I responded to some of the post here with the suggestion that Turmeric and a couple of other herbs are good anti-inflammatories. I decided that it is better to start a new topic on the subject. Two forms of arthritis that I know for sure respond well to Turmeric are ostioarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. I have ostioarthritis in my knees. A little over 2 years ago I was limping from the pain in my left knee. I learned about turmeric from a book titled "Dr. Duke's Essential Herbs", written by Dr. James A. Duke. Dr. Duke wrote the book named "The Green Pharmacy". The active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin. Dr. Duke recommends that you take a standardized turmeric so you can be sure how much curcumin you are getting. I take a turmeric standardized to 95% curcumin. He also recommends that you take at least 1200 milligrams of curcumin per day. I take 5 capsules per day, in divided doses to get the proper amount. The cheapest source I have found is Vitaminshoppes. It costs $33 for 300 capsules there, which works out to a little over $.60 per day. I do not have a relationship with Vitaminshoppes - I just buy herbs from there.
I have been taking the turmeric for over 2 years now and I walk normally.
The two other herbs were recommended by a herbalist from a web site named [removed] They are feverfew and devil's claw. I have not tried either of these since the turmeric does the job for me.
Turmeric should be taken very carefully by any one who has gall bladder or bile duc problems. These people should probably try one of the other 2 herbs.
I hope this helps some people to feel better with a herb that actually has many healthful actions. The normal NSAIDs are so dangerous to so many people and I have found turmeric to be very good for me. I have had absolutely no bad side affects from taking turmeric.
I posted this originally on the Arthritis message board, so it is oriented toward arthritis. Turmeric, feverfew, and devil's claw should be good for other inflammatory condition, as well.
Last edited by moderator2; 12-23-2003 at 05:53 PM.
Reason: Do not post commercial websites. Only product names are allowed here.
One other way for cheap capsules, is to make your own, doesn't take long to make 100. Example: Turmeric, powder, 1 pound -- $2.50, 1,000 Gelatin
capsules -- $7.50, a capsule making device -- around $10.00, I got mine
at a yard sale for .50 cents. So for a little time and about $20.00 you'll
have 1,000 capsules of Turmeric.
Dr Duke gave an example of using non-standardized Turmeric. He said to go to an eastern store and find the brightest colored turmeric in the place and buy one pound. Also, buy one ounce of finely ground black pepper. Mix the two together very well. The pepper increases the absorption of the turmeric. Then you could make your capsules. You would have to experiment with how many you need to take per day to get a good result.
Last edited by Bob2; 12-22-2003 at 12:18 PM.
The Following User Says Thank You to Bob2 For This Useful Post: Djhouse (10-02-2011)
Bob-- Cayenne is one of the best catalyst you can use. I have never heard anyone use black pepper.
You have a thing about standardized herbs, that's a two sided coin, pro's and con's, really depends on the herb your useing. In some cases it's makes the herbs better, but in some other cases it can make the herb harmful.
Don't put all your learning in one source (Dr. James A. Duke).
I do not depend on one source of information. I have a stack of books over a foot high that goes into herbs and some other things very heavily. The reason I like Dr. Duke is he uses most of the herbs he talks about in the referenced book himself. I agree that it depends on the herb whether you take a standardized or not. With turmeric, if you don't take the standardized form, you can't be sure how much curcumin you are getting. Since that is the active anti-inflammatory ingredient you should want to be sure of how much you are getting. You are probably correct about the cayenne also, but there is no reason why Dr. Duke's recommendation can't be followed in this case.
Re: Turmeric Is A Very Good Anti-inflammatory 
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