Health: Turmeric supplements

[Bizet]

So, I brought a bottle of turmeric supplements today.

Turmeric is supposed to be really good for you. It has crazy anti-inflammatory properties, it can help prevent Alzheimer’s and even cancer. Turmeric can also apparently lower estrogen levels in men and help with weight loss, which is the main reason I've decided to try it.

Have any of you guys tried supplementing with this stuff? I’ll report back with my results in a few weeks.

 

[samsamsam]

Never tried it but definitely curious if it can deliver on the claims. Thanks, looking forward to your feedback on it.

 

[tarquin]

I used a little for a while back to alleviate joint pain. I didn't take it regularly enough to experience results.

 

[ball dont lie]

I try to eat several grams every few days to reduce inflammation in the body.

I don't take it as a medicine, I cook with it. I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of the taste but I stir-fry with it.

Key point: its a waxy substance and is not easily digested. If you cook with it, cook with a good olive oil and add pepper. Black pepper increases absorption rates by a 1000% percent. I've read that just eating normal turmeric used for cooking won't do anything as its not absorbed through the stomach. There are expensive kinds of turmeric which are more easily absorbed though if you want to take it as a medicine.

 

[GlockTrigga]

I take it for hangover, certain aches/pains. Has helped in the past with feeling down from lack of sleep.

 

[el mechanico]

When you guys are talking about inflammation what does that mean?

I do take it but haven't noticed? But, just one capsule every other day. The reasoning is I read great things about it.

 

[reliquary]

I had horrendous acne for years, which is essentially inflammation of the body on the surface. I knew this because I kept perfect facial hygiene so it wasn't pores getting clogged or whatever other BS the doctors told me to get prescriptions for creams that cost several hundred dollars.

I actually started taking turmeric to recover from a muscle injury faster and found to my amazement that my acne also disappeared. I now pair it with neem, another anti-inflammatory and systemic purifier, each day as an anti-inflammation regimen. I'm saving thousands of dollars by not buying creams and scrubs.

Just a word of caution; taking too much can cause stomach ulcers. If that happens, stop for a week and you'll be fine. Got really confused when that happened to me for a brief spell.

Here's the brand I use. Really cheap for the amount and quality. It is not an affiliate link.
http://www.amazon.com/Turmeric-720-...e=UTF8&qid=1424745650&sr=8-1&keywords=swanson

 

[kbell]

Basically inflammation in this case is when the body attacks itself a little too efficiently. when you get sick you sometimes get a fever and to help kill the infection. An example of this being bad is in allergies where the body thinks the food is a disease and attacks it like a disease. Turmeric should reduce this attack somewhat in theory. Turmeric helps reduce inflammation to a degree although I only take about 900 mg a day. Supposedly I need 3500 mg to get the full benefit, but it seems to help. Its very expensive in pill form locally. I might have to try that swanson next time.

 

[rdvirus]

I looked into buying some but couldn't find any that included black pepper. They all seemed really expensive too. I saw turmeric at the grocery store in the bulk bins for a fraction of the cost but I don't know how the quality compares. Maybe capping it and throwing in pepper myself would be worthwhile.. seems like it's mandatory to include black pepper alongside it.

 

[NikFromNYC]

Another way to supplement is to buy a bottle of it at the grocer and just mix it into Gulden's mustard which is already the best tasting cheap brand based on turmeric, then use it as a regular condiment. Yum!

 

[GlockTrigga]

In short, inflammation makes you feel like shit. But many people deal with poor health for so long they lose the sensitivity to realize what is inflammation and how it feels like.

 

[Global Entry]

Inflammation can be combatted through many different ways, turmeric is one approach that is more acute. I take a pH product as well, its not turmeric based and I drink it with water. Other suggested ways to keep your pH where it needs to be (and that place is 7.0, closest to water, not acidic and not basic) - avoid dairy. Dairy creates acidity (so does a lot of meat, but I imagine in this crowd, few want to hear that). Eat a lot of green (and other) vegetables. Strangely, a tsp of apple cider vinegar in warm water each morning, despite it being an acid, offsets acidity because of the way the body reacts to ingesting the vinegar directly. Vegetable juicing is also effective for moderating acidity in the body (aside from its other significant benefits).

pH affects your skin, your overall experience with aging (a lot of things people associate with aging are really associated with pH and acidity,such as joint pain and arthritis) and the speed at which you heal from an injury. Water pH is optimal for recovery (hence the discussion about trying to flush muscles of acidity build up from working out) and for cel growth, so there is a lot more to this then some realize.

 

[samsamsam]

GE, did you have to test your PH levels before figuring how much balancing you needed? May I ask how long you have been taking the PH product? Results have been good? Do you recommend a particular product?Thanks.

 

[Global Entry]

Sam, I haven't, and I am not a good control subject because (1) I very rarely eat meat other than fish/seafood, (2) i've been on a pH lowering regimen for years, in one form or another, and (3) I didn't take the time I should have to do more than a basic screening, I just dove into it.

I take a product called ph-Pro. Its also not cheap. Its from a very well regarded supplements company (they don't use any additives at all like gelatin or stearates in their supplements). Made in US, in Austin TX by Premier Research labs.

I think any of these ways could work well - juicing (for the additional benefits) and avoiding dairy are probably the best two as an easy low-cost combo. Dairy is for infant mammals - I do eat cheese and maybe little bit of other dairy, but I keep in mind that humans are pretty much the only adult mammals which consume dairy.

 

[kbell]

Careful with this supplement. It can stain teeth yellow and it like to stain around the gums. It required a heavy duty power washing/dental aqua pick to get it off. Ideally you brush around the gums soon after you take it.

 

[samsamsam]

Careful with this supplement. It can stain teeth yellow and it like to stain around the gums. It required a heavy duty power washing/dental aqua pick to get it off. Ideally you brush around the gums soon after you take it.

Only in powder form right? I imagine in pill it should be alright,.

 

[GlockTrigga]

They add certain spices in curry to prevent the turmeric from staining too much. I don't remember what herb that was but maybe ask at an Indian restaurant and they will know.

 

[kbell]

It was the pill form.

 

[The Reactionary Tree]

You are talking about Curcumin.

I use it twice daily for inflammation to aid in my recovery from doing my 5x5. The science supports that it does indeed work for inflammation. According to the link I posted above, it can also be used to increase HDL (the good cholesterol) and lower LDL (the bad cholesterol).

I use the NOW brand for most of my supplements.

 

[Hypno]

any update on curcumin?

is it better to take it as an extract in pill form, or raw as tumeric and black pepper?

raw would be much cheaper but I guess if you want 2-3g dose per day it would be difficult to ingest that much, especially with black pepper?