A joint study including the Japanese curry roux maker House Foods Corp. and a Kyoto University professor, has concluded that curry spices can in fact ease the effect of respiratory illnesses.
Cloves, turmeric, cinnamon and coriander were among the spices that possessed the ability to reduce inflammation caused by PM2.5, an air pollutant. The results were derived from artificial experiments that made use of human airway cells rather than actual human subjects who would have consumed the spices.
PM2.5, or particles measuring 2.5 microns in diameter or smaller, pose great risks to health as they are capable of penetrating the lungs, invading the bloodstream and causing strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and pneumonia.
House Foods, a unit of House Foods Group reported that it will conduct additional studies into the health benefits of curry to boost overall consumption.
Hirohisa Takano, a professor of environmental medicine at the university, said that although further research is required, they were able to achieve promising results. “There’s a good possibility that consuming the spices will also produce a desired outcome,” says Takano.
As an individual who believes in both science and holistic practices, I can personally attest to how quickly my case of acute bronchitis vanished after religiously consuming turmeric flavored tea– a simple concoction of turmeric, ginger and boiled water. However, I can’t prove that my ailment was caused by the aforementioned air pollutant so I look forward to future studies being carried out along with the results that they yield.
