Many high-quality studies show that it has major benefits for your body and brain.

Here are the top 10 evidence-based health benefits of turmeric.

1. Turmeric Contains Bioactive Compounds with Powerful Medicinal Properties

It has been used in India for thousands of years as a spice and medicinal herb.

Recently, science has started to back up what Indians have known for a long time — it really does contain compounds with medicinal properties.

These compounds are called curcuminoids, the most important of which is curcumin.

Curcumin is the main active ingredient in turmeric. It has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and is a very strong antioxidant.

However, the curcumin content of turmeric is not that high. It’s around 3%, by weight.

Most of the studies on this herb are using turmeric extracts that contain mostly curcumin itself, with dosages usually exceeding 1 gram per day.

It would be very difficult to reach these levels just using the turmeric spice in your foods.

Therefore, if you want to experience the full effects, you need to take a supplement that contains significant amounts of curcumin.

Unfortunately, curcumin is poorly absorbed into the bloodstream.

Curcumin is also fat soluble, so it may be a good idea to take it with a fatty meal.

 

2. Curcumin Is a Natural Anti-Inflammatory Compound

Chronic inflammation contributes to many common modern diseases. Curcumin can suppress many molecules known to play major roles in inflammation.

 

3. Turmeric Dramatically Increases the Antioxidant Capacity of the Body

Oxidative damage is believed to be one of the mechanisms behind aging and many diseases.

It involves free radicals, highly reactive molecules with unpaired electrons.

Free radicals tend to react with important organic substances, such as fatty acids, proteins or DNA.

The main reason antioxidants are so beneficial is that they protect your body from free radicals.

Curcumin is a potent antioxidant that can neutralize free radicals due to its chemical structure.

Curcumin has powerful antioxidant effects. It neutralizes free radicals on its own but also stimulates your body's own antioxidant enzymes.

4. Curcumin Should Lower Your Risk of Heart Disease

Heart disease is the number 1 cause of death in the world.

Curcumin may help reverse many steps in the heart disease process.

Perhaps the main benefit of curcumin when it comes to heart disease is improving the function of the endothelium, which is the lining of your blood vessels.

Several studies suggest that curcumin leads to improvements in endothelial function.

In addition, curcumin reduces inflammation and oxidation (as discussed above), which play a role in heart disease as well.

 

5. Arthritis Patients Respond Very Well to Curcumin Supplements

 

There are several different types of Arthritis , most of which involve inflammation in the joints.

Given that curcumin is a potent anti-inflammatory compound, it makes sense that it may help with arthritis.

Several studies show this to be true.

 

6. Curcumin May Help Delay Aging and Fight Age-Related Chronic Diseases

If curcumin can really help prevent many diseases, it would have obvious benefits for longevity.

For this reason, curcumin has become very popular as an anti-aging supplement.

But given that oxidation and inflammation are believed to play a role in aging, curcumin may have effects that go way beyond just preventing disease.

 

The Bottom Line

Turmeric and especially its most active compound curcumin have many scientifically-proven health benefits, such as the potential to prevent some diseases.