A few years back, my partner Barry and I set out to explore Africa.
Breathing in the fresh air and feasting on the breathtaking views, we lined up a month of activities including trekking up the mountains to see the gorillas in the jungles of Uganda.
But a day before our trek, the unthinkable happened... I got into a freak accident and ended up with a dislocated right knee... Ouch.
And to top it off, we were stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no way for an ambulance to reach us. Our tour guide, thinking on his feet, turned a door into a stretcher to help carry me to the car.
Despite the 10/10 pain, this weird thought kept popping into my mind:
“Would I be able to go see the gorillas tomorrow?”
Just like a kid going to Disneyland for the first time, I didn’t want to miss my meeting with the gorillas. It had been a lifelong dream!
After an excruciating eight hours, we finally reached the nearest hospital. A quick inspection later, the doctor put my knee back in place, strapping on a brace. He then recommended I use crutches and take pain medications daily.
That was all the treatment I received, there was no advice on how to manage the injury or what precautions to take.
Which is why when I felt better two days later, I went up the mountain to see the gorillas.
I am willing to bet no human has made such a brave yet crazy decision to trek up there with crutches... which explained why 4 gorillas became fascinated by my extra limbs and started poking at my crutches.
Entering the world of chronic pain
When I got back home to Ireland after a month, I had no idea how bad things were going to get.
I had kept my knee strapped up the whole time instead of bending or moving. The result? It doubled in size due to swelling and was so sore I could barely touch it. My other knee was also started to ache on the regular because it was carrying most of my body's weight.
Every morning, I would wake up low on energy... spending the day wincing in pain as I attempted basic chores, like making the bed. Not fun.
After three months of intensive physio- and popping pain killers on the daily- my knee was still sore and swollen! The prescriptions from my doctor only offered a bit of relief for a couple of hours and came with the horrible side effects.
At my wit's end, I searched online for alternatives that would target the inflammation... minus the side effects.
And the one thing that kept showing up over and over again was turmeric.
Unearthing three thousand years of history
To my surprise, I discovered that turmeric use predates modern medicine. The Chinese and Indians use this golden spice for both medicinal and culinary purposes.
Another fun note: Yogis have relied on turmeric for centuries to boost flexibility during complex poses.
The secret to turmeric's power is due to the presence of Curcumin.
Curcumin disrupts the COX-2 enzymes that are present in inflamed tissues. By targeting COX-2 and supporting the body’s natural ability to speed up tissue repair, curcumin helps with swelling and pain.
Apart from targeting inflammation, curcumin has other benefits- a few of which I will list, later on. But before that, I want to talk about something a lot of people are not aware of.
Stumbling on a surprising discovery about curcumin
It was a good thing that I researched deep into turmeric and curcumin... else I would have missed a crucial piece of information... without which my experience wouldn't have been as good.
Here's what I found...
Even though curcumin is a wonderful thing, our bodies do not absorb it well on its own.
However, mixing it with Piperine (an active compound in black pepper) can improve its bioavailability. To me, that made a lot of sense and I made a mental note of this.
Another thing I discovered was that turmeric should not be used with blood-thinning or stomach acid-reducing medications. These combinations don't go well together.
Unsure of possible interactions between your other medications and turmeric? Enter their names in this free online tool and you will get your answer within seconds.
Armed with a boatload of information, I felt confident to go ahead and give turmeric a shot.
Kickstarting the experiment
Even though I had read hundreds of success stories from people around the world, I didn’t get my hopes high. That’s because I wasn’t sure whether this might help in my case because of how bad my injury had gotten over time.
And because a pinch of turmeric wouldn’t be enough; it was crucial to pack in a powerful serving to see any benficial outcomes, but I also couldn't imagine struggling spoonfuls of this spicy mixture down my throat.
The idea I came up with?
Get empty capsules and fill them up so I could measure doses and save my mouth from torture.
Sourcing organic, GMO-free turmeric and black pepper was not an easy task. To further complicate stuff, I had to calculate the precise dose (600mg) that would go into each capsule. And finally, I had to fill up 60 capsules to last one month.
With the production process out of the way, I started taking 2 capsules per day, keeping my yellow-stained fingers crossed (turmeric has a crazy yellow–orange pigment, in case you had no idea!).
A golden flicker of hope
The first signs of improvement came within 78 hours and 6 capsules later. For the first time in months, my knees didn’t feel as if they were on fire.
My excitement grew because the curcumin + piperine combo was doing its job.
15 days later, the swelling was almost unnoticeable. I was back to my normal routine, catching up with friends and family who I hadn’t hanged out for so long.
By day 30, my knees looked and felt as great as they did before the accident. The best part was the look on my doctor’s face. He marveled at my recovery and was eager to hear more about my experiment.
We spent half an hour browsing through studies about turmeric and even he agreed that I was on the right track.
That day, I walked away from his office with a huge sense of achievement.
Reaping side benefits
Don’t you love it when you go to buy one thing and then end up getting other stuff for free?
That’s the feeling I had when taking the turmeric capsules- not only were my knees in their best shape... My energy levels were at an all-time high- which meant I no longer needed to recharge with coffee throughout the day.
I ended up injuring my shoulder (twice!) after this experiment and every time, the only thing that got me back on track was this trusty approach.
After taking these capsules for over a year now, my digestion has become better... skin looks clearer... and I no longer feel the need to skip days in-between intense workouts.
Other people who take turmeric on the regular have also reported side benefits such as:
✓ Less joint problems by targeting inflammation
✓ Naturally boosting the body’s antioxidant levels by blocking free radicals
✓ Heightening the levels of BDNF, a hormone that improves brain functioning
✓ Strengthening the lining of the heart’s blood vessels to lower the risk of heart disease
✓ Helps to disrupt the growth of fat cells to lower the risk of obesity
I could go on and on about a dozen more benefits of this golden spice- but then this post would turn into a book!
So instead, I will let you do some digging of your own... you'll find mountains of research online covering more health benefits.
Becoming a turmeric evangelist
Saying that turmeric changed my life wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
Looking back at photos of myself in crutches, I am glad that I opted for a natural approach for my chronic discomfort.
Friends and family would often ask me to share my turmeric experiment because someone they knew was in bad shape due to an injury or joint issue.
And this made me realize one thing: There were so many others suffering in pain, just like I used to be.
That's when I decided to help such people get their life back by spreading the word about the wonders of turmeric.
To push this mission forward, I created Honest Roots. This supplement is based on an organic, broad-spectrum turmeric + black pepper formula that has 2000% higher absorption.
Witnessing amazing transformations
Honest Roots is now more than a year old. And the best part of this journey is the heart-warming messages I receive daily from people from all walks of life about how Honest Roots has changed their lives.
From athletes who were struggling with sports-related injuries... to grandmas who used to stay at home due to joint problems, Honest Roots has helped them get back on track.
To help you enjoy a more active lifestyle free from constant discomfort, we want to make you a irresistible offer:
Get 3 bottles of Honest Roots for the price of 2 (which equals a 6-month supply).
