Turmeric: best choice, effect & application

Golden milk, turmeric shot, or turmeric tea – the alleged superfood is on everyone’s lips.

Turmeric is said to have a healing effect for many ailments.

In the meantime, however, there are more and more critical voices that question the effectiveness of turmeric and criticize the scientific studies. Would you like to find out what turmeric can really do? Then you have come to the right place.

In our big turmeric test, we want to introduce you to the turmeric plant in more detail. You will get to know different turmeric products and learn everything you need to know about turmeric.

The most important facts in brief

• Turmeric belongs to the ginger family and originally comes from Southeast Asia. Turmeric is known for its intense yellow color and its alleged healing properties.
• Turmeric can be purchased as a fresh root, powder, or capsule form. Depending on the area of application, the dosage forms have different advantages and disadvantages. In combination with black pepper, turmeric can be better absorbed by the body.
• You should not take turmeric during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Otherwise, yellow ginger can bring various health benefits. Meanwhile, various studies exist on the effectiveness of turmeric.

Buyer’s guide for turmeric

• Dosage form.
• Dosage.
• Package size.
• Other ingredients.

By making the right choice for you, you can save money and also ensure that you do not add anything to your body that it does not need. Therefore, always pay attention to high quality and, if necessary, ask to see the manufacturer’s certificates.

Dosage form

First of all, you should consider in which form you want to buy turmeric. You can buy turmeric as powder, capsules, or fresh. Depending on the dosage and quantity, the dosage forms differ in price. Fresh turmeric or turmeric powder is the cheapest and can be purchased in supermarkets.

Meanwhile, you can also buy turmeric in liquid form. Turmeric shots are drunk pure and are often mixed with other ingredients. The same applies to turmeric concentrate, which should be taken with water or juice.

Dosage

Another purchase criterion is the dosage. Here it depends on the dosage form of turmeric. Turmeric powder or fresh turmeric you can dose yourself as you wish. The situation is different with capsules.

Which dosage is best for you depends on the purpose for which you want to take turmeric.

Here you should consult the manufacturer’s instructions. You will find all kinds of dosages on the market, from light to high dosage capsules.

Package size

The size of the package plays an important role for both turmeric powder and capsules. Here you can choose the best value for money in combination with the dosage.

If the shelf life of turmeric powder is exceeded, the intensity of the flavor often suffers.

Larger packages often offer a more favorable price. This way you can stock up and save money in the long run. If you want to test turmeric first, we recommend buying a smaller package.

Also, pay attention to the best before the date of the turmeric product. Capsules usually have a shelf life of two to three years. Turmeric powder, on the other hand, often lasts even longer. If you want to take turmeric only rarely, a smaller package size makes more sense for you.

Other ingredients

Turmeric in powder form usually consists purely of ground turmeric. In capsules, however, other ingredients are often added. The same applies to turmeric shots and concentrates. Manufacturers thus aim to sell a product with higher efficacy.

You do not have to take several powders, tablets, or capsules, but have everything in one product. However, you should take a close look at the ingredients beforehand. Allergies or intolerances should be taken into account. In addition, you should be clear about which ingredients are useful for you.

Depending on which ingredient was added, the price of the turmeric product increases. In general, you should pay attention to the quality of the ingredients.

The following ingredients are mostly found in turmeric products:

Mostly you will find turmeric products with ginger, black pepper, or piperine. Piperine is the part of black pepper that provides spiciness. The addition of both ingredients is said to increase the effectiveness of turmeric and create further benefits.

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In order to inform you comprehensively about the effectiveness of turmeric and to bring you closer to the current state of science, we have summarized all the important information in the following sections.

What is turmeric and how does it work?

Turmeric is also called Curcuma, Turmeric, turmeric, Indian saffron, or yellow ginger. The plant belongs to the ginger family and originated in Southeast Asia. Known for its yellow color, you will find turmeric, for example, as an ingredient in curry on the spice shelf.

The substance in turmeric that is said to have a healing effect is called curcumin.

Nowadays, turmeric is available in a wide variety of dosage forms. Turmeric can be used both internally and externally. Yellow ginger is considered a remedy for various ailments The effectiveness of turmeric is being investigated in various studies. However, turmeric is known to give false-positive results in studies. Many of the studies were not conducted on humans.

It is questionable whether these studies can be extrapolated to humans. In addition, turmeric in its pure form has low bioavailability.

Did you know that bioavailability is a measurement from pharmacology?

Bioavailability provides information about the extent and rate at which a drug is absorbed and available at the site where it is supposed to act.

In the following section, we have listed some of the effects of turmeric that have been studied.

• Relief from digestive complaints

Due to its anti-inflammatory effect, the active ingredient curcumin is said to help especially in cases of inflammation of the gastric mucosa or intestines. Thus, turmeric can contribute to the relief of digestive problems.

• Anti-inflammatory effect

Various studies deal with the anti-inflammatory effect of turmeric. First, there is a study that concluded that curcumin can curb inflammation in multiple sclerosis. Thus, symptoms and discomfort associated with MS are reduced.

• Promotion of weight loss

Turmeric may contribute to weight loss. Overweight subjects treated with turmeric lost weight faster when combined with diet. Turmeric may promote bodyweight reduction. More clinical studies are needed to make more accurate conclusions.

Taking turmeric products is useful for anyone who wants to do something good for their body. In order to achieve effects, you need to take a high dose of curcumin over a long period of time.

Depending on what you want to take turmeric for, the recommended dosage differs. Below you will find the applications of turmeric. Note that not all areas have scientific evidence of effectiveness.

• Strengthening the immune system.
• Improving skin, hair, and nails.
• Against Alzheimer.
• Against cancer.
• Against Multiple Sclerosis.
• Lowering the cholesterol level.
• Lowering blood sugar levels.
• Relieves digestive problems.
• Against rheumatism.
• Weight reduction.
• Relief from pain.

Experts advise against taking turmeric during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

After you have already learned a lot about the yellow ginger, we would now like to introduce you to the various turmeric products. Meanwhile, turmeric has become a real trend and you can find turmeric shots or teas in the supermarket. Also the golden milk is drunk by more and more people with pleasure.

In general, you can distinguish between the following turmeric products:

• Fresh turmeric root.
• Turmeric powder.
• Turmeric capsules.

Fresh turmeric root

You can buy fresh turmeric in the supermarket or on the internet. The appearance of the turmeric root is similar to that of a ginger root – but the turmeric root is smaller. You have the advantage of being able to grow your own turmeric with the help of fresh turmeric. So you have fresh yellow ginger at home in the future.

The fresh root is also not added with other ingredients or preservatives and thus has a high quality. In addition, this form of turmeric is comparatively cheap.

Advantages:

• Own cultivation possible.
• High quality.
• Inexpensive.

Disadvantages:

• Low bioavailability.
• Roots go bad quickly.
• Low dosage.

One disadvantage of fresh turmeric is its low bioavailability. Pure turmeric can only be poorly absorbed by the body. In addition, the dosage of the active ingredient curcumin in the fresh root is rather low and you would have to consume a high amount to achieve desired effects.

You can usually buy the turmeric only packaged, so you acquire a larger amount. If you don’t use up the turmeric roots quickly enough, they will go bad.

Turmeric powder

You can also buy the turmeric root ground, as a powder. One advantage of this is that the powder is versatile. You can use it for seasoning dishes, as well as drink it in combination with other supplements.

How much turmeric powder you use is up to you. Just like the fresh turmeric root, the ground powder is also rather cheap compared to the capsules.

Advantages:

• Versatile use.
• Own dosage possible.
• Inexpensive.

Disadvantages:

• Low bioavailability.
• Loses aroma after the best before date is exceeded.
• Intense taste.

Just like fresh turmeric, the bioavailability of the powder is low. Again, the amount you need to ingest to get an effect is rather high. The taste of turmeric powder is very intense. If you don’t like the taste, this is a disadvantage. The powders can often be purchased in large quantities at a discounted price. If the best before date is exceeded, the powder loses its flavor.

Turmeric Capsules

Turmeric capsules can be purchased in different sizes. Thus, you can purchase a small package for testing and if you want to continue using the capsules, use larger packages.

Since the capsules are mostly high dosed, you can easily take a high concentration of turmeric. The capsules often contain piperine or other substances that increase bioavailability. Taking the capsules is, therefore, more efficient.

Advantages:

• Different package sizes.
• Easy intake of a high concentration.
• Partially higher bioavailability.

Disadvantages:

• Partially mixed with other ingredients
• Prescription of the dosage
• Size of the capsules

The fact that the capsules are still mixed with other ingredients, but can also be a disadvantage. Possible allergies or intolerances should definitely be taken into account here.

In addition, you can not determine the dosage yourself but are bound to the dosage of the capsule. You should follow the manufacturer’s recommendations and not exceed them. If you have a problem swallowing larger capsules or tablets, this can also be a disadvantage.