Turmeric is a form of shrubs and herbs is an annual (perennial) spread throughout the tropics. Turmeric plants grow lush and wild around the forest / former garden. Estimated to come from twinkle at an altitude of 1300-1600 m above sea level, have also said that turmeric comes from India. Curcuma words derived from Arabic and Greek Kurkum Karkom. In the year 77-78 BC, Dioscorides called this plant as Cyperus resembling ginger, but bitter, chocolate, and a little spicy, but not toxic.
This plant is widely cultivated in South Asia especially in India, South China, Taiwan, Indonesia (Java), and the Philippines (Ministry of Research and Technology, 2003). Turmeric plants grow to the height of 40-100 cm fork. Is the pseudo-stem trunks, upright, rounded, forming a rhizome with yellowish green color and is composed of leaf midrib (slightly soft). Single leaf, oval shape (oblong) extends up to 10-40 cm, a width of 8 to 12.5 cm and pertulangan pinnate with a pale green color.
Flowering-haired and scaly compound of pseudo-stem shoots, 10-15 cm long with a crown of about 3 cm and 1.5 cm wide, white / yellowish. Tapered leaf tip and base, the flat edge of the leaf. Outer skin rhizome brownish orange, red fruit flesh yellowish orange (Ministry of Research and Technology, 2003).
Contents
Turmeric contains medicinal compounds, called curcuminoid consisting of curcumin, desmetoksikumin and bisdesmetoksikurkumin and substances other benefits. Substance Ingredients: Curcumin: R1 = R2 = OCH3 10% Demetoksikurkumin: R1 = OCH3, R2 = H 1-5% Bisdemetoksikurkumin: R1 = R2 = H rest Essential oils / volatile oil (sesquiterpene ketones, turmeron, tumeon 60%, 25 Zingiberen %, felandren, sabinen, borneol and sineil) Fat 1 -3%, 3% Carbohydrate, Protein 30%, 8% starch, 45-55% Vitamin C, mineral salts (iron, phosphorus, and calcium) remaining. So 1 gram of saffron contains 50 grams of curcumin (Wikipedia, 2005).
In a study by scientists from the University of Arizona, they recovered a key ingredient turmeric contains a protein called NF-kappa B that controls the activity of compounds that cause inflammation of the joints section (Funk, 2006).
Benefit
In Java, turmeric is widely used as medicinal herbs for soothing nutritious, clean, dry, eliminating the itching, and tingling heal. The main benefits of turmeric plants, namely: as an ingredient of traditional medicine, industrial raw materials and cosmetic herbs, spices materials, livestock, etc.. Besides the plant turmeric rhizome is also useful as anti-inflammatory, anti oxidant, anti-microbial, cancer prevention, anti-tumor, and lower levels of blood fats and cholesterol, as well as a blood purifier (Ministry of Research and Technology, 2005).
Turmeric leaves can be used as an ulcer drug because it has properties as an antiseptic and antibacterial. Turmeric rhizome is used as an external medicine to treat eczema, swelling and arthritis, swelling due to insect bites or hives because of caterpillars. It can also be used to facilitate breast milk. As the drugs in, turmeric is used to treat various health problems, such as the heat in, fever, diarrhea, shortness of breath, swollen gums, diabetes, bladder stones, hepatitis, and to clean the uterus both in women who are postpartum and after getting your period (Triani, 2007).
In the saffron-containing NF-kappa B, which is now being targeted in a number of drugs that will be used for the inhibition of inflammation due to OA (Funk, 2006). Several studies in vitro and in vivo show, turmeric memunyai as anti-inflammatory activity (antiinflammatory), activity against peptic ulcer disease, antitoksik, antihiperlipidemia, and anticancer activity (Triani, 2007).