Back Clinic Herbs Functional Medicine Team. A medication prepared from plants, including most of the world’s traditional remedies for disease. Most think of herbal remedies as products sold over the counter as “supplements,” such as saw palmetto extract or some ointment. However, many over-the-counter and prescription drugs are based on ingredients derived from plants, including aspirin and digoxin. Lab tests show that some herbal remedies are effective against illness. An Individual should use these drugs as carefully as prescription medicines, using caution to avoid overdose, interactions with other medications, and misuse.
Herbal medicines are one type of dietary supplement. They are sold as tablets, capsules, powders, teas, extracts, and fresh or dried plants. People use herbal medicines to maintain or improve health. Many believe that products labeled “natural” are safe to use. This is not true, as herbal medicines do not have to go through the testing that drugs do. Some herbs, such as comfrey and ephedra, can cause serious harm. In addition, certain herbs interaction with a prescription or over-the-counter medicines can work well with other medicines and be dangerous. Before using herbal medicines, first, get information from reliable sources and tell your health care provider about any herbal medicines you are taking.
Turmeric is the bright orange spice we often associate with curry or other exotic dishes, but turmeric is also becoming more well known for its health benefits as well. What I didn�t know was that turmeric can not only spice up my food, but it can help relieve everything from depression to an upset stomach. More research is being done every day, but that doesn�t mean we should overlook what we do know now about the health benefits of turmeric.
First, What is Turmeric?
Turmeric is part of the ginger family and is a perennial plant that is usually harvested in tropical climates such as India and China. Like ginger, it is a thick root that is yellow on the outside and an orange on the inside, hence the spice�s well known color. Turmeric is extensively used to flavor food or add color, mainly in curries and mustards.
What are the Health Benefits of Turmeric?
Calm an Upset Stomach and Curb Heartburn
The most well known health benefit of turmeric is to naturally calm an upset stomach. You will see a lot of turmeric teas on the market that claim to do just that. As with an upset stomach, turmeric is known to also help fight inflammation in the body, which can also help to reduce heartburn and indigestion problems.
Curcumin, the main compound in turmeric, is what is responsible for many of the health benefits of turmeric. Curcumin is best taken as a supplement to get the maximum health benefit because most turmeric alone only contains 2-5% curcumin. You�d have to eat one heck of a lot of turmeric to get that kind of benefit! The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin help heart attack patients and those suffering from pre-diabetes. While there is no substitute for conventional therapies, curcumin could be a great supplement to talk to you doctor about.
Fights Cancer
Again, you should always follow the advice of your doctor and follow the traditional route as much as possible. But, for those worried about the disease, adding curcumin into your supplement rotation may be of some help. Curcumin has been shown to interfere with important pathways involved with cancer development and growth. In lab settings, cancer cells were even shown to shrink.
Helps Protects the Brain
Another compound of turmeric, turmerone or ar-turmerone is not as well known or studied as curcumin, but as part of several studies, it has been shown to help the recovery of stem cells in the brain. This can help to improve memory in those suffering from strokes or Alzheimer�s disease.
Please Use Caution
The FDA doesn�t regulate dietary supplements like they do food, so please use caution and talk to your doctor about any supplements you are thinking about taking. You never know how it will interact with any other medications you are taking or how it will interact in your body. That being said, turmeric is a wonderful spice to add to your dishes and can even add a new element of health to your dish!
A couple of my favorites: Nativ Organics and Vitacost Turmeric Extract Curcumin
Spices and Recipes to Try
To get your dose of turmeric, give some of these great recipes a try with the original spice.
Organic turmeric spices I like: Jiva Organics and Simply Organic
Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and I will earn a commission if you purchase through those links. I recommend these products because they are products that I personally use or companies that I have found trustworthy.
Scientists believe that turmeric my hold the key to better bone density
The study involved fit, healthy and slim men and women who all suffered declining bone density.
In just six months, those taking a daily tablet of the turmeric and soy lecithin formulation boosted bone density by seven per cent compared with a group given a placebo.
The quality of bone in the heels, jaws and fingers of the group – who had an average age of 70 – was measured at the start of the project using specialized ultrasound scanning.
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By the end of the trial bone density had increased in all three sites by up to 7 per cent above the placebo, suggesting a significant benefit.
Curcumin researchers from the University of Sydney, Australia, along with INSERM the French government’s medical research laboratories, and a team of doctors from four prestigious American universities, have published similar conclusions.
Doctors are increasingly concerned that almost three quarters of elderly people lose strength-providing bone mineral.
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The spice may hold the secret to battling osteoporosis in the elderly
The condition called osteopenia, mostly caused by a lack of exercise, can worsen into osteoporosis and lead to fatal fractures if untreated.
We’re are delighted by these results
Alf Lindberg
Every year about 65,000 people suffer hip fractures caused by bone fragility, leading to the deaths of up to 35 per cent of victims in the older age groups.
Turmeric+, which comes from the powerful root of the curcumin plant, is sold in Britain by the Cambridge bioscience company Cambridge Nutraceuticals under the brand FutureYou.
Alf Lindberg, a former Nobel prize committee member who is a scientific spokesman for Cambridge Nutraceuticals, said: �We’re are delighted by these results, and we are stepping up our osteoporosis research programme with turmeric as a result.
�Our formulation is better absorbed by the human body than turmeric in its natural form, and we believe it could offer an earlier side-effect free alternative for people at risk from osteoporosis.�
Bone mineral density is regulated by maintaining a balance between bone-building osteoblast cells and osteoclasts, which are designed to mop up ageing bone cells for replacement.
In older people osteoclast activity may outweigh the rate of bone replacement.
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Almost three quarters of elderly people lose strength-providing bone mineral
Stefano Togni, is scientific spokesman for the world’s largest researcher into plant based treatments, Indena, which developed the raw material for Turmeric+.
He said the Italian company had produced similar promising bone-building results with the uniquely bioavailable compound in animal studies.
He said: �Our work suggests this form of curcumin dampens down the rate of bone resorption which could be very good news, because it would mean that people who are in the early stages of bone loss will now have a treatment.”
Elise Verron, a specialist in the evaluation of medicines for INSERM from the University of Nantes in France, was a co-author of a review of the bone-building properties of curcumin and turmeric in the Nature journal Bonekey.
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She agrees that the key to harnessing its power will depend on developing strategies to improve absorption.
She said: �In the past decade there has been growing interest in curcumin because of its low toxicity and multiple therapeutic actions including anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial activities, but few studies have looked at its effect on bone tissue.
�At the moment it is too early to get a clear idea of the benefit.�
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Turmeric comes from the powerful root of the curcumin plant
Luca Giacomelli, of the department of integrated diagnostics at Genoa University, who was one of the leaders of the new Italian study, said the results were promising.
But he cautioned that the effect cannot be replicated simply by adding regular curry to the diet because turmeric in food is less easily absorbed.
He said: �People need to take this kind of high quality supplement under medical supervision.�
The findings may also come as good news for thousands of people advised by doctors to take bisphosphonate drugs designed to maintain bone density by reducing the rate of bone breakdown.
Latest research has suggested that long term users of these drugs may suffer ‘microcracks’.
Many parents of children with debilitating gastrointestinal disorders may be frustrated by the lack of good treatment options and tempted to try herbal remedies at home, but a new study suggests they should proceed with caution.
Researchers examined data from 14 previously published studies with a total of 1,927 children suffering from problems like diarrhea, dehydration, colic, constipation, abdominal pain and irritable bowel syndrome. They didn’t have enough data to combine results from multiple small studies to offer definitive proof that herbal remedies might work for any of these health problems.
But some of the small studies did suggest certain herbal medicines might help ease diarrhea, abdominal pain and colic. And the studies didn’t find serious side effects associated with herbal remedies.
“The lack of conclusive research is unfortunately a general problem in pediatrics, but a special problem in herbal medicine is that for many herbal remedies no licensed and standardized products are available,” said lead study author Dr. Dennis Anheyer of the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany.
In other words, even if evidence shows an herb may be safe and effective for a specific health problem, that doesn’t necessarily mean that every single version of that herb available for sale would work as well or be free of side effects.
When researchers looked at four studies with a total of 424 participants, they found some evidence suggesting that a variety of herbal remedies might help diarrhea: a plant in the rose family called potentilla erecta, carob bean juice, and an herbal compound preparation with chamomile.
One study with 120 participants also suggests that peppermint oil might help curb the duration, frequency and severity chronic abdominal pain that doesn’t have a clear medical explanation.
And, fennel might help ease colic symptoms in babies according to a review of five small studies of herbal remedies for infant colic.
While it’s possible herbal remedies might be used in addition to traditional medications or to help reduce reliance on drug therapy, parents should still see a doctor before trying out herbal therapies on their own, Anheyer said by email.
Another reason for caution is that even the studies in the current analysis that found herbal remedies effective don’t show how large the effects are, noted Dr. Peter Lucassen, a researcher at Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands who wasn’t involved in the study.
These small studies might get results that find herbs are statistically better than no treatment or alternative therapies, but the difference still might not be big enough to have a meaningful clinical impact on patients’ symptoms, Lucassen said by email.
“I would not advocate any of the herbal medicine because the article does not provide any data about how large the effects are,” Lucassen said.
Often, herbal remedies combine a variety of ingredients and use differing amounts of the main ingredients, which may alter how well they work and how safe they are for kids, Lucassen added. They might also contain chemicals not found in prescription medications that have dangerous side effects or a risk of overdose.
And there’s another reason parents shouldn’t try herbal remedies without seeing a doctor.
“Delayed diagnosis might be the result of herbal medications because parents seek help too late because they try the herbs first,” Lucassen said.
Turmeric is widely popular, but it really deserves its popularity because it offers countless medicinal benefits thanks to the content of its active ingredient, curcumin.
Namely, turmeric and its primary polyphenol curcumin containover 600 potential health benefits confirmed by the study abstracts from the National Library of Medicine�s bibliographic database MEDLINE. So, if you include it to your regular diet, you will gain an outstanding health benefits.
Prior its use, you need to know several things about this spice:
As mentioned before, curcumin is the active compound which offers the amazing health properties of turmeric, yet you need to know that it is not easily absorbed.
According to many performed animal and clinical studies it was revealed that curcumin concentrations in blood plasma, urine, and peripheral tissues are very low no matter of the dosage size.
Nevertheless, there are natural ways to enhance the bioavailability of turmeric.
Mix it with Black Pepper
Black pepper is also a powerful natural medicine, and when mixed with turmeric, it acts as an adjuvant. This is what Nutrition Facts states regarding the combination with black pepper:
�If people are given a bunch of turmeric curcumin, within an hour there�s a little bump in the level in their blood stream. We don�t see a large increase because our liver is actively trying to get rid of it. But what if the process is suppressed by taking just a quarter teaspoon�s worth of black pepper?
Then you see curcumin levels skyrocket. The same amount of curcumin consumed, but the bioavailability shoots up 2000%. Even just a little pinch of pepper�1/20th of a teaspoon�can significantly boost levels. And guess what a common ingredient in curry powder is besides turmeric? Black pepper.�
According to a study having the title �Influence of piperine on the pharmacokinetics of curcumin in animals and human volunteers �reveals that once piperine is administered alone with turmeric, it enhances the curcumin bioavailability by 2000%.
Heat Enhance Turmeric�s Bioavailability
Dr. Sukumar says that when it is used in cooking particularly when you heat oil and add turmeric to it, it becomes completely bioavailable.
Furthermore, he maintains:
�The potent ingredient in turmeric is curcumin, which, despite its power, is not easily absorbed by the body without assistance. This is where the saut� pan and a little warm oil come into play. I use it [turmeric] in every saut�, just a quarter teaspoon, a half teaspoon is enough. But you don�t have to use it sparingly � use it lavishly.�
Combine Turmeric with Healthy Fat
This amazing spice is fat-soluble, and because of that it needs to be mixed with a healthy fat so that you can boost its absorption rate. Once is mixed with healthy fats such as coconut, ghee, or olive oil, curcumin goes directly to the bloodstream through the lymphatic system while partially bypassing the liver.
Regarding this matter, Dr. Nibber states:
� This is very important because less curcumin is exposed to metabolic enzymes and remains in a free form allowing it to stay in the body longer. �
Therefore, in order to enhance the effectiveness of turmeric and gain every health benefit of it, you need to memorize the following things:
Mix it with fresh ground black pepper and hence boost turmeric�s absorption by 2,000%.
Heat it up so that you can activate turmeric.
Combine it with some healthy fat to bypass the liver.
NOTE: Prior use you need to be familiar with the dosage guidelines prepared by the University of Maryland Medical Center:
There is more evidence that the active ingredient in turmeric may have the power to help combat malignant mesothelioma.
A new French study on curcumin finds that the compound not only slowed the growth of one of the rarest types of mesothelioma tumor cells in the laboratory but also reduced total tumor mass in lab rats in just two weeks.
Evaluating Curcumin�s Effect on Mesothelioma Cells
Curcumin, the plant polyphenol that gives turmeric its yellow hue and pungent flavor, has been the subject of numerous malignant mesothelioma studies in recent years, in part because of its powerful anti-inflammatory properties.
In the newest study, the French researchers focused on one of the rarest and deadliest subtypes of the asbestos cancer � sarcomatoid mesothelioma.
First, they used sarcomatoid mesothelioma cells from rats that had been induced to develop mesothelioma by exposing them to asbestos. By testing curcumin on the mesothelioma cells first, the research team was able to determine the optimal curcumin concentration and dose to use on the live rats.
Testing Curcumin in Live Rats with Mesothelioma
With dosing established, the researchers administered curcumin directly into the peritoneal cavities of sick mice. For comparison, a second group of rats was treated with an epigenetic drug called SAHA.
�The treatment of tumor-bearing rats with 1.5 mg/kg curcumin on days 7, 9, 11 and 14 after tumor challenge dramatically reduced the mean total tumor mass at day 16,� writes researcher Daniel L. Pouliquen in the journal Oncotarget.
The study found that both curcumin and SAHA produced necrosis or dead tissue within the mesothelioma tumors by day 28, but the necrosis induced by curcumin was �much more extensive�.
In addition, curcumin appeared to attract cancer-fighting CD8+ T lymphocytes to the area which clustered around small residual mesothelioma tumors in the peritoneal cavity after treatment.
�These data open up interesting new prospects for the therapy of sarcomatoid mesothelioma with curcumin and its derivatives,� concludes Dr. Pouliquen.
More Curcumin Research
Earlier this year, scientists in the Department of Experimental Medicine at the University of Rome conducted a similar experiment and that found that intraperitoneal curcumin extended survival in mice with mesothelioma.
In 2015, mesothelioma researchers with Flinders University in Australia determined that curcumin had the ability to keep mesothelioma tumors from giving rise to their own new blood vessels. That study suggested that curcumin could become a supplemental treatment for certain mesothelioma patients.
Source: Pouliquen, DL, et al, �Evaluation of intracavitary administration of curcumin for the treatment of sarcomatoid mesothelioma�, February 25, 2017, Oncotarget, Epub ahead of print
Author
Alex Strauss
As always… Check with your doctors before you rely on this information. �I bring it to you because it does give great insight into Curcumin so many people are raving about.
It should be noted that Mesothelioma is a very serious disorder requiring the expertise of top level Oncologist. � Great Regards. Dr. Alex Jimenez
The ability of turmeric to fight cancer has been extensively researched. In fact, over 1,500 published studies show that curcumin, turmeric�s active ingredient, is an effective treatment for over 100 different types of cancer.
The fact that mainstream medicine hasn�t embraced turmeric as a non-toxic cancer therapy is nothing short of outrageous. But a new study, in which curcumin outperformed conventional chemotherapy drugs, may finally bring turmeric the recognition it deserves.
Turmeric Gains Popularity From Growing Awareness Of Chemotherapy & Side Effects
Chemotherapy targets cancer cells as foreign invaders to be eliminated � an approach that ignores the root causes of the disease, and doesn�t help to create an �anticancer� environment in the body. Toxic chemotherapy drugs � which kill healthy cells and cause debilitating side effects � are not very effective against cancer stem cells, the �mother cells� that regulate the growth of tumors.
In fact, the result of these toxic drugs is to make the body even more susceptible to the cancer stem cells � spurring them to create even more treatment-resistant cells.
However, chemotherapy does succeed in killing significant amounts of cancer cells, and this is not to say it should never be used. But, the opinion of many integrative healthcare professionals is that it should be used as a last resort, not a first line of defense � especially when safer, non-toxic options are available.
Curcumin Makes Chemotherapy Safer & More Effective
In a 2015 study published in Cancer Letters, curcumin was tested in conjunction with the chemotherapy drugs 5-fluoroucil and oxaliplatin against colorectal cancer. Adding curcumin to the regimen improved the efficacy of the drugs � the curcumin inhibited cancer cell growth and even increased apoptosis, or cancer cell suicide.
Even more impressive, the curcumin appeared to help the chemo drugs specifically target cancer stem cells, reinforcing the drugs� cancer-fighting abilities while lessening the side effects � including the neuropathies that can be caused by oxaliplatin. Side effects from curcumin � on the other hand � were minimal, involving mild gastrointestinal upset and dry mouth. Researchers concluded that curcumin is a �safe and tolerable adjunct� treatment.
But this wasn�t even the most significant result of the study.
In a small subset of patients, curcumin alone was found to be more effective in reducing overall cancer cells and cancer stem cells than the pair of chemo drugs alone. In other words, curcumin went head-to-head with chemo drugs and outperformed them � a truly astonishing result.
Researchers credited curcumin�s multiple methods of action with its success. Curcumin not only directly killed cancer cells, but also induced apoptosis, inhibited the growth of new cancer cells on a genetic level, and prevented blood supply from reaching new tumors.
All this, while promoting health with beneficial anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and hormone-balancing properties.
Extensive Studies Attest To Curcumin�s Ability To Fight Many Types Of Cancer
As the researchers noted, clinical trials of curcumin in an oncology setting have targeted many types of cancer, including colorectal, pancreatic, breast and blood cancers.
In one study, colorectal cancer patients who were given 1,080 mgs of curcumin daily showed an increase in the amount of dying cancer cells, a reduction of inflammation, improved body weight, and higher gene expression indicating suppression of cancer.
In another study published in Nutrition Research, curcumin-supplemented lab animals showed a 40 percent decrease in the development of colon tumors. These results are supported by an animal model of colon cancer in which curcumin improved survival rate and colon health by completely eliminating cancerous tumors.
In yet another study, patients with pancreatic cancer who were given 8,000 mgs of curcumin a day showed increased survival time along with significant reductions in tumor size � in one case, up to 73 percent.
And, finally, in a study involving prostate cancer, curcumin was shown to cut in half the growth rate of prostate-specific androgen, a marker of tumor progression.
Turmeric Is Still Unapproved & Unacknowledged By Conventional Medicine
In spite of its proven results, turmeric is not approved by the FDA for cancer treatment � and does not enjoy mainstream acceptance in the conventional medical community. The reason, many say, is financial � with hundreds of millions of dollars invested in clinical trials, and massive profits to be made, big pharma doesn�t have much incentive to develop a treatment from a common kitchen spice.
In fact, the industry lobbies to make treatment of cancer by alternative means a criminal offense.
Having said that, we naturally suggest you talk to a trusted medical professional before using turmeric � for any reason � and, don�t stop taking prescribed medication unless advised by your physician.
It should be noted that in the past, turmeric�s therapeutic potential has been limited by its poor bioavailability � the fact that the body doesn�t absorb or use it effectively. But, the development of liposomalized turmeric extract has changed all that, increasing the bioavailability 10 to 20-fold and allowing the curcumin to begin its health-promoting and cancer-fighting work.
Hopefully, the research � presented in this article � will shine a light on the amazing healing potential of turmeric. We encourage every caring physician to do their own research � for the sake of their patients.
Editor�s note: I, personally, use a wonderful liposomal form of turmeric � which you can purchase here and, yes, your purchase does support our operations � at no extra cost to you.
The herb ashwagandha, which has been used for centuries in Indian folk medicine to promote sound sleep has been proven effective by Japanese researchers.
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is a central herb in Ayurveda, the traditional home medicine native to India. Its Latin name — somnifera — means sleep-inducing.
Researchers at the University of Tsukumba studied the effects of various components of ashwagandha on mice by using a neurological test (EEG) to record activity in the brain.
A water extract of ashwagandha leaf, which was rich in the component triethylene glycol (TEG), significantly increased non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. It also slightly changed rapid eye movement (REM) sleep.
An alcoholic extract containing active withanolides, which are other active compounds in ashwagandha, showed no effect on sleep.
The sleep induced by TEG was similar to normal sleep. Furthermore, commercially available TEG also increased the amount of NREM sleep.
The researchers concluded that TEG is the active component that induces sound sleep, and that TEG can improve sleep without side effects. They believe their findings could revolutionize the natural plant-based therapies for insomnia and sleep-related disorders.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, up to 70 million American adults have difficulty sleeping. Sleeping disorders increase with aging, and affect almost half of adults 60 and older.
Ashwagandha is available in capsules in health food stores.
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