You probably associate turmeric more with Indian and Southeast Asian cuisine than arthritis and muscle pain, but this magic root (along with theother members of the Zingiberaceae family, ginger and cardamom) has a long list of incredible health benefits. The question is, is cooking with the spice enough to reap the benefits?

关于黄姜，比起关节炎和肌肉疼痛，您可能更容易联想到印度和东南亚菜肴。但是这种神奇的根茎（与姜科，姜和豆蔻等其它植物）对于健康却有许多令人难以置信的帮助。问题是，用香料来做饭就够了么?

Comparing turmeric and tablets

姜黄和姜黄素补充剂的区别

For thousands of years, turmeric has been used in Ayurvedic medicine, treating everything from sore muscles to liver function. Adding the spice to your cooking where you can seems easy enough, but in order to get any of the therapeutic effects, you’d need to consume at least one or two tablespoons of the powder a day. That’s not an easy task for everyone, which is why taking oneor two supplementary tablets is a more achievable solution for some people.

几千年来，姜黄已用于阿育吠陀医学，治疗从肌肉酸痛到肝功能相关的疾病。在烹饪中添加香料，这看起来很容易，但是为了获得有效的治疗效果，您需要每天至少进食一到两汤匙量的姜黄粉。并不是每个人都可以轻易做到，这就是为什么要为有些人提供一个更可行的解决方案：服用片剂。

What’s the secret?

秘诀在哪里?

Curcumin is the active ingredient in turmeric. The problem is that there’s only a small amount within the spice, and it gets metabolised and eliminated from the body too quickly to absorb much of it – this is why you have to eat a lot to reap any benefits. 

Supplements contain a form of curcumin that isn’t processed as quickly, so that it can be absorbed and circulated around the body more effectively, increasing the anti-inflammator effect. The CuruWin® found in GoodHealth Turmeric Extra Strength has been clinically proven to be 46 times more absorbable than standard turmeric.

姜黄素是姜黄中的活性成分。可问题是在香料中存在的比例很小，而且它会被身体很快的代谢并消除，可以被吸收到的比例就更小了- 这就是为什么想要达到预期的效果，您就需要进食大量的姜黄。

补充剂中含有特殊形式的姜黄素，它可以不被身体快速的代谢出体内，使其可以更有效的被吸收并利用，增加其抗炎症的效果。在好健康姜黄精（Good Health Turmeric Extra Strength）中存在的CuruWin®已被临床证明比普通姜黄的吸收率高出46倍。

What exactly is inflammation?

炎症是什么？

Essentially, inflammation is your body’s immune response to infection, irritation or injury. Sometimes this is beneficial, only lasting a few days and promoting healing – this is known as acute inflammation. However when uncontrolled, chronic inflammation can last much longer, causing severe health conditions such as arthritis, asthma, dermatitis and rhinitis. Curcumin is a potent inflammation blocker, helping to regulate the body’s response. 

简单的说，炎症是身体对感染，刺激或损伤的免疫反应。有时候这是良性的，仅持续几天并可促进愈合– 这常被称为急性炎症。然而，当超出可控制范围时，慢性炎症会持续更长的时间并可以引起严重的健康状况，例如：关节炎，哮喘，鼻炎和皮炎。姜黄素是一种有效的炎症阻滞剂，有助于调节身体的不良反应。

How curcumin fightsinflammation – a note from our naturopath, Vanessa:

姜黄素是如何战胜炎症– 我们的自然疗法，Vanessa注释：

Curcumin works on inhibiting the body’s key inflammatory mediator(NF-kB). I like to think of this as the drill sergeant in command of a company.The NF-kB is responsible for signaling and regulating many other inflammatorypathways in the body, including tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) andcyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2). Pharmaceutical drugs that block or inhibit TNFα arenow being used to treat inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis, arthritis andmany other diseases.

姜黄素是一种作用于抑制身体炎症的关键介质（NF-kB）。我喜欢把它比作一个团队的指挥官。 NF-kB负责体内信号传导和调节许多其他炎症的反应，包括肿瘤坏死因子α（TNFα）和环氧合酶-2（COX-2）。阻断或抑制TNFα的药物现在正用于治疗炎性肠病,牛皮癣，关节炎和许多其它疾病。

Good Health Turmeric Extra Strengthwith CurcuWIN® is more powerful and suited to conditions that need extrasupport and comfort. This combined with a high quality, Boswellia extract, hasbeen clinically shown to start working in seven days. Turmeric Extra Strengthis a powerful and comprehensive anti-inflammatory formula with multiplebenefits for multiple health conditions. Although this formulation will helpwith many health conditions, Boswellia and Artemisia are both particularlysuited for joint pain and chronic inflammation such as arthritis.

含有CurcuWIN®的好健康姜黄精（Good Health TurmericExtra Strength）对于需要额外照顾健康状况的人群更有效。它与高质量的乳香提取物相结合，被临床证明可在7天内产生疗效。姜黄精是一种强大并全面的抗炎配方，可对多种健康状况提供帮助。这种制剂对于健康有诸多益处，其中的乳香和艾蒿对于关节疼痛和慢性炎症（例如关节炎）有着特殊的疗效。

What about the other spicesin the family?

姜科的其它香料有何作用?

In light of turmeric’s astounding health benefits, it’s not surprising to note that the other members of the family are also superstars. Renowned for its ability to settle the stomach, ginger also helps to eliminate intestinal gas and soothes the intestinal tract. It also has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.Cardamom also has a lengthy list of benefits, from treating mouth ulcers to depression. Most commonly, it’s used for heartburn, intestinal gas and spasms, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), constipation, urinary problems, liver and gallbladder issues, colds coughs and sore throats. Now that’s a successful family.

鉴于姜黄的惊人益处，其家族的其它成员也是超级巨星就不足为奇了。姜对肠动力有着不凡的功效，有助于消除肠气和舒缓肠道，它还具有抗炎和抗氧化性。豆蔻也有着众多功效，从治疗口腔溃疡到缓解抑郁症。它更常见用于解决胃灼热，肠气，胃痉挛，肠易激综合症（IBS），便秘，尿道炎，肝和胆囊问题，感冒咳嗽和喉咙痛。这是多么成功的一个家族！

If you do enjoy cooking with turmeric, it’s more effective raw, so try sprinkling it over your meals for that delicious spicy kick. But while there are many benefits of the spice, not all are equal. The curcumin content of the turmeric found in supermarkets is not high enough (around 3-5%) for you to reap the benefits. We suggest taking a good quality supplement that contains around 95-98% curcuminoids if you really want to feel the rewards that turmeric is famous for.

如果你做饭喜欢添加姜黄，生吃是比较有效的。在菜肴上撒上一些，享受它带来的辛辣味道吧。虽然作为香料有很多优点，但和制剂相比却不可相提并论。在市场里购买的新鲜姜黄的姜黄素含量并不多，可以被吸收的比例在3%-5%之间。如果您想享受到姜黄带来的疗效，我们建议您使用高达95%-98%的姜黄素制剂。