If you are feeling tightness in your chest, shortness of breath, feeling confused – these are the warning signs of heart attack, stroke, or angina. You wish to reverse these symptoms of heart disease using some home remedies. I will help you to solve your question: “can turmeric reverse heart disease.”
Do you know that turmeric is versatile spice widely used in cooking and that turmeric has several health benefits? To solve your problem, I have made this small guide to help you out.
So hold on to your seat and be with me till the end of the guide so you get valuable information out of it.
This guide is mainly focused on what is turmeric, what is curcumin, several health benefits of turmeric and its active material curcumin, how it helps prevent heart attack and so on.
What is Turmeric?
Turmeric is a spice that has received much interest from both the medical/scientific worlds as well as from the culinary world. Turmeric is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant (Curcuma longa) of the ginger family.
Table of Contents
What is Curcumin?
The active agent present in turmeric is called as curcumin. Curcumin is a bright yellow chemical produced by plants of the Curcuma longa species. It is the principal curcuminoid of turmeric (Curcuma longa), a member of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is sold as an herbal supplement, cosmetics ingredient, food flavoring, and food coloring.
Chemically, curcumin is a diarylheptanoid, belonging to the group of curcuminoids, which are natural phenols responsible for turmeric’s yellow color. It is a Keto–enol tautomer, existing in enolic form in organic solvents and in keto form in water.
Health Benefits of Turmeric and Curcumin
Curcumin has received worldwide attention for its multiple health benefits, which appear to act primarily through its anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory mechanisms.
The following are 10 benefits of turmeric:
Turmeric is good for your brain
Turmeric is very helpful in wound healing because of its antibacterial activity
Turmeric is good for liver and digestion
Turmeric supports hormonal balance
Turmeric is useful in controlling diabetes
Turmeric is useful in arthritis
Turmeric increases immunity
Turmeric helps in shedding extra weight.
Turmeric helps in liver detox and colon detox
Turmeric is helpful is preventing chronic diseases.
Turmeric lowers cholesterol levels
Clinical studies carried out with curcumin
Several preclinical trials have been carried out with curcumin to evaluate its safety and efficacy against a diverse range of human diseases as shown in the following image:
Activity of curcumin against different human diseases based on clinical findings
Turmeric and heart disease reversal: can turmeric reverse heart disease.
Can turmeric reverse heart disease? If turmeric or curcumin can remove the plaque attached to arteries, then it is possible to reverse heart disease.
The finding of the study on curcumin and heart disease are being presented In July 20, 2009 at the American Heart Association’s Basic Cardiovascular Sciences Annual Conference in Las Vegas.
Previous studies in rats showed that curcumin had the power to prevent heart failure. Turmeric-based compounds have also been touted as potential treatments for Alzheimer’s, arthritis, and breast cancer.
The current study suggests curcumin may thwart the development of atherosclerosis, or clogged arteries, a key risk factor for heart attacks and strokes.
Researchers in France fed 20 mice a diet supplemented with curcumin or a comparison diet not supplemented with curcumin. After 16 weeks, mice fed on the curcumin-based diet had a 26% reduction in fatty deposits in their arteries compared to mice on the comparison diet.
In addition, curcumin appeared to alter the genetic signaling involved in plaque buildup at the molecular level.
Turmeric protects the patients at the risk of CVD by improving serum lipid levels. Maintaining healthy cholesterol is very important to lead a healthy life.
Is the reversal of heart disease 100%?
Turmeric / curcumin has been shown to lower lipoprotein (a) levels in the blood stream. One study shows that curcumin does lower lipoprotein a which is a protective armor of LDL cholesterol.
Lowering of lipoprotein a indicates that progression of atherosclerosis in halted. Even a small decrease in in size of atherosclerotic plaque increases blood flow to the heart and reduces angina pain, blood pressure, triglycerides.
For 100% reversal it is necessary that the arteries be strengthened by promoting collagen synthesis. Vitamin c supplements containing vitamin C, lysine and proline are very effective in prevention and reversal of heart disease. One such example is the Pauling therapy essentials formula
How to take turmeric?
You can use it as a spice and add it in the food that you cook like vegetables, curry etc.
You can add turmeric power to milk, shake it for a while and drink it.
You can add ½ spoon turmeric to cottage cheese or yogurt and consume it.
Tablets, capsules of turmeric or curcumin are also available.
Conclusion
We have seen that turmeric can reverse heart disease by improving serum lipid levels and removing clogged arteries. The removal of plaque may not be 100% but even then it is useful for controlling cardiovascular diseases because of its antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory activity.
Pingback: What causes High Cholesterol? Saturated Fats or Nutrient Deficiency