Discovered: Indian spice reduces Alzheimer's symptoms by 30%
Turmeric, a widely available and popular spice, can keep the brain sharp -- naturally.
By Starre VartanMon, Jul 19 2010 at 8:42 AM EST
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Photo: Ciambue/Flickr Despite millions spent on drug research and development, one of the more promising treatments for Alzheimer's disease (a progressive brain disorder that affects more than 5 million Americans) is found in a substance widely known for its ability to spice (and color) food.
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Like other brightly colored foods (think blueberries, pomegranates and tomatoes), it is the compound that gives turmeric its color that makes it a powerful antioxidant — in this case, curcumin. And like the lycopene in tomatoes and the beta-carotene in carrots, bright orange-yellow curcumin has some seriously amazing health benefits. Preliminary clinical studies show curcumin helps reduce beta amyloid plaque in the brains of people with Alzheimer's (and prevent plaque buildup in people who don't have the disease).
This plaque is the key to understanding — and preventing — the disease. As the NY Times recently reported:
The disease is defined by freckles of barnacle-like piles of a protein fragment, amyloid beta, in the brain. So, the current thinking goes, if you block amyloid formation or get rid of amyloid accumulations — plaque — and if you start treatment before the disease is well under way, you might have a chance to alter its course.
According to Terry Lemerond, founder and president of Europharma, "Most brain researchers and Alzheimer’s specialists believe that preventing or reducing beta amyloid plaque in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease is important. Beta amyloid plaque interferes with proper brain function and contributes to dementia."
Eating lots of turmeric isn't the only option to get a regular dose of the stuff (though it's a delicious one). Curcumin extracts are available in pill form, which is how the compound has been used in clinical trials, including the one published in the Journal of Neurochemistry. That trial found a 30 percent decrease in the size of Alzheimer's-associated brain plaque in treated mice in just one week.
Alzheimer's isn't the only condition that might be affected by the brightly-colored spice: "Curcumin has been proven to be an extraordinarily potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound. These properties make it effective for cancer (prevention and treatment), arthritis, liver disease, irritable bowel syndrome, depression, and many other health issues — all demonstrated in clinical studies," says Lemerond.
To boost the efficacy of the curcumin compound, some studies show that it should be ingested with Vitamin D supplements. The two substances then work together to stimulate a type of immune cell that can "clean up" the beta amyloid more quickly and thoroughly.
More research is needed. According to Lemerond, "Alzheimer’s is a very complex disease, and forestalling, or even reversing, dementia is not as simple as reducing plaque."
For further reading:
- Drug trials test bold plan to slow Alzheimer's
- Curcumin studies look at treating dementia and memory loss
- More from the Journal of Neuroscience
Editor's note: This story has been edited for clarity and to add more source materials. Thanks to our readers for providing more scientific references.
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Comments
indian spices
11/21/2011 07:56 AM
I am very happy to read your articles it’s very useful for me,and I am completely satisfied with your website.All comments and articles are very useful and very good.
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Indian Spices
Johnclave
02/22/2011 00:13 AM
Yes thats right it is found that indian spices helps to reduce the possibility of Alzheimer's disease to some extend and is useful and a natural method for more information visit
.... More
johnexo
02/11/2011 01:48 AM
Due to various effects of curcumin, such as decreased Beta-amyloid plaques, delayed degradation of neurons, metal-chelation, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and decreased microglia formation, the overall memory in patients with AD has improved.
Alzheimer's Symptom
Grumpy Old Fart
Today 06:08 AM
Crap! I forgot what I was going to type.
lilian
Today 10:24 AM
you haven't mentioned who discovered spices
Cosmic john
07/24/2010 07:50 AM
Turmeric is also a blood purifier.Antibiotic, powdered good for putting on open sores,cuts,etc.usefull when nothing else available out in the field.
Santi vardhana Caitanya dasa
07/21/2010 02:46 AM
Turmeric is also known for it's ability to reduce cholesterol levels in body. Add grinned turmeric powder in water half hour before breakfast daily.
Steve
07/20/2010 17:08 PM
I read a study done recently that indicated plaque isn't the problem in the first place but rather is part of the body's defenses to slow down the disease. If the billions of dollars in meds designed to reduce plaque won't help, I'm guessing curcumin won't either. Eat right and exercise while you're young!
mike
07/20/2010 14:37 PM
I read a while ago that these spices contained lead and other unsafe metals lol now they can improve dementia funny
Quackery
07/20/2010 11:43 AM
So, they have a "study" that indicates a 30% reduction in brain plaques in only one week?!?! That sounds too good to be true, doesn't it?
Reading further, we find that the highly questionable study actually finds that it doesn't really seem to have any effect on Alzheimer's at all but, they are willing to spend more money "researching" it.
Still more checking shows us that a source for the article, Terry Lemerond, makes his living selling "Curamin" pills, along with other.... More
Tim
07/20/2010 00:35 AM
Thanks for all the sources guys/gals. Really helped!
wobble
07/19/2010 23:54 PM
Asisan -> Asian
Tumeric -> Turmeric
dave cortesi
07/19/2010 23:19 PM
The common spice is correctly spelled tuRmeric.
estaples
07/19/2010 23:01 PM
Although more studies need to be done, it's important to recognize trying new supplements. My mom struggles with arthritis and she is now trying the new pill and it certainly doesn't make anything worse.
Gabriel
07/19/2010 22:49 PM
go to pubmed central: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez
and search "curcumin" for 867 journal articles, all free to download.
For example, "Curcumin Structure-Function, Bioavailability, and Efficacy in Models of Neuroinflammation and Alzheimer’s Disease" - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2527621/?tool=pmcentrez&repo...
Also, it's tuRmeric..
Salculd
07/19/2010 22:40 PM
This article is somewhat superlative, but there do, in fact, appear to be encouraging results in preliminary trials in humans regarding this:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2827376/?tool=pubmed
There are several reputable, cross-referenced studies and papers in the "Curcumin and AD" section of that
Transien
07/19/2010 22:36 PM
Curcumin and Alzheimer's Disease
Tsuyoshi Hamaguchi 1,2 , Kenjiro Ono 1 & Masahito Yamada 1
1 Department of Neurology and Neurobiology of Aging, Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medical Science, 13-1 Takara-Machi, Kanazawa, Japan 2 Department of Cellular Neurology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Otfried-Müller Strasse 27, Tübingen, Germany
Abstract states that "oral administration of curcumin has resulted in the.... More
Jerry
07/19/2010 22:10 PM
Can we get more sources for validation? References to said studies etc. Is Cucumin to be sold as an over the counter drug?
steve
07/19/2010 22:04 PM
Sounds like someone has an over supply of curcumin and needs to shift it. "I know, I will say there is a study that says its treats Alzheimers and I will sell the lot. I will say its from a mythical place and that ancient people have known about it for years, no proof required, job done, gullable idiots fooled again"
bob
07/19/2010 21:52 PM
'previously known only for its ability to spice (and color) food'
Tumeric has been known for its medicinal properties for centuries.
Typical western ignorance.
Metformin
01/03/2011 23:23 PM
"Typical western ignorance" ??? A writer fails to acknowledge a perspective you expect to hear, and your response is that its "typical western ignorance"? That little fact in your head is just POUNDING away, wanting to be recognized, isn't it? You need people to know that turmeric has been used as a (traditional) medicine for centuries. But, the omission must be a form a 'western ignorance', mustn't it?
In the West turmeric has been used as a spice and as a food coloring agent. .... More
tom
07/19/2010 21:43 PM
"Curcumin has been found in clinical studies..."
Can we have a reference to these studies?
Thanks
