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8 Reasons You NEED Turmeric In Your Diet 

I've mentioned before in my own Journey To Health that changing habits and becoming “healthy” isn't a destination nor does it happen quickly. And one of the things that took me the longest to appreciate was the power of roots, specifically turmeric in my diet.

Fun Fact: I am not a medical professional and this information is for informational purposes only. You should always consult your doctor before using any superfoods or supplements.

Turmeric is a small, orange looking root you can find in just about every grocery store. And while it may seem simple, it's not. Turmeric is part of the ginger family and is a wonderful, nutrient dense powerhouse that has been said to have quite a few benefits associated with it (grab my favorite brand here) Now, if you're anything like I was, the only time you really use turmeric was in a tasty curry because you know it's part of Indian Cuisine (which by the way here are some awesome curry recipes!)

But this potent herb is so much more than that. Not only does it come with an array of vitamins and minerals but it's possibilities to help prevent disease (in conjunction with other treatments) is mind blowing. If you follow Chris Beats Cancer you'll know that there actually studies of turmeric on cancer prevention and regression which is outstanding! Turmeric  comes from the Curcuma Longa plant. While the turmeric root itself doesn't contain as much curcumin as ideal- if you use a turmeric extract or curcumin capsules you're getting even more benefits from the root. That said, I heard a few years ago that turmeric supplements (like in a capsule) should be paired with black pepper to help it better absorb. So if you're shopping around- that's one thing to take note of!

So what do I do with it? After diving into the benefits of turmeric within the last few years I've grown accustomed to using it daily. I cook with it (in curries, stir fry's or roasting veggies). I also add it to shakes (like this spectacular turmeric smoothie) and truthfully just sneak it in where I can. 

Below is a video of one of my favorite ways to get my intake of turmeric up: golden milk! Healthy, nourishing and absolutely delicious to sip on.

Turmeric Promotes Anti-Inflammation

Inflammation due to processed foods, habits and intolerances is a slippery slope for disease development.

Ensuring ingestion of anti-inflammatory foods and herbs regularly can help keep this inflammation at bay. Turmeric, specifically curcumin, has been said to drastically lower inflammation within the body.

Healing Properties (External)

Turmeric has actually been show to help speed healing, and reducing acne. I haven't fully delved into weather this is fully based on applying the turmeric directly or if taken internally but it's something to check out!

Immune Boosting

Turmeric, along with ginger, garlic and onion is one of the roots that helps boost your immune system and keep you healthy! Consuming turmeric on a regular basis is a great way to keep your immune system high and fight off colds.

My favorite way to use it in this regard is to make fire cider for the winter months!

Helps Alleviate Arthritis Pain

Because arthritis stems from chronic inflammation, ingesting turmeric regularly has been shown to help alleviate pain symptoms more so than common medication. One reason for this is that medication comes with a host of side effects, and a natural root does not.

Turmeric Can Help In Cancer Treatment

I'll let you delve into this one on your own but a great place to start is Chris Beat Cancer.com (one of my favorite websites!). because of its potency, turmeric is being studied in both cancer prevention as well as treatment and so there's been a lot of progress.

The fact that a root has the ability to heal so effectively with so little draw back only pushed me more towards believing how essential it is in our day to day lives. if you haven't checked out the book How Not To Die it's also an awesome resource for nutrition and cancer!

Helps Promote Weight Loss

A lot of weight gain and obesity stems from chronic inflammation of the bowels. Since turmeric has such high anti-inflammatory properties, it's been shown to help promote weight loss and help control issues like colitis and IBS.

Turmeric Boosts The Antioxidant Capacity Of The Body

I believe that this is partially where a lot of the cancer research comes into play. Oxidative damage is one of the leading causes of disease. Not only is turmeric a potent antioxidant but it also help the body boost its own antioxidant enzymes which is pretty amazing.

Heart Health

While there are many contributors to heart disease, curcumin has been shown to improve the function of the lining of the blood vessels. This makes your body better able to regulate blood pressure and prevent clotting.

Turmeric For Depression

It seems this is just recently being studied but it seems promising that turmeric  can work as an anti-depressant. One of the major benefits of this is that traditional anti-depressants come with an insane amount of side effects, making it much more natural, healthy and wise to give this root a try first!

The truth is, I've spent the last couple of years reading a lot about nutrition and cancer/disease and this root keeps popping up. Turmeric as a medicine has been used for hundreds of years as a holistic remedy and we are now beginning to study it scientifically- which is awesome. This is an awesome article from Natural Healthy Concepts which delves even more into the benefits of turmeric and contains a ton of sources if you'd like further reading.

Grab a bag of my favorite turmeric powder here.

All of this only pushes me more and more towards using it each and every day. That said (special note here!), I am not a doctor. And while turmeric is generally considered safe for use in medicinal amounts, it's important to talk to a doctor before using it. Both due to your own body as well as how it may react with other medications.

Don't Forget To Pin These Awesome Turmeric Benefits!

Note: Here and here are a few resources I used when writing up this blog.