Travel
Sites:
|
Visit
Goa, Karnataka,
Kerala, Tamil
Nadu, Andhra Pradesh
|
Turmeric is more than a spice
New Delhi: Turmeric is more than just another spice that makes up the delectable Indian curry famous the world over. A few years back, turmeric hit the headlines in global media when an American patent relating to one of its many medicinal properties was revoked. The patent was granted for wound healing properties of turmeric. Indian authorities challenged it on the ground that this attribute of turmeric was part of common knowledge in India and was not something novel that can be protected by a patent. The documents that were furnished to the patent office included some of the ancient Ayurvedic texts. This illustrates the significance of turmeric and important qualities that it has been known for centuries now. It is part of Indian folklore and has been used for hundreds of years as a beauty aid as well as grandma's cure for common ailments like coughs and colds, in addition to acting as a healing agent. In fact, even now turmeric paste is used to beautify brides in ceremonies preceding Indian marriages. Turmeric is claimed to be an important ingredient of many fairness creams available in the market.
India is the largest producer of turmeric in the world since nearly 80 per cent of its global production happens in the country. In terms of area, it occupies 60 per cent of the total area under spice and condiment production in the country. Haldi is also grown extensively in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Thailand, China, Taiwan as well as in Haiti, Jamaica and Peru. Besides giving flavour, colour and taste to food, spices are known to aid in digestion and possess therapeutic value for treating chronic disorders such as arthritis, bronchial asthma, wound healing, dyspepsia besides heart and neurological disorders. Spices and plants contain substances known as phytochemicals that are basically meant for plant protection but are now being considered almost akin to vitamins and are considered highly beneficial for human beings. It is because of these chemicals that spices have moved out from grandma's home remedy kits to test tubes of modern scientists. New medical knowledge is being generated on these ancient commodities called spices. The medicinal elements of spices are now sought to be reinforced through scientific research. Recent studies on foods, nutrition and chronic diseases suggest that changing diets and dietary habits in order to achieve optimum nutrition and phytonutrients can minimize the risk of chronic disorders. Therefore, experts believe that traditional foods can be a cost-effective and sustainable method to reduce risks of both deficiency diseases as well as diet-related chronic disorders.
Turmeric belongs to the same family as ginger and is similar in looks in its raw form. For cooking purposes, turmeric is ground and used. Curcuma longa Linn or turmeric consists of essential oils, fatty oils, micronutrients in small quantities and Curcumin, the main coloring component of the turmeric. Curcumin has a wide range of pharmacological effects. "We have evaluated its preventive effects on pre-cancer and cancer and examined its role as an antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic and anti-tumorigenic agent", said Dr Kamala Krishnaswamy, leading nutrition scientist and former director, National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad. In one such important study, turmeric has been found to be a good chemo-preventive agent effective at all stages of cancer - from initiation to progression. The spice was tested in animals using several methodologies to assess its cancer preventing profile. Since the incidence of oral cancer is very high in the country, scientists decided to see if turmeric could prevent or regress mouth cancers. Dr Krishnaswamy said turmeric appears to significantly inhibit cellular changes that lead to formation of malignancies. Several studies earlier showed that curcumin can inhibit the tumors at sites such as breast, skin, forestomach, lungs, but in higher concentrations. "Garlic, onions and mustard seeds have similar anti-carcinogenic potential", she pointed out. Dr Krishnaswamy conducted a clinical trial in a community in Andhra Pradesh where reverse smoking is prevalent. The members of this community are at a high risk of suffering from palatal cancers. A dose of one gram of turmeric per day was administered for a period of nine months. The results, she said, suggest that it had a significant impact on the regression of precancerous lesions and also impacted on genotoxic damage. Separate studies done at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, have shown that priming lung cancer cells with curcumin enhances the efficacy of conventional and newer chemotherapeutic drugs in use for the treatment of lung cancer. Other medicinal indications of turmeric that have been scientifically tested are its ability to decrease the load of carcinogens on the body, its anti-oxidant activity and capability to repair damage caused to DNA due to smoking.
One recent study has even found that curcumin can also retard the process
of development of cataract, by delaying cataract formation in galactose
induced cataracts in rats. Turmeric and curcumin were found to increase
detoxifying enzymes in the liver and intestinal mucosa and decrease mutations
and tumor formation in animal studies. American scientists too are researching
on curcumin's role as a natural anti-inflammatory compound. Dr Amin A.
Nanji from the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia,
has shown that curcumin inhibits alcohol-induced liver injury. He is now
focusing on whether such a compound would be useful in diseases such as
non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, a condition that can lead to liver cirrhosis
and liver cancer. Since turmeric in the Indian culinary practices is usually
either boiled or fried, Dr Krishnaswamy said it has been found that cooking
at high temperatures is unlikely to destroy medicinal attributes of turmeric.
Hence, there is no denying in the fact that 'one spoon of haldi (turmeric)
a day can keep cancers away'.- PIB
-Oct 25, 2004
Postal service delivers Ramadan dish from Hyderabad
Hyderabad:
Come Ramadan, the holy month of Muslims and the aroma of "haleem",
a delicious non-vegetarian dish, pervades Hyderabad. Instead of the usual
restaurant waiter serving the delectable dish, it is the city's postmen
who do the job. To cope with the heavy rush during the Ramadan month,
the city's restaurants have enlisted the services of the state-run postal
department to supply the dish. The service, which was started last year
has been a huge hit with both the hotel-owners and customers. SV Rao,
head of the Marketing Department of General Post Office, said the services
of only those postmen interested in the particular assignment were used.
"We are utilising the services of interested postmen. We cannot force
anybody. They are going door-to-door to distribute the coupons. People
can purchase the coupons and mention that on which date they want Haleem
to be delivered. On that date we arrange the dish to be delivered," said
Rao. Muhammad Abdul Majeed, owner of Pista House, one of Hyderabad's most
sought-after Haleem outlets, says with the bulky orders he received last
year, the scheme was a big success. "We have tied up with the post offices.
There was a huge demand for Haleem. After an year we received 20-2500
letters asking why we stopped the service. So we have tied up with the
post office again," he said. The restaurants have set up special kitchens
where Haleem is prepared and packed under strict hygiene norms. After
preparation, Haleem would be sealed and delivered at the nearest post
office before breaking of "roza" (daily fast) at sunset. Food inspectors
from the city's Institute of Preventive Medicine oversee the entire operation.
Customers appreciated the scheme. "When compared with the hotels in the
city this system ensures us packed Haleem. We had booked one day in advance
and it is easy and saves time also," said Hema Malini, a satisfied customer.
-Oct 22, 2004
Paris: India participated in a four-day
food fair in Paris, France. The Minister of Food Processing Industries,
Subodh Kant Sahai, opened the fair on October 16 which concluded yesterday.
The French Minister of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and Rural Affairs,
Herve Gaymard, was conducted round the fair by Shri Sahai. They agreed
to continue mutual cooperation in the food processing sector. Mr Gaymard
was impressed with the range of items on display at the fair and expressed
confidence about greater economic and commercial relations between his
country and India. India is the third largest food producer in the world.
Hence it is increasingly focussing on investments in the food processing
sector. It exports not only primary produce but processed foods as well.
The Government has recently allowed a tax holiday for processing fruits
and vegetables for five years and a reduced rate thereafter. Tax incidence
on dairy machinery, meat products and other processed foods have also
been reduced. Fifty Indian companies participated in the fair. The range
on display extended from basmati rice, beans, wines, ready-to-cook meals,
curries, snacks, spices, meats and fish products.
-Oct 21, 2004
India to go for food parks in a big way
New
Delhi: The Ministry of Food Processing Industries is setting up food
parks in different parts of the country. According to a press release,
the idea is to help small and medium entrepreneurs who find it difficult
to invest in facilities like cold storage, warehouse, quality control
laboratory and effluent treatment plants. All these facilities will be
capital-intensive. A cluster of food processing units in such parks would
not only be cost competitive but also have a better market orientation.
All implementing agencies are eligible to grant up to Rs.4 crore for common
facilities such as continuous water and power supply, cold storage, warehousing,
effluent treatment plant, quality control and analytical laboratory. Major
processing facilities like food concentrate and pulp making units are
also integral parts of a food park. The Ministry has so far sanctioned
45 food parks. These are located in Andhra Pradesh (1), Assam (1), Bihar
(1), Chhattisgarh (1), Haryana (2), Jammu & Kashmir (3), Karnataka (3),
Kerala (3), Madhya Pradesh (6), Maharashtra (5), Manipur (2), Mizoram
(1), Orissa (1), Punjab (1), Rajasthan (3), Tamilnadu (1), Tripura (1),
Uttar Pradesh (4) and West Bengal (5). Only 9 food parks are now partly
operational.
-Oct 15, 2004
'Blue' singer dishes out 1,000 pounds for Indian curry
London:
That Indian curry is the latest craze in London is a well known fact,
but 'Blue' singer Lee Ryan took the fad to a whole new level when he shelled
out 1,000 pounds for an Indian meal, which included chicken bhari, chicken
jalfrezi, lemon pilau rice and vegetable biryani. According to the Mirror,
the British heartthrob placed the order at the exclusive Indian takeaway
'Bengal Quay eaterie,' which boasts of celebrity fans like singer Jennifer
Ellison and Hugh Hefner, and also asked the head chef to come over to
his house to heat the food. The chef, who was slated to cook for 80 people
that night, cancelled all his appointments and made an 80 mile trip only
to be told that he was not required anymore as Ryan had decided to heat
it himself. The irate chef later revealed that it took him more than six
hours to make the round trip, just to be asked to go back. The chef also
revealed that Ryan had ordered enough to feed eight men, but when he reached
his apartment, it was only Ryan and a songwriter friend of his who were
having dinner. "The chef did a 120-mile round trip and got stuck in traffic.
All in all, the order took about six hours of his time. Yet when he got
there, they didn't even want him to prepare the food for serving. They
must have money to burn." The singer and his colleague were working on
tracks for his new solo album in Harrow, North West London," the report
quoted the restaurant owner, Faruk Kamali as saying.
-Oct 12, 2004
Tourist
offices
in India