Can curry slow down Alzheimer's ? - from biopeer.com

April 26, 2005
Can curry slow down Alzheimer's?

Can’t decide whether to eat Indian, Chinese or Continental? You'll probably have a yearning for a bit of chicken tikka masala or rogan josh after reading this: A study by University of California, Los Angeles-Department of Veterans Affairs, shows how turmeric, one of curry's key components, may be effective in slowing down the progression of Alzheimer's disease and possibly even curing it.

The study was conducted on genetically altered rats fed on foods flavoured with copious amounts of turmeric. Turmeric is rich in curcumin, a compound known for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The discovery that curcumin may prevent the accumulation of destructive beta-amyloid plaques in people suffering from this degenerative brain disease and also break up existing plaques, probably explains why the incidence of Alzheimer’s in India is the lowest in the world.

As compared to other medications being tested on Alzheimer’s patients, turmeric appears to be more effective, possibly due to the structure and low molecular weight of curcumin that enable it to penetrate the blood-brain barrier. Human clinical trials to further evaluate the possible protective and therapeutic effects of curcumin are now on the anvil. So while scientists and researchers hunt for an allopathic cure, let’s give traditional wisdom a chance—spice up your taste buds with Indian curry and protect your brain cells.

link :
http://www.biopeer.com/biopeer/alzheimers/index.html