What's the Most Powerful Spice
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Research now shows that turmeric thwarts dozens of types of cancers—in a big way. The list includes cancers of the breast, prostate, uterus, ovaries, lung, colon, mouth, esophagus, liver, kidney, skin, head and neck, nervous system, connective tissue, lymph (lymphomas) and blood (leukemia).
Eastern cultures have reaped these benefits, because there, instead of reaching for an over-the-counter or prescription drug, doctors are more likely to recommend real foods as sources of 'intelligent' healing.
Followers of these traditions believe the right foods provide perfect balance and perfect health. Every food you eat either brings you into greater balance... or throws you out of balance. Your job is to know the difference.
In a class of its own
Turmeric helps prevent and control the spread of cancer cells in so many ways. It:
- Helps break down toxins in your liver
- Possesses dramatic anti-inflammatory properties
- Is a powerful antioxidant, with 300 times the power of vitamin E
- Stimulates your immune system
- Helps break down fat and promotes weight loss
If you already have cancer, turmeric enhances the effectiveness of chemotherapy while simultaneously protecting your healthy tissues from chemo's damage.
What Indian medicine knows
That Western medicine doesn't
That Western medicine doesn't
You probably associate green plant foods with healing and cancer prevention. And you'd be right.
But for sure, not everything good is green. When it comes to turmeric, just by adding this bright yellow-orange spice to your food, you also help your body defend against cancer... and a whole lot more.
If you think about turmeric at all you probably associate it with the curry dishes of India or Indian-influenced dishes from the Caribbean. Turmeric is indigenous to Asia, and has been a long-time staple in the Indian diet. It's been a part of India's Ayurvedic healing tradition and traditional Chinese medicine for more than 5,000 years.
Turmeric has large, beautiful, lily-like leaves. But the magic really occurs below the surface. The roots, which look much like ginger root, are the medicinal parts.
When you cut open a turmeric root, it's much more vivid than ginger root. The bright color gives a hint of its incredible medicinal powers. Colorful foods tend to be rich in nutrients.
Turmeric's color comes from curcumin, the phytochemical that's the source of nearly all the root's medicinal benefits.
Helps your liver keep you healthy
What turmeric does to help your liver keep you healthy is nothing short of amazing.
Mutagens (anything causing DNA mutations that can lead to cancer) are in your food, air, and dozens if not hundreds of things you come into contact with every day. Your liver is charged with breaking all those mutagens down and expelling them from your body. The liver is the body's most important filter.
Your liver has two sets of enzymes, called "Phase 1" and "Phase 2". Any time a toxin or carcinogen enters your liver your Phase 1 enzymes activate it. In other words, they turn "on" its carcinogenic effects.
Now why would they create carcinogens? Because it's easier for your Phase 2 enzymes to recognize, attack, break down, and expel activated enzymes.
But here's the glitch: Too many toxins can overwhelm your liver. Your liver's defensive system can fail.
You can slash your risk of cancer by either reducing the amount of toxins that enter your liver in the first place, or by enhancing your Phase 2 enzymes to eliminate more toxins after they've gotten in.
Amazingly, turmeric has the ability to both block Phase 1 and enhance Phase 2 enzymes, for a mighty superstar level of protection for your health.
Helps even smokers eliminate toxins!
Smokers typically have many carcinogenic metabolites (byproducts) in their urine.
In a 1992 published study in the journal Mutagenesis, researchers tested 16 smokers and 16 non-smokers for these metabolites. Then the smokers received 1.5 grams of turmeric for 30 days, while the non-smokers were given none.
In 30 days, the researchers again tested the participants' urine. Shockingly, the level of mutagen metabolites was LOWER in the smokers taking turmeric than it was in the non-smokers.
So if you're a smoker who's struggled to kick the habit, at least do your health the favor of using turmeric.
If you play golf, farm or use lawn treatments,
Read this now!
Read this now!
Many common pesticides and herbicides are known "gender benders". They mimic estrogen and thereby boost your risk of all estrogenic cancers, notably prostate and breast cancer.
Turmeric can block pesticides' estrogenic effects, and thereby impede estrogenic tumors from forming in response to estrogen and environmental toxins.
Turmeric also down-regulates your estrogen receptors—meaning it decreases the sensitivity of your estrogen receptors. That cuts the receptors' normal cancer-enhancing response to estrogen. When estrogen attaches to estrogen receptors in the presence of turmeric, its rate of cell division is slowed way down.
If you golf, live on a golf course or near farms where sprays are a way of life, or use lawn treatments, consider adding a layer of health protection with turmeric.
Block the dangerous COX-2 enzyme
Turmeric inhibits or blocks an enzyme that plays a key role in many cancers. It's called the COX-2 enzyme. Cancer patients typically over-express it. And it's responsible for a long list of dangerous deeds...
- Causes tumor cells to divide and spread
- Prevents the death of cancer cells
- Stimulates the growth of new blood vessels
- Enables tumor cells to invade surrounding tissues
- Blocks your immune system's tumor suppression activities
- Boosts risk of metastasis
- Speeds up your production of mutagens
That's a long and damaging list of bad deeds. But turmeric can put an end to all of them. It shuts down the COX-2 enzyme and blocks ALL its harmful actions.
Tumeric's other healing benefits
You'll love turmeric for more than just its anti-cancer effects too. As of 2012, this "miracle" spice was linked to over 150 distinct beneficial actions involving more than 500 different health conditions. To name just a few...
- Lowers heart disease risk by decreasing cholesterol and arterial plaque.
- Promotes wound healing by lowering inflammation and stimulating growth of new blood vessels. Ironic, because it blocks new blood-vessel growth to stop cancer growth yet stimulates it to promote healing. Turmeric "knows" when to do each one.
- Encourages your gallbladder to expel gallstones.
- Aids digestion by boosting stomach secretions and decreasing intestinal gassiness.
- Shields your organs from chemical attack
- Minimizes damage to your brain from alcohol.
- Helps repair liver damage.
- Strengthens connective tissue and prevents scar tissue.
- Stimulates muscle regeneration following trauma.
And those are just the effects inside your body...
Topical Uses
Applied to the skin, turmeric offers a whole new set of benefits. But beware, it will stain your clothes, so wear something old that you don't care about!
Turmeric can kill bacteria. And in the presence of sunlight, its anti-bacterial properties improve. You can use it against fungal infections like athlete's foot, and skin conditions like psoriasis.
No other known edible and topical substance can do so much.
Turmeric is a true Superstar in the world of medicinal plants. And it beautifully shows this key Ayurvedic principle: Plants hold intelligence, and they help us to heal by importing their intelligence into us.
What you should know before taking turmeric
Turmeric is prepared by soaking, then drying the root and grinding it into a fine powder. You'll find it in most grocery stores. Choose organic whenever possible. Why introduce more toxins into your body?
When adding it to your foods, use about ¼ to 1 teaspoon at the very end of cooking, to avoid overcooking.
If you prefer not to take it with food every day, you can take it as a supplement. The recommended dose is two 500-mg capsules if you're healthy. For therapeutic use, studies show that four to ten grams of curcumin a day can be taken without negative side effects. As noted before, curcumin is the medicinally active ingredient of turmeric. Four to ten grams would be a VERY high dose. One or at most two grams probably suffice for most healthy people.
There's currently no standardized dose for cancer treatment and prevention, but most researchers suggest 2 or more grams per day.
And if you want to enhance turmeric's impact, take it in the same meal as green tea. Turmeric makes green tea eight times more effective. And in turn, green tea makes turmeric three times more effective. You can't beat the synergy!
Any way you slice it, turmeric can give you a tremendous health boost. You can hardly go wrong using it as a potent health ally. So why not get started today?
