Description

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a rhizome, a herbaceous perennial plant of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, which is native to tropical South Asia. 

Uses and Cultivation

Turmeric has been widely used for centuries as a spice in Indian and other South Asian cooking.  It is also used to give a yellow color to some prepared mustards, canned chicken broths and other foods (often as a much cheaper replacement for saffron).  Turmeric is an ancient spice, also used from antiquity as dye and a condiment.  It is in fact one of the less expensive spices.

Turmeric, known also as curcumin, is ground from the underground stem of the plant.  As a spice, it is always used in ground form.  The plant thrives in the tropics and sub tropics where it requires a hot, moist climate and a fairly light soil. 

In Ayurvedic medicine, turmeric is thought to have many medicinal properties and many in India use it as a readily available antiseptic for cuts and burns.  Only recently have Western scientists begun to recognize the medicinal properties of turmeric.  Study of this fascinating plant continues in various universities around the world.  Biochemical Pharmacology is an international journal devoted to publishing original work on the interaction of drugs and nontherapeutic xenobiotics with biological systems.  Much of the research on turmeric is reported in this journal.

Epidemiological studies have linked the frequent use of turmeric to lower rates of breast, prostate, lung and colon cancer; laboratory experiments have shown curcumin may prevent tumors from forming in research mice; and research conducted at the University of Texas suggests that even when breast cancer is already present, curcumin can help slow the spread of breast cancer cells to the lungs in mice.  According to researchers at Rutgers University, New Jersey, this curry spice has the potential for the treatment and prevention of prostate cancer.  The researchers believe the combination of cruciferous vegetables and curcumin could be an effective therapy not only to prevent prostate cancer, but to inhibit the spread of established prostate cancers. 

Turmeric is known in native cultures to have anti-inflammatory effects, so it may be used to treat arthritis and other inflammatory conditions; it is also considered a strong antioxidant and may be antiviral.  There may also be value in its ability to increase the body’s use of cholesterol by promoting the production of bile. 

Because the value of turmeric (curcumin) is only beginning to be identified, research on its effects will likely increase dramatically in the future.