Turmeric: History behind One of World’s Healthiest Spices

Written by - Reviewed by Consumer Health Digest Team

Published: Jun 19, 2018 | Last Updated: Dec 5, 2019

Turmeric

Turmeric is a rich golden-colored spice that is strongly flavored and has been used all over the world for centuries. Although it has often been used as a spice, in recent years, its benefits within the health and nutrition fields have been a key focus with some people even considering turmeric the world’s healthiest food.

The Botanical name for Turmeric is Curcuma Longa. The plant itself is barely three feet tall. It produces both flowers and the rhizome or tuber that is harvested and known to many as the turmeric.

The tuber looks much like ginger root although it has a richer yellow color. This tuber is dried and ground to produce the yellow powder spice that is used in meal preparation.

Although the origin of this ingredient is not quite known, it is thought to be native to the southern part of India and Indonesia. It comes as no surprise that India is the largest producer of turmeric spice.

It is an integral part of the food and traditional medicine culture in India. It is also used in their worship as well, worn by people as part of purification processes and worshiping the sun god. The usage of this ingredient in India has been documented in Ayurveda, ancient India Medical Science, for its amazing medicinal properties.

Turmeric Info

Besides India, it was also used in other parts of the world from centuries ago. The Buddhist monks used turmeric to dye their robes into the well-known deep yellow color. It has also been a part of Chinese medicine for almost a thousand years.

It was only introduced to the western world a couple of years ago. Western herbalists only started recognizing the benefits of turmeric in the late 20th century.

In recent years, there has been a lot of research on the claim of turmeric the world’s healthiest food.

Scientists have conducted various studies and experiments to identify the benefits of turmeric, especially curcumin, one of the main components of interest.

Pharmaceutical companies have started using the extracts in the production of supplements and medication used in the medical world today.

It is not only used in the medical field in the western world but also in beauty products such as facial creams and washes.

With the history of turmeric as an integral part of Indian and Chinese herbal medicine, scientists are keen on discovering these benefits and integrating them into modern medicine.

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