Hi everyone and welcome to my August newsletter.
I hope that you are well and not finding the last few weeks to wet and cold. I have to admit that my morning walks are now at 7am rather than 6am, just to give the sun some time to start shining and bring a bit of heat to the day. Added to that my son is joining me on my morning walks as we are currently looking after two dogs. Abbie, who is a cute little Cavoodle, whom I doggie sit and whom many of you will have met at the markets is with me in recent weeks but, added to the mix we are currently fostering a wonderful Greyhound called Xena. Both are great dogs and get on well together – they are currently both asleep in the sunshine in the garden – but I made the mistake of thinking that it would be fine to walk them together, boy, was I wrong, it was like something out of a Buster Keeton movie, both going in opposite directions to smell at different thing, Abbie trying to walk under Xena, it was chaos. So, now, since it was my son’s suggestion that we at least “road-test” a greyhound he comes along with me on our walks and since Mike is not a morning person my 7am start is a good compromise. Xena is a great dog and since she never raced is totally non-reactive but sadly, we are finding that with our busy lives we are not the family she needs. So, if you are interested in adopting her, please do give me a ring and I can put you in touch with the group who are looking after her.
Again, this month’s article has been sparked by a conversation I had with one of my prospective customers at a recent market. This time the question was about the use of turmeric for migraine headaches and although I have anecdotal evidence from my customers, I did look into what research had been done on the subject and if they came to the same conclusions as my customers – happily, they did!
On a rather different note, I have a very special offer for the month of August. I was able to purchase at a special price some of our wonderful Factor8 pain relief liniment. This was created by a naturopath friend of mine as a natural alternative to the Voltaren gel. The reason for the offer is that the rub is short dated, (end of October 2024) though as I’m sure many of you are aware, the best before date can be taken with a pinch of salt, so just for this month I will be sending a FREE Factor8 liniment with every order over $100. This applies to market and online sales as well. So do come along to a market, ring me or order online, the offer is applicable to all purchases over $100.
Turmeric for Migraines – can it help?
I was asked recently if turmeric/curcumin can help not only with headaches but specifically for migraines. Now I know anecdotally from my customers that several of them find that not only does curcumin help with their headaches but can significantly help with the pain of migraines. So, yet again I decided that I would look into the scientific studies that could throw some more light onto this.
Migraine, a neurovascular condition, is a chronic and lifelong disease that affects about 15% of the population worldwide. Although the exact pathophysiology and etiology of migraine are still unclear, oxidative stress, inflammation, and neuroendocrine imbalances are identified as the critical risk factors for migraine attacks. For many there is also a genetic component to this as well.
Curcumin is an active component and a polyphenolic compound found in turmeric. Curcumin is a promising candidate for preventing and controlling migraine due to its anti‑inflammatory, antioxidative, anti-protein aggregate, and analgesic effects.
Turmeric may help improve symptoms of migraine in four ways.
It is a powerful pain fighting anti-inflammatory making it a good non-addictive option for chronic pain relief.
Reduces oxidative stress and increases antioxidant capacity.
Improves brain function and lowers the risk of brain disease.
Increases circulation making it a good choice to help reduce brain fog, tinnitus and histamine responses in the body.
In one review I looked at the researchers evaluated the experimental and clinical studies investigating the impact of liposomal curcumin and nano-curcumin on the frequency and severity of migraine attacks in patients.
For migraine in another pre-clinical trial, they looked at the pain-relieving effects of turmeric on migraine and found that it was more beneficial than nothing at all and curcumin even worked better than migraine medications propranolol and indomethacin.
One of the concerns raised about the use of curcumin, was its bioavailability as the regular absorption of the curcumin into the body is low. This is why it is so important to have the formulation that not only has a high level of curcumin in the turmeric (ours is a 6% curcumin which is the highest level available) but also mixed with the piperine in black pepper, which increase absorption by up to 2000%, also with the coconut oil to help the body transport the curcumin and the digestive activators like cinnamon and ginger etc. which help the body use the curcumin. All this and more are to be found in the Health2all Turmeric range.
Although in the final analysis, the results are promising, more studies need to be conducted in this area to show the exact efficacies of curcumin on clinical symptoms of migraine and investigate its potential mechanisms.
If you ask me about turmeric and curcumin for migraine headaches, it’s definitely worth a shot. At the very worst, the aches and pains in your joints should feel great.
“Golden Smoothie” Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
1 Tsp Fresh Ginger
1 Tsp Health2all Turmeric
1 Frozen Banana
1/4 Cup Carrot Juice
1/4 Cup Orange Juice
1/4 Cup Almond Milk
DIRECTIONS:
Grate ginger.
Into a blender put the banana, carrot juice, orange juice, almond milk, turmeric and ginger.
Blend until smooth.
Enjoy. 😊
THIS MONTH’S EVENTS AND MARKETS
Hopefully we are over the worst of the weather and that things will start to get a bit warmer in a morning. Still, as long as the weather is playing nice, and the days have been warm and sunny, I can live with a cool start. So, fingers crossed that we get some lovely weather for this August, and I hope to see you out and about the markets.
Saturday 3rd Aug – Kempsey Market – 8am – 1pm. Down by the river. Hopefully, the weather gods will play nice this month and the day will be dry and sunny, unlike last month.
Sunday 4th Aug – Blackhead Car Boot Sale – 8am – 1pm. Hopefully the rain will stay away. Held in the car park of the IGA at Blackhead. Look for the orange gazebo. Hope to see you there. 😊 😊
Saturday 10th Aug - Gloucester Farmers Market - 9am – 1pm. Held at Billabong Park. Do come along to see me.
Sunday 11th Aug – Forster Town Market - 8 am – 1pm. Near the campsite on Head Street. Great little market with a lot more than you expect.
Saturday 17th Aug – Forster Farmers Market – 7am – 12pm – Down by the Police Station on Water Street. Now that there is more space this market is getting bigger and better. Hopefully, the winds stay away this month. 😊
Sunday 18th Aug – Laurieton Market - 8am – 1pm down by the river on Short and Tunis Streets. Hopefully, this month it will be calm and sunny.
Saturday 24th Aug – Tuncurry Market – 8 am – 1pm See you over the bridge at the John Whiley Park. Plenty for the whole family and Marine Rescue do a great bacon and egg butty. 😊
Sunday 25th Aug – Pacific Palms Market - 8am – 1pm. At Elizabeth Beach, another great market for all the family and dog friendly, so come along for a fun day out.
For those of you who can’t get to those markets all you need to do is ring me on 0406 036 845 or you can now go to my website – www.achealthysolutions.com.au and order from there, and I will arrange for it to be posted or delivered to you. The cost is the same as at the market and postage/delivery is free on all orders over $100 with a flat rate of $10 below that.
Yours in Health and Happiness
Alison Carroll
aka The Turmeric Lady
AC Healthy Solutions
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