Inflammation is a normal and healthy way for your body to deal with irritation, which may be caused by injury, stress, disease, toxins, or infection. The body attempts to protect the area from further harm by swelling or adding water. As long as the irritation is removed, the swelling should also subside, and the body will complete the healing process. However, if the irritation is not removed, it remains inflamed, and the surrounding area stays “wet.” This wet environment reduces blood flow and grows stagnant, making the body susceptible to infection.
Chronic inflammation inhibits the healing process and is the foundation for many serious ailments, as mentioned earlier. Knowing this, managing inflammation in a chronic situation can be critical to a person’s quality of life—and one of the best anti-inflammatory agents (natural or pharmaceutical) in existence is curcumin.
What is Curcumin?
Curcumin is a polyphenolic pigment that is part of the family of active compounds in turmeric called curcuminoids. Curcumin makes up approximately 77% of the curcuminoid content within turmeric and is considered the primary ingredient responsible for the therapeutic properties of the popular spice.
Curcuminoids Fight Inflammation
The anti-inflammatory effect of curcuminoids is heavily related to their ability to inhibit specific enzymes that control the inflammatory process within the body. One scientific study found that curcumin was more effective at reducing inflammation than common non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and aspirin. The most immediate and noticeable benefit of reducing inflammation is often pain relief. However, reducing chronic inflammation provides long-term benefits such as slowing the development of many serious diseases or reducing symptoms of the inflammation-related diseases mentioned at the start of this article.
Supplementing with Curcuminoids
One of the main limitations to experiencing the full therapeutic effects of curcuminoids is that they are not easily bioavailable. That means the body metabolizes the compound, passes through the digestive system, or is excreted in the urine, reducing overall absorption into the bloodstream.
One way to increase absorption is to take curcuminoid supplements with a healthy fat such as coconut oil or an avocado. Curcumin is a fat-soluble compound, so combining it with fats allows it to “hitch a ride” into the bloodstream.
Black pepper also increases the bioavailability of curcumin because it contains a molecule called piperine. Piperine inhibits a process in the liver that “tags” some supplements for urinary excretion. Inhibiting this process allows the body to hang
on to supplements longer, allowing for greater absorption. Super Curcuminoids, one of Dr. Nuzum’s formulas, have been formulated with piperine already added for maximum effectiveness.
The Big Picture
Managing inflammation is critical to overall health, but the key to eliminating inflammation is to remove the irritation causing it. The goal is to heal, not just manage symptoms. Consider a splinter in the bottom of the foot. While it would be helpful to add support around the splinter so it wasn’t as painful to step on, it would be much more effective to pull out the splinter.
Many chronic inflammation issues are caused by the heavy toxic load that everyone is exposed to in the modern world. Therefore, completing a detox is a great way to allow the body to heal. It removes irritating toxins that inhibit the healing process. Removing toxins, however, can be a long process and inflammation management is still required until the irritants are fully removed.
Some of the most effective anti-inflammatory agents known are curcuminoids. They are a natural way to reduce inflammation, relieve symptoms, and slow the development of many diseases and should be utilized by anyone suffering from chronic inflammation to maximize health and vitality.