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Curiosity about turmeric

Curcuma longa is a herbaceous plant of the Zingiberaceae family (the same family to which also ginger and cardamom belong) also known as indian saffron. Spice widely used in Middle Eastern cuisine and in Ayurvedic medicine, it has achieved in recent years a great reputation throughout the West. The plant can reach a height of one metre and is provided with very wide leaves and yellow flowers. The yellow powder, known as turmeric, comes from the rhizome, the underground stem of the plant, cylindrical in shape and orange in colour. Turmeric has many properties, all linked to the high concentration of antioxidants that characterizes this spice, able to counteract the action of free radicals and the resulting oxidative stress.