Turmeric has become a massive health trend, and unlike some other less worthy trends, turmeric has some incredible proven health benefits. 

If you’re not already familiar with turmeric, it’s a bright yellow spice that’s often used in Indian cuisine such as curries. It comes as a dried powder and a fresh root, basically like a bright orange-yellow ginger! 

Some of the benefits of turmeric include:

♥ Anti-inflammatory – helps conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis

♥ Relieves depression – a recent study demonstrated that turmeric could be as effective as prozac with none of the side effects

♥ Lowers blood glucose levels – a 2009 study demonstrated how a compound in turmeric could be as effective as Metformin, a common diabetes drug

♥ High in antioxidants – antioxidants protect the body against free radicals which damage cells and can lead to disease

♥ Prevents premature ageing – because it has been shown to protect DNA against damage

Most of the research on turmeric has been done on one of its compounds known as curcumin, however there’s still benefits to taking the whole root form as many other compounds within turmeric have been shown to have a beneficial effect.

When it comes to incorporating turmeric into your diet, ensuring you have it with a source of fat will maximise absorption and adding some black pepper will increase the potency of the curcumin compound by 2000%. 

Some of my favourite ways to eat the spice include:

My turmeric latte. I make this with almond milk, although making it with soy milk could potentially increase its benefits for suffers of osteoarthritis. 

My anti-inflammatory lentil soup uses turmeric for flavour and colour in this delicious recipe.

Also try adding it to curries, scrambled eggs, roast veggies, anywhere that a little spice would be welcome. I also love making a lemon, honey, ginger and turmeric tea when I’m feeling under the weather. I simply simmer a pan of water filled with the juice of 2 lemons, 2 tablespoons of honey, some fresh chopped ginger, a teaspoon of turmeric and a pinch of black pepper. Although I’m yet to try it, adding fresh turmeric root into smoothies is a good way to enjoy its benefits as fresh and dried turmeric appear to have different strengths when it comes to their benefits. 

If you’re not able to include turmeric in your diet each day, supplements can be a good way to ensure you get all of its goodness on a regular, more convenient basis.

If you’d like to find out even more about Turmeric then check out this great resource from Healthspan with full details of how turmeric can be used to benefit your health.

Have you tried turmeric before? How do you like to incorporate it into your diet? 

*post in collaboration with Healthspan