2015, Pages 41–49
Chapter 5 – Dietary Spices in the Prevention of Rheumatoid Arthritis: Past, Present, and Future
Spices,
defined by the US Food and Drug Administration as aromatic vegetable
substances, in the whole, broken, or ground form, whose significant
function in food is seasoning rather than nutrition, are an integral
part of any Indian cuisine and are added to impart tastes, flavor, and
color to the curries. In addition to their use in cooking, spices are
also known to possess medicinal benefits and have been used in the
various traditional and folk systems of medicine to treat ailments.
Scientific studies carried out in the past have shown conclusively that
most of the commonly used Indian spices and some of their phytochemicals
possess antioxidant, free radical scavenging, anti-inflammatory,
antibacterial, and antiviral effects; modulate detoxification enzymes,
stimulate the immune system, reduce inflammation, and modulate steroid
metabolism; and have antimutagenic, gastroprotective, and
anticarcinogenic effects. Studies carried out during the past two
decades have shown that commonly used Indian spices, such as fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L., family Fabaceae), coriander (Coriandrum sativum L., family Apiaceae), ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe, family Zingiberaceae), turmeric (Curcuma longa
L., family Zingiberaceae), and their phytochemicals 6-shogaol (present
in ginger), curcumin (present in turmeric), eugenol (present in clove Syzygium aromaticum L., family Myrtaceae), and thymoquinone (present in black cumin Nigella sativa
L., family Ranunculaceae), possess beneficial effects in amelioration
of rheumatoid arthritis in preclinical studies. Of these, ginger,
turmeric and the oil of Nigella sativa have been shown also to
possess beneficial effects in humans. For the first time, this chapter
summarizes the findings from both preclinical and clinical studies with
these spices and phytochemicals in rheumatoid arthritis, and also
emphasizes the mechanisms of action responsible for the observed effects
of each of the spices/phytochemicals.
Keywords
- Zingiber officinale;
- Nigella sativa;
- Curcuma longa;
- Trigonella foenum-graecum;
- Coriandrum sativum;
- coriander;
- fenugreek;
- eugenol;
- 6-shogaol;
- thymoquinone;
- rheumatoid arthritis
