You may not want to start your day with a curry. However, turmeric, the spice that gives curry its yellow coloring, helps you stay mentally sharp. A supplement with one gram with your breakfast every day may even halt or reverse early-stage diabetes. Turmeric has a powerful anti-inflammatory effect and inflammation is seen as the cause behind many Western lifestyle related diseases from diabetes to dementia. Turmeric has a long term and immediate impact as researchers from the Monash Asia Institute at Monash University discovered. Those who took turmeric with their breakfast showed better working memory for six hours afterwards.