Can improve thyroid functions
Turmeric is a rich source of many vitamins and minerals, including manganese. In fact, just 2 teaspoons provides 17% of your daily recommended intake of this vital mineral. What does manganese do for you? For one, it helps maintain proper thyroid function. It has been estimated that 200 million people in the world have some form of thyroid disease. In Canada, 30% of the population suffer from a thyroid condition.
Of those, as many as 50% remain undiagnosed. The thyroid gland plays a crucial role in our overall health. If it is not operating at peak performance, it can produce life-altering symptoms that impact your health and happiness. What are some signs that your thyroid might be a bit sluggish? Dry or gritty eyes, thinning hair, weight gain, numbness or tingling in any area of the body, constipation, tinnitus, heart palpitations, dry skin, fatigue, feeling cold… do any of these ring a bell?
You can see why it’s important to have your thyroid in proper working condition, and turmeric provides the manganese you need that could help do that. Plus, it helps with hormone synthesis which benefits a wide variety of health issues like weight loss, appetite, metabolism, and organ efficiency. It also helps with vitamin absorption for vitamins like B & E, and also magnesium, meaning manganese helps you get more out of the healthy foods you’re eating!
A good source of pigment rich vitamins
Finally, turmeric is a good source of other vitamins and minerals, such as iron, fibre, vitamin B6, copper, and potassium. In just 2 teaspoons, it has 10% of your recommended iron intake. We know that iron is mainly an aid in our energy, since it helps metabolize proteins and plays a role in the production of hemoglobin and red blood cells. But it’s important to not just get iron from red meat, as this can actually cause a burden on the body. Turmeric is a great meat-free source of iron! And what about vitamin B6? 2 teaspoons contain 5% of your daily B6 intake, which helps to stimulate co-enzyme activities, protect the immune system, and produce positive effects on things like metabolism, PMS, hormones, skin conditions, and the like.
There you have it – 7 benefits of including turmeric in your diet. There are other benefits, of course, but we think these are the all-star awesome ones! You might be thinking, that’s all well and good, but how do you use turmeric?
First of all, you can find turmeric as a spice like Simply Organic’s Ground Turmeric, or in the bulk herbs & spices section at any Goodness Me!; or you can get it in a supplement form like Botanica’s Liquid Turmeric, MegaFood Daily Turmeric that you can mix into smoothies, recipes, and drinks, and Natural Factors TheraCumin, which is a potent source of the curcumin we talked about earlier.