The Wonders of Curcumin

Just over a year ago I wrote Eat That Curry! about research being done at the Cork Cancer Research Centre in Cork, Ireland on the cancer-killing effects of curcumin, a component of turmeric, a common Indian spice and member of the ginger family used in curry and other dishes. Bright orange-yellow, the compound is traditionally used in Ayurvedic medicine as an anti-inflammatory.

As if killing cancer-cells were not enough, curcumin has a wide range of other beneficial health effects. The most recent issue of AARP's magazine reports that researchers at the University of Arizona in Tucson have found turmeric to inhibit arthritis in rats and a study from Thailand found it worked as well or better than ibuprofen for reducing the pain of rheumatoid arthritis.

The research continues into the beneficial uses of curcumin. Lee Silsby, a compounding pharmacy in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, works with doctors and researchers to develop innovative nutritional products. It offers a number of products for people suffering from autism-spectrum disorders, cancer, Crohn's and other illnesses.  A number of its products are designed to enhance detoxification and improve the function of methylation detoxification pathways.

As part of its specialized selection, Silsby has developed a potentiated form of curcumin called Enhansa. Silsby claims Enhansa is absorbed seven to eight times more than standard curcumin extracts. The list of benefits is quite impressive and includes being anti-viral, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, improving liver detoxification,  and chelating lead and cadmium. People have had success using it to treat candida problems, arthritis and have found it helps to  diminish some of the symptoms of autism-spectrum disorders. Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt of Seattle, Washington includes Enhansa in his protocol for Lyme disease. If you or your health practitioner decide that Enhansa might be a good medicament to incorporate into your health regime, pay attention to the dosing protocol listed on the Silsby Enhansa Web site.

It is refreshing to see modern medicine explore ancient knowledge and to embrace its possibilities. We can only hope that this trend continues not only for curcumin, but also for the vast reservoir of other natural substances available around the world.