It is a key ingredient of many Indian dishes and more recently a very popular food coloring for “golden lattes”, “sunshine smoothies” and bright yellow energy balls. I suggest that you read my post of October 29, 2019, “Honey and Turmeric….” if you haven’t already done so.
But turmeric is more than just another faddy superfood. It’s a natural anti-inflammatory, and studies have shown that it can be as effective as ibuprofen for pain relief, while speeding up your post-training recovery.
New research suggest it might be beneficial for another group of people also: Older athletes looking to maintain muscle mass.
In a study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, scientists wanted to investigate weather curcumin – the active compound in turmeric – might be able to stave off age-related muscle loss.
To do this, they fed old rats (not gym rats, actual rats) a diet with or without curcumin for four months and found that those who were supplemented with turmeric retained significantly more muscle mass. The good news is that they’re optimistic that this effect might carry over to humans too.
Either way, it sounds like an excellent excuse to add turmeric to your food.
For instance, we in Turkey usually eat a cold vegetable dish cooked in olive oil after the main meal. My wife puts turmeric in almost all of them; it even makes them taste better.
Try it, you’ll like it.
That’s it for now, see you all the next time.
