By the time I post this video I will be hiking and camping in Havasupai in Arizona by the Grand Canyon. It’s famous for their beautiful falls and it has been on my Bucket List for years but it’s very hard to get a permit and never materialized until now.
I mentioned hiking. In fact, I will be hiking A LOT. I will be hiking 10 miles or 16 km one way from the trailhead to the campsite. I am not a hiker and I probably did a minimal preparation for this big trip by walking 3, 5, 7, and 10 miles over the last two months.
Because I’m not used to walking at all, I knew my body would be hurting so I started drinking this Golden Milk Elixir to reduce the muscle and joint pain from inflammation. To my surprise, it’s been helping me a lot. My body does get sore after a long walk but the time to recover has been way less than I know my body would take otherwise.
There are ton of recipes for Golden Elixir or Golden Milk Elixir but here’s mine. It’s very simple.
Heat up a milk of your choice. I’m using soy milk here. Add turmeric. I’m not measuring at all. I just cover the surface. Sometimes more. Then add ginger. This is a frozen cube because I don’t cook much and my fresh ginger usually ends up shriveled up and looking sad.
Turmeric is anti-inflammatory. Turmeric is also good for lowering cholesterol, preventing hear disease, increasing antioxidant for liver disease, improving brain functions, fighting depression and Alzheimer’s Disease.
Stir well. Put some honey in your favorite mug. You gotta surround yourself with things that spark joy according to Marie Kondo of Tidying Up. I recently went to Hawaii and this sparks such a joy. Pour the hot milk mix and stir well. Especially because I just saw a chunk of ginger still in there.
Ginger is also anti-inflammatory and helps to reduce muscle pain, osteoarthritis pain and menstrual pain. And just like turmeric, it helps to improve brain functions and lowers bad cholesterol. Ginger is also good for improving digestion and lowering blood sugar. And enjoy.
As I was making this video, I learned that adding black pepper will increase the absorption of curcumin which is the active compound of turmeric by as much as 2,000% so I will do that next time.
Too much of anything is not good and there are possible side effects. Some people may experience upset stomach, nausea, headache, and skin rashes even from small amount. You should not take curcumin in medicinal forms such as concentrated capsules, tablets or softgels if you are on a blood thinner or certain medications like these. I’m just going to read the product names because it’s easier:
- Warfarin (Coumadin)
- Clopidogrel (Plavix)
- Aspirin
- Cimetidine (Tagamet)
- Famotidine (Pepcid)
- Ranitidine (Zantac)
- Esomeprazole (Nexium)
- Omeprazole (Prilosec)
- Lansoprazole (Prevacid)
If you have any medical conditions, it’s best to ask your doctor if curcumin in medicinal form is safe for you.
I learned about the Golden Elixir first from my Indian client whose mother used to give her a spoonful every day and she never got sick growing up. Then I started seeing “golden” drinks with turmeric at coffee shops the last few years and I think it’s a good thing. I hope it doesn’t end as a golden fad.
I’ll see you back next week if I come back in one piece!
Massage Monday #472 Golden Milk Elixir – My Anti-Inflammatory Solution http://bit.ly/mm-472