Turmeric...Is it as beneficial as people say?

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Replies

  • kzooyogi
    kzooyogi Posts: 121 Member
    Turmeric isn't magic for weight loss or metabolism, but IS great for your gut flora and as an overall natural anti-inflammatory. You can make a tincture with turmeric, coconut water, black pepper, ginger, and any other spices you like and take a shot of that every day. Just be sure that when you're eating/drinking it, you include black pepper. Black pepper increases the bioavailability of curcurmin, the anti-inflammatory compound in turmeric. Also, if you take a shot of it, be sure to wipe your teeth off with a clean napkin or else they will stain yellow!
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    kzooyogi wrote: »
    Turmeric isn't magic for weight loss or metabolism, but IS great for your gut flora and as an overall natural anti-inflammatory. You can make a tincture with turmeric, coconut water, black pepper, ginger, and any other spices you like and take a shot of that every day. Just be sure that when you're eating/drinking it, you include black pepper. Black pepper increases the bioavailability of curcurmin, the anti-inflammatory compound in turmeric. Also, if you take a shot of it, be sure to wipe your teeth off with a clean napkin or else they will stain yellow!

    And what is your source for all of this?
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    elka67 wrote: »
    JaiDessaT wrote: »
    It was a joke on my part. It does nothing. Just like apple cider vinegar.

    Great on food for a seasoning.
    That's about it.

    It's anti-inflammatory.

    I didn't know this before reading this thread, I'm currently trying ginger for the same reasons (mild osteo-arthritis), if it doesn't help I might look into giving it a try. Thank you.

    Plus I have now ordered all the ingreds for the Nigella soup. Will cook it tomorrow, sounds delicious. Thank u to GottaBurnEmAll for the recipe x

    Ginger and turmeric are in the same family of plants and both contain curcumin (the active ingredient). Ginger just has less of it
  • elka67
    elka67 Posts: 268 Member
    earlnabby wrote: »
    elka67 wrote: »
    JaiDessaT wrote: »
    It was a joke on my part. It does nothing. Just like apple cider vinegar.

    Great on food for a seasoning.
    That's about it.

    It's anti-inflammatory.

    I didn't know this before reading this thread, I'm currently trying ginger for the same reasons (mild osteo-arthritis), if it doesn't help I might look into giving it a try. Thank you.

    Plus I have now ordered all the ingreds for the Nigella soup. Will cook it tomorrow, sounds delicious. Thank u to GottaBurnEmAll for the recipe x

    Ginger and turmeric are in the same family of plants and both contain curcumin (the active ingredient). Ginger just has less of it

    Very interesting, thank u.
  • cmtigger
    cmtigger Posts: 1,450 Member
    Afura wrote: »
    SR1986 wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Turmeric is supposedly great for you. I've read it's a great inflammatory. As well as its benefits to helping facilitate weight loss. I'm big into natural supplements. Not "diet pills" pushed by big companies. We all know that there's no magic pill. It's a lifestyle change and working with portion control, eating the right foods, along with supplements help that make our bodies change. I did read something about turmeric that I want to share with you guys without a supplement called biopryn added to or taken alongside the turmeric our bodies just don't digest and use the turmeric to its full potential. The biopryn increases turmeric absorption by 2000%!!! I don't remember where I saw it, but Google will surely bring it up if you're interested in learning more. I'm looking into finding some turmeric with it already added. PS I also read that brushing your teeth with it can whiten them. Not sure if that's true though.

    The anti-inflammatory properties have been discussed.

    I'm curious what benefits you think turmeric has for facilitating weight loss?

    http://www.turmericforhealth.com/turmeric-benefits/turmeric-and-weight-loss

    I can't trust a website called "tumericforhealth" to not try and feed me only the benefits of it. But if you want to pull out your bullcrap bingo card, that place is a gold mine. I do believe that it is helpful as an anti-inflammatory, but weight loss? No.

    And while I appreciate them posting a study on Mitigation of Systemic Oxidative Stress by Curcuminoids in Osteoarthritis (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25688638), you can't take an article where it says "These antioxidant effects may account for the reported therapeutic effects of curcuminoids in relieving osteoarthritis symptoms." and turn around and say "Researchers concluded that short term supplementation of curcuminoids alleviate oxidative stress in osteoarthritis."

    I posted that and a summary article. I got a "but I feel better several days after starting to take it."

    I also often feel better several days after a pain flare, it's a cycle even without tumeric.
  • KombuchaKat
    KombuchaKat Posts: 134 Member
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Basically it helps detoxify the liver (the organ most responsible for fat burning)

    Hum...never heard this. A better supplement to detox the liver would be Glutathione or maybe some MSM? I would not take turmeric expecting it to detox the liver.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Basically it helps detoxify the liver (the organ most responsible for fat burning)

    Hum...never heard this. A better supplement to detox the liver would be Glutathione or maybe some MSM? I would not take turmeric expecting it to detox the liver.

    What toxins do glutathione or MSM remove from your liver?
  • CorneliusPhoton
    CorneliusPhoton Posts: 965 Member
    There is no way to measure whether or not it "works" or what "results" can come from it. While there may be some health benefits from including it in your diet, it is not something that directly aids in weight loss.
  • KombuchaKat
    KombuchaKat Posts: 134 Member
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Sorry just pointing out that you need to vet your sources better not personally attacking you.

    Did I not say SEVERAL times that I read it?! Did I not say I wasn't sure and to Google it? I read it on a website WEEKS ago looking up healthier alternatives to pre bottled smoothies and expensive health drinks. I don't know what website it was. Hence saying to check it out on your own. I was simply stating what I read, whilst making sure to mention regularly that I had only read it somewhere.

    Yeah I've had this happen to me many times on here. Don't even bother answering the people with snarky remarks or asking you to post a link for "proof." Especially on something like turmeric where I think at this point we can share our personal experiences with it but there's not much "science." Which even the science stuff changes all the time and anyone can find a link to back up whatever their claim is. I have used turmeric for years and feel that it does have benefits (I read your other post about teeth whitening and actually did brush with it for a while...it worked OK but it was kind of messy and stained my sink so I stopped...some of the Ayurvedic uses like that are from before modern things like toothpaste).
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  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    edited February 2017
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Sorry just pointing out that you need to vet your sources better not personally attacking you.

    Did I not say SEVERAL times that I read it?! Did I not say I wasn't sure and to Google it? I read it on a website WEEKS ago looking up healthier alternatives to pre bottled smoothies and expensive health drinks. I don't know what website it was. Hence saying to check it out on your own. I was simply stating what I read, whilst making sure to mention regularly that I had only read it somewhere.

    Yeah I've had this happen to me many times on here. Don't even bother answering the people with snarky remarks or asking you to post a link for "proof." Especially on something like turmeric where I think at this point we can share our personal experiences with it but there's not much "science." Which even the science stuff changes all the time and anyone can find a link to back up whatever their claim is. I have used turmeric for years and feel that it does have benefits (I read your other post about teeth whitening and actually did brush with it for a while...it worked OK but it was kind of messy and stained my sink so I stopped...some of the Ayurvedic uses like that are from before modern things like toothpaste).

    Correcting misinformation, bad sources, and anecdotal "evidence" with links to scientific studies isn't snark. It's responsible. People come to these forums to learn how to lose weight in a safe, sustainable, and effective way. Leaving bad information that's not backed by science unchallenged confuses many who are new to weight loss. It encourages them to try things that won't work, which leads to frustration and in many cases, giving up entirely.
  • KombuchaKat
    KombuchaKat Posts: 134 Member
    edited February 2017
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Sorry just pointing out that you need to vet your sources better not personally attacking you.

    Did I not say SEVERAL times that I read it?! Did I not say I wasn't sure and to Google it? I read it on a website WEEKS ago looking up healthier alternatives to pre bottled smoothies and expensive health drinks. I don't know what website it was. Hence saying to check it out on your own. I was simply stating what I read, whilst making sure to mention regularly that I had only read it somewhere.

    Yeah I've had this happen to me many times on here. Don't even bother answering the people with snarky remarks or asking you to post a link for "proof." Especially on something like turmeric where I think at this point we can share our personal experiences with it but there's not much "science." Which even the science stuff changes all the time and anyone can find a link to back up whatever their claim is. I have used turmeric for years and feel that it does have benefits (I read your other post about teeth whitening and actually did brush with it for a while...it worked OK but it was kind of messy and stained my sink so I stopped...some of the Ayurvedic uses like that are from before modern things like toothpaste).

    Correcting misinformation, bad sources, and anecdotal "evidence" with links to scientific studies isn't snark. It's responsible. People come to these forums to learn how to lose weight in a safe, sustainable, and effective way. Leaving bad information that's not backed by science unchallenged confuses many who are new to weight loss. It encourages them to try things that won't work, which leads to frustration and in many cases, giving up entirely.

    But this isn't WebMD, an opinion is an opinion not necessarily bad information.
  • Unknown
    edited February 2017
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  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    edited February 2017


    But this isn't WebMD, an opinion is an opinion not necessarily bad information.

    Everyone has an opinion. The problem is, many present their opinion as fact. That includes people here as well as people who profess that a specific herb, spice, vinegar, etc will work for weight loss. As I said before, people come here looking for an effective way to lose weight. And the proper and responsible way to guide those people through their weight loss journey is to provide them with facts that are backed by science. Not opinions or n=1 anecdotal evidence.

    There are people who have the opinion that the moon landing was faked. Some still have the opinion that the earth is flat. That doesn't make them right, of course. And not challenging their opinion with facts breeds ignorance. And ignorance doesn't help anyone.
  • KombuchaKat
    KombuchaKat Posts: 134 Member
    edited February 2017


    But this isn't WebMD, an opinion is an opinion not necessarily bad information.

    Everyone has an opinion. The problem is, many present their opinion as fact. That includes people here as well as people who profess that a specific herb, spice, vinegar, etc will work for weight loss. As I said before, people come here looking for an effective way to lose weight. And the proper and responsible way to guide those people through their weight loss journey is to provide them with facts that are backed by science. Not opinions or n=1 anecdotal evidence.

    There are people who have the opinion that the moon landing was faked. Some still have the opinion that the earth is flat. That doesn't make them right, of course. And not challenging their opinion with facts breeds ignorance. And ignorance doesn't help anyone.


    I guess I'm just not taking what others post on MFP all that seriously. Quite frankly I don't know anyone one here personally so I'm not going to take anything I read on here as fact. If someone posts something that they do or don't do that looks like something interesting to try I would look into it myself. I've got a regular doctor and a functional medical doctor that I would run things buy before I believed anything on here. OK well take your turmeric or not no biggie.
  • Unknown
    edited February 2017
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  • KombuchaKat
    KombuchaKat Posts: 134 Member

    I guess I'm just not taking what others post on MFP all that seriously. Quite frankly I don't know anyone one here personally so I'm not going to take anything I read on here as fact. If someone posts something that they do or don't do that looks like something interesting to try I would look into it myself. I've got a regular doctor and a functional medical doctor that I would run things buy before I believed anything on here. OK well take your turmeric or not no biggie.

    Perhaps this disconnect with people you have is the same as others out there who despite being faced with absolute scientific information about things, they choose to self educate instead in the wrong places and end up believing the woo... then come on here and tell other people their woo which theyve convinced themselves so strongly on, its now being stated as fact.

    And who decides who's science is "undisputed?" The MFP forums...always good for a laugh B)
  • Unknown
    edited February 2017
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  • KombuchaKat
    KombuchaKat Posts: 134 Member
    And who decides who's science is "undisputed?" The MFP forums...always good for a laugh B)

    Nobody "decides". We discuss using peer reviewed studies and clinical trials to back up our claims. That's how the world works (or how it should, anyway). People are then free to make up their own mind. But I still maintain that introducing opinion or anecdote not backed by actual scientific studies is irresponsible.

    If you're OK with leading people down a path that likely won't lead to success just because you have an opinion about something, that's your prerogative. And it's the prerogative of those who believe doing so is irresponsible to challenge you to back up your claims with real information that's been either peer reviewed or independently verified.

    I, for one, am here to help people. And I don't see the dissemination opinions or anecdotes as helpful when discussing something like weight loss, which is a biological process.

    LOL, it's turmeric, it's a cooking spice for goodness sake! If someone want to brush their teeth with it, bathe in it who gives a crap? If you want to lose weight there's no magic bullet anyway, eat well, not too much and work out. If anyone is under the impression there's much more to it than that you really do need a witch doctor to help you!
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    SR1986 wrote: »
    Sorry just pointing out that you need to vet your sources better not personally attacking you.

    Did I not say SEVERAL times that I read it?! Did I not say I wasn't sure and to Google it? I read it on a website WEEKS ago looking up healthier alternatives to pre bottled smoothies and expensive health drinks. I don't know what website it was. Hence saying to check it out on your own. I was simply stating what I read, whilst making sure to mention regularly that I had only read it somewhere.

    Yeah I've had this happen to me many times on here. Don't even bother answering the people with snarky remarks or asking you to post a link for "proof." Especially on something like turmeric where I think at this point we can share our personal experiences with it but there's not much "science." Which even the science stuff changes all the time and anyone can find a link to back up whatever their claim is. I have used turmeric for years and feel that it does have benefits (I read your other post about teeth whitening and actually did brush with it for a while...it worked OK but it was kind of messy and stained my sink so I stopped...some of the Ayurvedic uses like that are from before modern things like toothpaste).

    Correcting misinformation, bad sources, and anecdotal "evidence" with links to scientific studies isn't snark. It's responsible. People come to these forums to learn how to lose weight in a safe, sustainable, and effective way. Leaving bad information that's not backed by science unchallenged confuses many who are new to weight loss. It encourages them to try things that won't work, which leads to frustration and in many cases, giving up entirely.

    But this isn't WebMD, an opinion is an opinion not necessarily bad information.

    With so much woo, pseudoscience, misinformation, and flat out dangerous recommendations prevalent in today's society - it is important to help people wade through that and understand how things actually work. Not just anecdotal n=1 opinions of "I feel like it is better" or "it worked for me" with no science to actually back that up.

    There are countless people on here who fall victim to this misinformation and get so far off track of what they need to do, that they give up altogether. People who challenge the woo, and try to help people understand that there are no weight loss benefits of turmeric, or that your liver doesn't need detoxing (if it does, you need more than turmeric, you need an emergency room) are trying to help get people back on track, trying to help them avoid making unnecessary mistakes, trying to help them focus on what is important - a calorie deficit for weight loss, a balanced nutrient dense diet for overall health, and following the advice of a doctor for other medical afflictions.

    So yes, an opinion, not based in science, can be bad information if it perpetuates this misinformation.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    And who decides who's science is "undisputed?" The MFP forums...always good for a laugh B)

    Nobody "decides". We discuss using peer reviewed studies and clinical trials to back up our claims. That's how the world works (or how it should, anyway). People are then free to make up their own mind. But I still maintain that introducing opinion or anecdote not backed by actual scientific studies is irresponsible.

    If you're OK with leading people down a path that likely won't lead to success just because you have an opinion about something, that's your prerogative. And it's the prerogative of those who believe doing so is irresponsible to challenge you to back up your claims with real information that's been either peer reviewed or independently verified.

    I, for one, am here to help people. And I don't see the dissemination opinions or anecdotes as helpful when discussing something like weight loss, which is a biological process.

    LOL, it's turmeric, it's a cooking spice for goodness sake! If someone want to brush their teeth with it, bathe in it who gives a crap? If you want to lose weight there's no magic bullet anyway, eat well, not too much and work out. If anyone is under the impression there's much more to it than that you really do need a witch doctor to help you!

    Agreed there is no magic bullet, and that eating well, in a calorie deficit is what it takes for weight management and overall health.

    I'm curious though about your comments around liver detoxification and still waiting for that list of toxins that you think that glutathione and MSM (still not sure what that is) would help remove from your liver...
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  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    And who decides who's science is "undisputed?" The MFP forums...always good for a laugh B)

    Nobody "decides". We discuss using peer reviewed studies and clinical trials to back up our claims. That's how the world works (or how it should, anyway). People are then free to make up their own mind. But I still maintain that introducing opinion or anecdote not backed by actual scientific studies is irresponsible.

    If you're OK with leading people down a path that likely won't lead to success just because you have an opinion about something, that's your prerogative. And it's the prerogative of those who believe doing so is irresponsible to challenge you to back up your claims with real information that's been either peer reviewed or independently verified.

    I, for one, am here to help people. And I don't see the dissemination opinions or anecdotes as helpful when discussing something like weight loss, which is a biological process.

    LOL, it's turmeric, it's a cooking spice for goodness sake! If someone want to brush their teeth with it, bathe in it who gives a crap? If you want to lose weight there's no magic bullet anyway, eat well, not too much and work out. If anyone is under the impression there's much more to it than that you really do need a witch doctor to help you!

    LOL, that's exactly my point. OP's thread is about using turmeric for weight loss. Then, another user you quoted above stated rather plainly that it helps detoxify the liver. And since there's no scientific evidence that turmeric helps with either of those things, people challenged the person you quoted. And besides, I'm discussing more than turmeric at this point. My issue is with people who peddle opinion and woo as fact. This conversation is over, as far as I'm concerned. Peace out, and good luck "detoxifying" your liver with glutathione and MSM...
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  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    Peace out, and good luck "detoxifying" your liver with glutathione and MSM...

    LOL. You made me remember Carter's Little Liver Pills

    (Yes, "I am old, I am old, I will wear my trousers rolled)

  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    And who decides who's science is "undisputed?" The MFP forums...always good for a laugh B)

    Nobody "decides". We discuss using peer reviewed studies and clinical trials to back up our claims. That's how the world works (or how it should, anyway). People are then free to make up their own mind. But I still maintain that introducing opinion or anecdote not backed by actual scientific studies is irresponsible.

    If you're OK with leading people down a path that likely won't lead to success just because you have an opinion about something, that's your prerogative. And it's the prerogative of those who believe doing so is irresponsible to challenge you to back up your claims with real information that's been either peer reviewed or independently verified.

    I, for one, am here to help people. And I don't see the dissemination opinions or anecdotes as helpful when discussing something like weight loss, which is a biological process.

    LOL, it's turmeric, it's a cooking spice for goodness sake! If someone want to brush their teeth with it, bathe in it who gives a crap? If you want to lose weight there's no magic bullet anyway, eat well, not too much and work out. If anyone is under the impression there's much more to it than that you really do need a witch doctor to help you!

    Agreed there is no magic bullet, and that eating well, in a calorie deficit is what it takes for weight management and overall health.

    I'm curious though about your comments around liver detoxification and still waiting for that list of toxins that you think that glutathione and MSM (still not sure what that is) would help remove from your liver...

    There is none!

    I'm still wondering why a detoxifying organ needs to be detoxified....
  • CattOfTheGarage
    CattOfTheGarage Posts: 2,745 Member
    If you want to lose weight there's no magic bullet anyway, eat well, not too much and work out. If anyone is under the impression there's much more to it than that you really do need a witch doctor to help you!

    No. They don't need a witch doctor. They need good information.

    You seem very dogmatic about CICO and very sure there's nothing else needed for weight loss. Fine, I agree when you - but how do you arrive at that conclusion if you're so dismissive of scientific evidence? And how do you get to be so condescending to those who believe otherwise if you won't accept the need to discuss the actual evidence? If you're going to set yourself on a high horse, you better be able to defend your position.

    It doesn't matter if someone wants to eat turmeric, but if someone believes wrongly that it's going to help them lose weight, then that belief will frustrate their weight loss goals, and anyone who tells them it's not true is helping them out. That's what the forum is here for.
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