How Turmeric Heals the Damaged Brain

Regeneration of damaged brain seems impossible, but recent research has confirmed that a well-known spice can trigger such regeneration. It looks like turmeric is a healing spice with many different healing properties. Studies, experiments, and clinical trials have shown that turmeric has more than 600 health benefits and people have used it for many centuries for different ailments. However, all these studies and research efforts in the last 10 years were focused on a single phytocompounds found in turmeric (it contains hundreds of compounds like this) – curcumin. This phytocompound is the active ingredient and the primary polyphenol in this spice and it is responsible for the distinctive golden color of turmeric. The focus on this ingredient has resulted in the development of some very useful products like phospholipid-bound curcumin concentrate, a product that supports the body’s effort to improve the absorption and activity of curcumin. However, curcumin isolates gave the ability to transfer only a fraction of the healing power of turmeric spice and this is why all these studies and trials are limited in their nature. Many scientists agree that it has become a habit in the nutraceutical industry to follow this model of research in which scientists are isolating one specific substance from the many found in certain herbs or fruit or vegetable with the final goal to use that substance as some kind of natural drug. In order to achieve that, they are conducting isolation and extraction processes and creating specific formulas that make the manufacturers owners of certain natural products. This is something that brings benefits only to the company, not to the patients/users. To be honest, none of the herbs and foods comes with a single magic substance that makes them so beneficial to our health. As a matter of fact, the vast majority of healing foods and plants contain dozens (sometimes hundreds) of compounds carefully connected by Mother Nature, and extracting only some of these ingredients can never lead to better healing results.

Why Curcumin Alone Is Less Effective?

Not while ago, the popular Stem Cell Research and Therapy journal revealed a scientific study that confirms the assumptions that the concept in which curcumin is separated as the most important ingredient and the positive effects of turmeric are explained through the effects of curcumin. This study has shown that turmeric contains a fat-soluble compound known as Ar-turmerone that has the ability to improve regeneration in neurologic disorders and diseases. This aromatic-turmerone substance was studied by a team of German researchers who were trying to measure the effects of this compound that is naturally found in turmeric on NSCs or neural stem cells. NSCs are actually a subtype of brain cells that have the ability to perform a self-renewal process and ultimately lead to brain repair. Whenever brain cells were in touch with ar-turmerone, NSCs experienced improved proliferation and their number has grown. In addition, the neural stem cells that were just formed came with a greater number of fully-grown neuronal cells which was the best proof that this substance is beneficial. Finally, the effects were analyzed in animal models too and rats that have taken ar-turmerone injections directly in their brains have witnessed increased production of neural stem cells and the appearance of new healthy cells in the brain. The interesting study conducted by German scientists has grabbed the attention of all medical news websites and magazines.

The Largest Turmeric Database – Confirms Turmeric’s Ability to Protect and Save Brain

There are many people who are well aware that this database is the greatest source of medical data in the world and has information for more than 1800 natural substances including turmeric. They have abstracted from more than 1600 studies focused on the NIH. In case you take some time to observe the long list of more than 600 diseases that turmeric (including all of its components) you will notice that the huge number of supportive literature is simply breathtaking. In addition, this analysis will help you understand that there are more than 150 physiological pathways like Interleukin 6 down-regulator and COX-2 inhibitor through which turmeric or the substances found in it helps the body and mind. Furthermore, you will also find more than one hundred articles on the neuroprotective properties of turmeric. All these things suggest that turmeric is an excellent herb for protecting brain health.

How to Use Turmeric’s Full Potential?

There are many people interested in alternative medicine who want to know what is the most effective type of curcumin or turmeric they can use. If we take the latest research into consideration we will conclude that taking the entire plant is obviously the most efficient solution because curcumin on its own can’t provide all those benefits. However, most of these people want to know the quantity they need to use and they are looking for the ideal weight per serving of certain compounds instead of focusing on their origin. We should always focus more on quality instead of quantity. The fact is that there is no universal answer to the question about the quantity and the ideal way to consume turmeric/curcumin. Every individual is different and has different needs, so the intake of turmeric requires a personal approach. For example, in case you are experiencing polyps or colonic inflammation and you want to rely on turmeric to lower the inflammation or slow down and eliminate precancerous formations, then taking the entire plant is the best idea because using a bioavailable type of curcumin in the form of a capsule-like Meriva, for example, will probably be mostly absorbed by the small intestine and go through the liver and in the end, the large intestine will get only traces of this compound. The best way to solve this problem located in the digestive system is to take one teaspoon of turmeric because this substance is hard to absorb which means that it will reach its destination in the desired form. So, what happens if someone is trying to get a systematic effect like in the case of brain cancer or arthritis? In cases like this, receiving turmeric compounds like curcumin via a glucuronidation barrier located in the liver with black pepper or bound supported by phospholipids should be the perfect option. There is no doubt that the nutraceutical model can bring positive effects when it is used in the right way especially if it is used as a support for the pharmaceutical model. Finally, the ultimate goal is not to sit back and wait to experience some serious health issue, so you can just take a huge dose of some food extract or herb. It is the best idea to use small quantities, in combination with compounds that are known for their synergic properties, on a daily basis. A study published not a while ago has confirmed that small doses of rosemary taken with food almost on a daily basis can improve cognitive functions while taking huge doses at once actually harmed these functions. That’s why using turmeric in smoothies or in curries or in any other suitable combination may be the best approach for witnessing the positive effects of this incredible herb. On the other hand, capsules and other similar products provide certain effects, but these effects are not always positive. Via Wake Up World