Can an herb prevent obesity?
July 15, 2009 by Personal Liberty News Desk
Scientists believe that turmeric, an aromatic spice, may help prevent weight gain.
To arrive at their conclusions, scientists from the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University fed high-fat diets to two groups of mice for 12 weeks. One of the groups also received supplementation of 500 mg of curcumin, a polyphenol found in turmeric, per 1 kg of food.
The researchers found that the mice whose diet was enriched with curcumin did not gain as much weight as the control animals.
Dr. Mohsen Meydani, director of the Vascular Biology Laboratory at the USDA HNRCA, and the study’s senior author, says weight gain is possible through the formation of new blood vessels (angiogenesis) that in turns allows for the expansion of fat tissue.
He says, "Based on our data, curcumin appears to suppress angiogenic activity in the fat tissue of mice fed high-fat diets."
Turmeric is a perennial herb related to ginger, and native to tropical South Asia. It has been known for centuries in natural medicine for its antiseptic and antibacterial properties.
The study was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Nutrition. 
(3 votes, average: 3.33 out of 5)
I love mustard! As you know turmeric is what makes mustard yellow. I have used this supplement for over a year and have been the same weight for a year. Last year I lost a lot of weight and in the past I would have put it all back on within a year. I used turmeric to correct a skin condition I never knew it may be what made my year after a diet not be one of heart breaking weight gain. I take 1800 MG’s a day and have no itchy skin patches either. Don’t know could be worth a try for anyone as it is as safe as mustard.
Turmeric is NOT what makes mustard yellow, mustard is naturally yellow and in some cases such as French’s mustard I am sure it is helped with food coloring.
Cemott3rd,
you should do your homework before you spout… the rhizome of the turmeric when dried and ground, is a natural orange/yellow color. It is an herbaceous plant that is used frequently in Asian and Indian cuisines and as a natural color additive in mustards, among many other uses.
Where do you get your turmeric from? I can’t afford to pay a small fortune — 1800 mg’s?
It’s a natural spice. I bought mine at a local health food store, as a spice, not as a supplement. I didn’t pay more than 5 or 10 dollars for it. I don’t remember what the brand was. I got it at the Fruitful Yield store in Elmhurst, IL.
You can buy bulk organic tumeric at Vitacost.com, and shipping is always $4.95 for your entire order. I paid $5.20 a lb. Also you can buy gel caps and a filler thing and make your own pills. Hope this helps.
Thanks you two — I’ll be checking into it. I live in East Texas and do love to shop online, so will try the Vitacost – I’d have to travel quite a distance to find a health food store that has good prices – the ones around here are ridiculous compared to online prices