Turmeric oil is not curcumin, and that matters. The yellow curcuminoids everyone associates with turmeric are non-volatile and stay behind in the root. What distils over is turmerone, at a third to three fifths of the oil, giving a dry, earthy, slightly bitter spice. In mice, ar-turmerone reduced inflammation in the brain and protected memory after an immune challenge.^[1] The whole oil eased pain and protected cells in animal testing.^[2]