A radiant hue

Dr Fahim Chand | Thursday June 12, 2025 12:28

The earth’s architecture, so vast, so varied, has the uncanny power to astonish and even shift the rhythm of our bodies. We cruised steadily forward on a ribbon of smooth grey tarmac, summer blessing the day with a perfect blue sky and a bold yellow sun that promised something unforgettable. The highway buzzed with life with cars streaming past, each filled with people chasing their own little adventures. A forest picnic, a vineyard’s quiet intoxication, a sun-kissed sail across a lake’s shimmering surface.

And us? We were headed to witness one of nature’s most iconic masterpieces: Niagara Falls. As we curved around the final bend, we heard it before we saw it, the deep, thunderous roar of water. Then it appeared: majestic, wild, and alive, pouring endlessly into the gorge below. I had waited years for this, the legendary Maid of the Mist awaited, ready to carry us into nature’s breathless theatre. Under a cloudless sky, we were handed raincoats, sun-yellow, like a private joke. But we knew.

As we neared Canada’s mighty Horseshoe Falls, the spray enveloped us in a ceaseless, rain-like mist. Nature’s raw force drenched us and imprinted something indelible on our psyche. Later, over dinner, that same radiant yellow returned but this time in the glow of spiced chicken atop a bed of turmeric infused rice. A final flourish to a day painted in wonder, water, and the unforgettable hue of yellow.

For thousands of years, turmeric has been the golden thread running through Indian kitchens, sprinkled into dals, stirred into milk, smeared on wounds, even dabbed on brides for that radiant glow. It wasn’t just a spice; it was medicine disguised as food. Grandmothers knew it soothed coughs, healed cuts, calmed joints.

Ayurveda had entire chapters singing its praises. Meanwhile, Western medicine raised an eyebrow. A spice? Healing people? Cute. It took a few centuries, a mountain of studies, and the rebranding of turmeric’s active compound as ‘curcumin’ for the scepticism to ease.

Now, with clinical trials and peer-reviewed papers in hand, Western science is enthusiastically onboard. Turmeric, once relegated to the spice aisle, has made its way into the compendium of pharmaceuticals in several countries, recognised for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and neuroprotective powers. It’s being studied for everything from arthritis to depression to heart disease. Better late than never, one might say. Still, there’s something amusing about turmeric needing a lab coat and a Latin name to be taken seriously. In India, it never had to prove itself. It just worked; aromatic, healing, and quietly brilliant. Turns out, Dadi (grandmother) was right all along.

A recent study published last month in the peer-reviewed journal Aging suggests that turmeric, along with five other foods rich in methyl adaptogens (natural plant compounds) might just help roll back the biological clock.

Not your birthday candles, mind you, but your epigenetic age; how old your cells feel, rather than how many laps you’ve done around the sun. Yes, the study was small and limited to men (science still catching up with inclusivity), but it offers a tantalising blueprint for broader, more representative research.

So, what’s on the age-defying menu? In addition to turmeric: green tea, oolong tea, rosemary, garlic, and berries. It reads less like a prescription and more like the ingredients list for a very clever picnic. Whilst we may not have stumbled upon Ponce de León’s mythical fountain of youth, science is pouring us something far more practical, one mug of green tea at a time. Yellow, after all, is no longer just the sun’s laughter, the hum of bees, or the bold joy of marigolds. It’s turmeric on fingertips, memories at Niagara Falls, and now, the colour of youth, served warm, with a side of science.