on a long term basis, but in

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<v Speaker 1>six to eight week trials, participants demonstrated improved symptoms when

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<v Speaker 1>taking turmeric alongside their antidepressant. One six week study showed

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<v Speaker 1>Kirkman was almost as effective as the drug flu oxytine

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<v Speaker 1>or prozac and relieving depression and didn't cause that drug

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<v Speaker 1>side effects like thoughts of suicide. Even if the medical

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<v Speaker 1>establishment is not giving turmeric, it's full endorsement, yet there's

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<v Speaker 1>not much to lose by trying the spice for medicinal purposes.

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<v Speaker 1>The NIH has declared its active ingredients to be generally

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<v Speaker 1>considered safe. However, it warns that high doses or long

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<v Speaker 1>term use may cause guest or intestinal problems. So how

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<v Speaker 1>much might you take? Since one teaspoon of turmeric has

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<v Speaker 1>two milligrams of Kirkman, you need to add about three

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<v Speaker 1>teaspoons to your food each day. You can also buy

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<v Speaker 1>the active ingredient Kirkman as a supplement in health food stores.

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<v Speaker 1>A dose of five hundred to one thousand milligrams each

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<v Speaker 1>day can help you fight body inflammation, but be sure

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<v Speaker 1>to let your doctor know if you're going to be

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<v Speaker 1>taking Kirkman because Kirkuman supplements often have an ingredient called piperine,

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<v Speaker 1>which increases kirkumen absorption in your body, but may also

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<v Speaker 1>slow down the elimination of some prescription drugs that you

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<v Speaker 1>might be taking for conditions like seizures and high blood pressure.

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<v Speaker 1>This low metabolism in your body can make those drugs toxic.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's episode was written by Ali A Hoyt and produced

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<v Speaker 1>by Tyler Clang. The brain Stuff is a production of

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<v Speaker 1>I Heart Radio's How Stuff Works. For more in this

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<v Speaker 1>and lots of other topics, visit our home planet, how

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<v Speaker 1>stuff Works dot com. And for more podcasts from my

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