Ingredient under spotlight - turmeric 营养界的新宠 - 姜黄

Turmeric is showing promising sign on blood glucose management in 50 type-2 diabetics, according to a research done by Harbin Medical University and the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Published in Molecular Nutrition and Food Research, the potential benefits is linked to a reduction of Free Fatty Acids (FFA) that in turn might help to reduce the risk of developing type-2 diabetes. 

A little background on turmeric, the active - curcumin, is the natural pigment that gives turmeric its yellow color, has been widely used in times of Ayurveda. Recently, curucmin is gaining great scientific interest due to its potential benefits in various health condition, including arthritis, Alzheimer's, diabetes, prostate cancer and other inflammation-associated diseases. 

Perhaps you might think of incorporating more spice into meals to get the benefits of turmeric, however doses administrated in the study is not likely achievable by normal diet. A rough estimation on the doses used were at least 25g of turmeric per day. Supplementation will be more likely, considering the color and taste that might not be so favorable.

最近刊登在Molecular Nutrition and Food Research的研究显示姜黄有助于改善50位糖尿病患者的血糖。这是一项由哈尔滨医科大学和中国疾病控制和预防中心所进行的研究工作。改善的情况可能源于减少游离脂肪酸（Free Fatty Acid, FFA) 对胰岛素的伤害，从而降低患上糖尿病的风险。

如果你不知道姜黄是什么，在此作一个短短的简介：姜黄素 （curcumin)，是自然色素，姜黄的黄色也是因它而得。在阿育吠陀 (Ayurverda) 时期已被广泛使用的草药。Curucmin在近期获得很多科学家的青睐，因为越来越多研究显示姜黄素对各种健康状况有改善的潜能，其中包括关节炎，老年痴呆症，糖尿病，前列腺癌和其他和炎症相关的疾病。

当中有人可能会认为只要在正常的饮食中食用更多的姜黄，就能达到研究报告中的好处。粗略估计，究中的分量至少要每天摄取超过25克的姜黄，而且姜黄也具有独特的颜色和味道，不是普遍能接受得到。因此从保健品中摄取的可能性比较大。