Food that makes me happy and healthier too: Spices, Ginger and Turmeric benefits

Hello friends and happy Friday! Spices? Yes, today I am going to talk about spices and their superpowers. They have superpowers? Yes, specially anti-inflammatory properties! And as a rule of thumb, any food that has anti-inflammatory properties is likely to be good for us. The picture is a collage that I have done in the beginning of this year, where you can see the molecules that are good for our health.

Ginger and turmeric belong to the same family: the Zingiberaceae. Wow, what a family surname! They come from Southeast Asia, particularly India and China where they have been used for food and medicine for more than 5000 years! 

Most people that I talk with know that turmeric has health benefits due to the presence of curcumin that gives anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and anti-microbial properties to this spice. What usually they never know is that by itself it is not absorbed in our body.

So what is the simple, little trick? Well, if you want to real benefit from turmeric you will have to mix it with black pepper and oil while you are cooking. I use olive oil that is abundant here, but you can use any other oil that you like. Don't forget, if you are using turmeric sprinkle it with a generous quantity of black pepper in oil.

Side effects? Well, so far the only side effect is that these spices are never "out of stock" here at home.

photos: Maria Miranda