This Is Why You Should Always Mix Black Pepper With Turmeric To Boost Your Health

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We know that mixing different kinds of spices has many health benefits. After all, each spice brings its own magic from the spice world. However, rarely do we see that mixing spices makes the effects of one of the spices much stronger. Still, this does seem to be the case when we mix black pepper and turmeric! Want to know why you shouldn’t have one without the other? Read on!

Why Pair Black Pepper with Turmeric?

Main Active Ingredients

Curcumin in turmeric: Turmeric gets its bright yellow color from a compound called curcumin. About 5% of turmeric is curcumin, which offers many of its health benefits.

Piperine in black pepper: Black pepper’s strong flavor comes from piperine, which also makes up around 5% of the pepper by weight. Piperine can slow down the body’s process of breaking down and getting rid of foreign substances by making them water-soluble.

How Turmeric and Black Pepper Work Together

When you consume turmeric, your blood gets a small boost in curcumin levels within an hour. The liver quickly starts to get rid of it, so levels don’t stay high for long. If you add a bit of black pepper, though, this process changes. Just a small amount of black pepper can increase curcumin levels by up to 2,000%. Even a tiny pinch of black pepper can make a huge difference. Interestingly, black pepper is often paired with turmeric in curry powder.

What Is Turmeric Good For?

Turmeric, especially its active ingredient curcumin, offers a variety of health benefits.

• Treating ulcerative colitis: Curcumin can help maintain remission in people with ulcerative colitis, with no reported side effects.
• Treating lupus: Just a quarter teaspoon of turmeric can be effective in treating lupus nephritis, a kidney-related complication of lupus.
• Treating osteoarthritis: For knee osteoarthritis, turmeric might be as effective or better than anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers.
• Speeding recovery from surgery: After surgery, curcumin can significantly reduce pain and fatigue in the following weeks.
• Treating Alzheimer’s: A teaspoon of turmeric daily may help treat the behavioral and psychological symptoms in Alzheimer’s patients.
• Fighting cancer: Curcumin has the power to kill tumor cells without harming normal cells. This makes it a unique option in cancer treatment, as cancer cells may not easily become resistant to it compared to chemotherapy.
• Improving endothelial function: Curcumin’s effect on endothelial function, which involves the health of blood vessel linings, is similar to exercise. Regular intake can help prevent cardiovascular disease, especially in postmenopausal women.
• Preventing diabetes in prediabetics: In a study with prediabetic individuals, those taking curcumin supplements did not develop diabetes over nine months. They also saw improvements in fasting blood sugars, glucose tolerance, hemoglobin A1C, insulin sensitivity, and pancreatic function.
• Treating inflammatory eye conditions: From pink eye to uveitis and even a mild form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, turmeric shows strong anti-inflammatory effects.

Adding turmeric to your diet can provide these health benefits. Whether you sprinkle it on your food or take it as a supplement, the potential positive effects on your health are noteworthy.

Also read: The 4 Effective Spices That Fight Inflammation Almost Instantly

Other Ways to Boost Turmeric’s Benefits

Absorption of curcumin from fresh or dried turmeric root is naturally higher due to the presence of specific oils. These oils can increase curcumin absorption by seven to eight times.

Tips to maximize benefits:

• Eating turmeric with fats like olive oil or coconut oil allows the curcumin to enter the bloodstream directly, skipping the liver.
• Adding black pepper to dishes containing turmeric boosts absorption significantly.
• Incorporate turmeric into dishes that include healthy fats, such as curry made with coconut milk.

Try these simple tricks to get the most out of the curcumin in your diet!

What Are the Side Effects of Turmeric?

Issues with Gallstones

If you have gallstones, be careful with turmeric. About 40 milligrams of curcumin can cause the gallbladder to contract. This might be good for keeping bile from stagnating, but if a stone is blocking your bile duct, the pain can be intense. Those with biliary tract obstructions should be cautious with curcumin. For others, curcumin may help the gallbladder empty, potentially lowering the risk of gallstones and maybe even gallbladder cancer.

Problems with Kidney Stones

Turmeric is high in soluble oxalates, which can combine with calcium to form calcium oxalate. This compound accounts for most kidney stones. If you’re prone to kidney stones, you might want to limit turmeric to one teaspoon per day to avoid increasing the risk of stone formation.

How Much Turmeric and Black Pepper Should You Take Daily?

Aim for at least a quarter teaspoon of turmeric every day. This small amount can be easily added to your meals. To boost its benefits, pair turmeric with black pepper, as it enhances absorption and adds great flavor. Integrating these spices into your diet can contribute to your overall health with minimal effort.

Conclusions

Mixing different plant foods can offer unique health benefits. Just like some stories about grapefruit and broccoli, black pepper’s mechanism boosts the power of plant-based diets. Sometimes, traditional wisdom turns out to be right, but science helps confirm or debunk these claims. While traditional medicine can sometimes be dangerous, blending modern research with age-old practices can be beneficial.

Cooking with black pepper and turmeric might not only add flavor to your meals but also enhance the bioavailability of nutrients. In health, blending ancient and modern wisdom can lead to better outcomes.

Stefan K.

Stefan has been vegan since 2019 and has been regularly working on his strength since the beginning of 2023. He’s on a mission to help other vegans get stronger and have all of them achieve the quality of life they deserve.