Yahoo News Turmeric really is good for your brain, and can improve memory and mood
Why all the fuss?
Over the last couple of years, turmeric has been widely hyped as being not just a healthy food, but actually better than some medicines.
Health food fans drink ‘turmeric water’ – a bright yellow concoction – and even stir the stuff into coffee.
But until now, there wasn’t a huge amount of evidence to back up people’s enthusiasm.
But a new study found that a form of curcumin (found in turmeric), can improve memory and mood in people with age-related memory loss, according to UCLA researchers.
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The 40 volunteers in the double-blind placebo controlled study received either curcumin or a placebo for 18 months.
The patients who received curcumin showed significant improvements in memory and attention.
Dr Gary Small, director of geriatric psychiatry at UCLA’s Longevity Center, said, ‘Exactly how curcumin exerts its effects is not certain, but it may be due to its ability to reduce brain inflammation, which has been linked to both Alzheimer’s disease and major depression.’
