 An extraordinary study was published in the Journal of the American Diabetes Association, curcumin extract for prevention of type 2 diabetes. A randomized, double-blinded placebo-controlled trial of folks diagnosed with prediabetes. Half got supplements of curcumin, the yellow pigment in the spice turmeric, and curry powder. Another half got identical-looking placebos, and they just followed them out for nine months to see who ended up with diabetes. After nine months of treatment, 16% of patients in the placebo group went on to get full-blown diabetes. But how many in the curcumin group? None. The curcumin group saw significant improvement in fasting blood sugars, glucose tolerance, hemoglobin A1c, insulin sensitivity, pancreatic insulin-producing beta-cell function measured two different ways, and insulin sensitivity. But if you already have diabetes, same beneficial effects, and at a fraction of the dose of prediabetes studies, you see the equivalent of like a quarter cup of turmeric a day, whereas this used only about a teaspoon's worth, which is doable through diet rather than supplements. What's interesting here is the purported mechanism. Fat in the bloodstream plays an important role in the development of insulin resistance and ultimately type 2 diabetes. Fat builds up inside your muscle cells and gums up the works. All the inflammation interferes with insulin signaling. And look what the curcumin was able to do to fat levels in the blood. The first study to show that these turmeric-spiced compounds may have an anti-diabetic effect by decreasing fats in the blood. So if you're prediabetic, it might be a good idea to add turmeric to your diet, but it's important to recognize that prediabetes is a disease in itself, increasing the risk of death, cancer, heart disease, vision loss. So it's not enough to just prevent progression to full-blown diabetes. Prediabetes may be cured completely with a healthy plant-based diet, as I've covered before. Remember that Smoker-P study? Well, yes, those who abuse their bodies with unhealthy diets can lower their risk by eating powerful plants, but better to cut out the crap altogether.