The Power of Turmeric

The Power of Turmeric

In recent times, turmeric or curcumin had become so popular. It is sold as a health care supplement and research after research is being done on the benefits of turmeric. For me, it was a bit odd to understand why turmeric is being sold as capsules when turmeric is so readily available especially in south east Asia.

I remember the time when I was small and got hurt like a cut, grandma would make a quick turmeric paste and rub it on my wound. It will really hurt but it heals the fastest! So it is an anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial. Every time there is auspicious occasion in the house, mum will mix some turmeric powder with some water and sprinkle it around the home. Yes, the yellow stains will be there but the entire house is filled with an amazing ambience. If you are in Malaysia and witnessed the recent ‘Ponggal Festival’ (the Harvest Festival), you will notice that they actually tie the turmeric rhizome plant around the mouth of the cooking pot before making the ‘Ponggal’ (sweet rice) itself. It is that powerful as an energy cleanser!

If my son is down with flu, I will boil some milk and add some turmeric, ground black pepper and some sugar. We hardly went to visit a doctor for fever and flu. Again, turmeric is an excellent anti-inflammatory agent.

I remember those days before the ‘face wash’ products became famous, we had turmeric (a hard wood) and a rough surfaced stone in our bathroom. We would rub the dry turmeric root on the rough surfaced stone and take the paste to rub it on our faces and body. I can’t remember which old lady said that it will make our tanned skin look brighter! Can you remember seeing any Indian lady who had a yellowish face? Well, it’s definitely not to make our skin fairer but it has amazing properties that a ‘face wash’ might lack. Hardly you will find a pimple or a skin breakout on their faces. Nowadays, turmeric is added in most beauty topical cream. Once again it works as a cleanser, an anti-bacterial agent and an anti-inflammatory agent.

Fresh turmeric used in cooking in most asian dishes.

Almost every Indian dish, or at least when I cook, I will definitely add turmeric in my cooking. I strongly believe the amazing properties in turmeric is highly beneficial to human beings on the whole! If it can heal the outer wound effectively, imagine how it heals our internal system if we consume turmeric on a daily basis. Probably I can share some recipes of how turmeric can be used cooking in my upcoming posts.

The picture above is the milk mix with turmeric, black pepper and some sugar for cold and flu relieve!

Stemians, please do comment of how this article may have benefited you so I can continue writing more of these type of topics. Thank you.