Time To Spice Up Your Life?

TURMERIC HAS BEEN TOUTED AS A CURE-ALL FOR SOME JOINT AND IMMUNITY PROBLEMS, BUT DOES IT MATCH UP TO ITS REPUTATION

- Peta Bee

NOWADAYS it’s hard to avoid turmeric, the yellow spice once best known for leaving indelible yellow stains on your chopping board and fingertips but now hailed for its healing and performance-enhancing powers.

In a Google report of food trends, searches for turmeric increased by 56% in three months as people consume it to benefit from its purported anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, immune-boosting properties.

How it works

Used widely in Asian cooking, the spice and its active ingredient, curcumin, are known to hold natural antiinflammatory qualities, making it a favourite for keeping joints flexible and pain-free.

Thousands of research papers have been published that seemed to support its reputation and its popularity was boosted last year when trials at Newcastle University, conducted with the BBC2’s health series Trust Me, I’m a Doctor, suggested that adding a teaspoon of turmeric to your daily food was a healthy move that might trigger a change to your DNA, in a way that might reduce your risk of diseases, allergies and even depression.

Its use in sport