Turmeric; The Cutting Edge of India’s Merchandise and Global Medicine

Abstract

Turmeric has served as a potential chemotherapeutic and chemo-preventive drug in Asia for about four to five thousand years of human civilization. It occupies a significant place in religious rituals, kitchens as food additives, and many ethno-phyto-pharmaceutical safe drugs in Asia and worldwide. India is the top producer (about 80%), and a leading exporter of turmeric, rich in containing curcumin and turmerone oil in the world. The demand for turmeric and its marketing strategy of turmeric has reached its peak as a naturopathic drug of choice during the SARS-02 pandemic from 2020 onwards. The Indian yellow saffron grows as an organic spice to augment the economic, societal, and environmental conditions of tribal in hilly areas in India adding to the value chain. The existing study envisages the evaluation of the levels of all chemical constituents including heavy/radioactive metals present in turmeric, so that the widely used turmeric may have some refinement to enhance food safety and its standards. MITUTOYO microscope and X-ray fluorescence Spectrometer (XRF) were used for both yellow and black varieties of turmeric specimens from various places like Kandhamal, Koraput, and Khordha districts to examine and compare the chemical contents. Turmeric, the both black and yellow variety is the rhizome of the Zingiberaceae (ginger) family, mostly grown by using the organic methodology in hilly terrains of India. Iron and few metals and rare earth metals are present in small proportions but zinc which is the potential immune developer in the human body is almost absent in turmeric. The volatile oil, colouring materials, culinary flavoured spices, or common cosmetics extracted from turmeric. They have wide applications in Ayurveda including cardio-protective, Anti-septic, blood level depressant, anti-cancer, antioxidant, antifertility, antidepressant, anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, neuro/ nephron-protective, immune-modulatory, anti-microbial, and anti-cancer, etc. Despite well-proven drug of choice in naturopathy and Ayurveda, turmeric is not a widely accepted ingredient in pharmacy, the modern allopathic drug structure, which needs attention.