Knees feeling a little creaky? Maybe you should treat yourself to an Indian curry dinner with plenty of turmeric. Researchers from the University of Arizona discovered that a collection of compounds in the Indian spice blocks a protein that is known to play a key role in inflammatory disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and asthma.

The investigators created several standardized extracts of the turmeric and fed them to laboratory animals that had been bred for the study of rheumatoid arthritis, a highly debilitating form of arthritis that leads to severely deformed joints.

The research, which is being published in an online issue of the research journal Arthritis and Rheumatism, showed that three of turmeric’s major components, called curcurminoids, interfered with the action of a type of protein called Nuclear Factor kappa-B, or NF-KB for short. Once NF-KB is activated in a joint, it attaches itself to the genes of a cell and triggers the production of lots of inflammatory chemicals. As a result, a number of pharmaceutical companies have been studying NF-KB as a possible target for new arthritis drugs.

What it means: Turmeric is not the cure for rheumatoid arthritis. But studying the spice’s properties more closely could help investigators find new treatments for the disease. In the meantime, adding turmeric to your cooking is a great way to improve the flavor. And if there are any health benefits, well, all the better.

From the Archive:

Jul. 31, 2006: Natural Healing
Dec. 1, 2002: Rheumatoid Arthritis: The other crippling joint disease