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Amazing Herbs - for Your Brain

Aaron Slotkin, CCN, MS, PharmD
Dec 17, 2015
2 min read

I wanted to share a little information about curcumin, an herb used traditionally for thousands of years. It is the active ingredient in the Indian spice turmeric, giving it a yellow color.

It has numerous clinical applications like for pain such as in osteoarthritis, possibly rivaling that of medications (1). A while back I hurt myself exercising. And from my own personal experience, I can attest to curcumin's beneficial effects for relieving my pain.

Curcumin works as a powerful anti-inflammatory. That means it can help balance the immune system which may be overactive not only in your body, but in your brain.

If you suffer from chronic stress, a poor diet, past head trauma, leaky gut, or symptoms like brain fog, it is possible you have a brain that is inflamed.

If you know someone that suffers from depression, chances are their brain is inflamed. And an inflamed bran slows the ability of brain cells to communicate with each other, contributing to brain fog, and even depression.

Curcumin and similar compounds, such as saffron, have been shown to help improve the symptoms of depression (2,3).

Do you suffer or know someone that suffers from early onset Alzheimer’s? Curcumin has shown great promise at slowing it’s progression and even as a treatment (4). It’s no wonder the nation of India has one of the lowest rates of dementia in the world.

Curcumin is a great spice and can be used liberally on many dishes. It is best to be eaten with some fat for better absorption since it is a fat soluble compound.

There are a lot of quality supplements on the market. Look for one providing around 200mg per day of “curcuminoids”, the active ingredients. I personally prefer a liquid form, “Tumero-Active” by Apex Energetics. It allows for high dosages, and tastes good too.