Turmeric is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is native to Southeast Asia, and requires temperatures between 20 and 30 °C (68–86 °F) and a considerable amount of annual rainfall to thrive. Plants are gathered annually for their rhizomes and propagated from some of those rhizomes in the following season. Belonging to the ginger family, turmeric has been used in East India and the Middle East for thousands of years, and is now one of the most highly-prized spices in the world. Vitiligo is a skin disorder where the skin pigment is lost in certain regions and discolored or white patches remain on the skin. It occurs when skin cells are unable to function appropriately or when they die. Though many causes for vitiligo progression have been suggested, its exact mechanism of pathogenesis is still unclear. The beneficial effects of turmeric are traditionally achieved through dietary consumption, even at low levels, over long periods of time. Vitiligo is a skin disease that is prevented by turmeric, because turmeric has high antioxidant and high anti-inflammatory activity, that cure vitiligo and also helps to synthesis of melanin formation.