Contributed by: Healthians Team
Introduction
Turmeric, like its cousin ginger, is a root. Turmeric powder is a popular spice in Indian and South Asian cuisine, and it is prized for its distinct flavour and vivid yellow colour. Turmeric has a variety of health benefits in addition to spicing up your meals.
It’s no exaggeration to claim that every Indian is aware of turmeric’s benefits, as this everyday kitchen spice has been utilised in skincare and other therapies for thousands of years.
Its anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory properties make this spice indispensable to overcome winter skin-health woes.
Researchers have associated turmeric’s key ingredient, curcumin, the chemical present in turmeric with magical healing properties with a wide range of health benefits.
Of course, we’re interested in the skin advantages of turmeric, so we’ll look into how effective it is and how it might help your skin.
Reduces acne scars
Acne is difficult to deal with at any age. One of the main reasons for the popularity of turmeric skincare products is that it might make your life a little easier.
Consuming turmeric-infused foods also offers glowing skin and removes acne scars from the skin.
Turmeric contains curcumin which is lauded for its many potent anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects that can aid in the treatment of acne.
After all, acne is caused by bacteria like Propionibacterium acnes, which cause extensive skin inflammation.
When mixed with lauric acid, which is found in cow’s milk, coconut milk, and coconut oil, curcumin supplementation appears to be a good cure for acne, according to studies.
If you’re going to use turmeric essential oil, dilute it with a carrier oil first because essential oils are concentrated and might be harsh on delicate skin. Coconut oil would be ideal in this situation.
Improves skin complexion
Turmeric powder is commonly used by women for beauty and skincare, including as a skin lightening therapy.
While you should be satisfied with your natural skin tone and no one should tell you otherwise, turmeric formulations can help you maintain and enhance a young glow.
Apart from the fact that turmeric has nourishing and therapeutic properties, it helps to minimise skin blemishes.
Some study suggests that using turmeric essential oil in a tropical treatment can actually brighten the skin’s complexion and give it a natural glow.
Relieves psoriasis
Psoriasis is a prevalent skin ailment that is classified as an autoimmune disease. It causes the skin cells to generate at a faster pace, resulting in bumpy red areas and itchy scaly skin that builds up in layers.
This can lead to skin cracks and bleeding, which can be uncomfortable. Turmeric’s potent anti-inflammatory enzymes can aid in alleviating psoriasis symptoms.
This is because turmeric typically contains a high concentration of curcumin and other curcuminoids. This not only suppresses inflammation but also lowers phosphorylase kinase activity, an enzyme that accelerates psoriatic activity, according to research.
Apart from topical turmeric therapies, daily turmeric or curcumin intake can also provide relief after 12 weeks.
Slows hair growth
While everyone wants a full head of hair, no one, particularly ladies, wants hair on their underarms or backs.
Turmeric may have a part to play once more if you have a problem like hirsutism or just want to lessen hair growth on your underarms and torso.
This isn’t a highly powerful turmeric skin benefit, and it won’t replace waxing, shaving, or laser hair removal.
However, studies show that using diluted turmeric essential oil on regions like the underarms will inhibit or stop hair growth.
Final thoughts
With all of these turmeric skin advantages backed up by science, it should be evident that turmeric is one of the cheapest and most effective natural skin remedies available.
However, keep in mind that the efficiency of turmeric for the skin can vary depending on the mode of consumption.
Turmeric’s curcumin has a low bioavailability, which means that including it in your diet won’t always be beneficial because your body won’t be able to absorb it. When combined with pepper, it improves absorption.
Of course, taking a turmeric supplement with high bioavailability is the simplest and most efficient strategy to increase curcumin intake.
You should also be aware that if you use turmeric powder as a topical application, you may end up with bright yellow or orange skin instead of beautiful skin.
Besides adding turmeric to your diet, you must also opt for preventive diagnostic tests to identify complications (if any) and take measures to protect your overall well-being.