Curcumin
What is curcumin?
Curcumin is an herbal supplement that you may not have heard of before. However, you have probably heard of turmeric, turmeric root, or turmeric root extract. Curcumin is a major component of turmeric. Curcumin is the active component of turmeric that gives it medicinal properties.
Turmeric is a plant in the ginger family that grows in tropical regions of the world, including Southeast Asia. The root of turmeric is the key spice that gives color to Indian curries.
Curcumin is the active compound that makes up roughly 5 to 10% of turmeric root, similar to how caffeine is the active ingredient in coffee. Along with Curcumin, turmeric also has multiple curcuminoids in varying quantities, which are curcumin-like substances that behave like curcumin but at a lower efficiency.
What does it do?
Ancient eastern medicine practitioners have used turmeric as an herbal medicine to help skin, upper respiratory tract, joint, and digestive disorders. Recent research has pin pointed curcumin as the active ingredient in turmeric that gives it its medicinal properties.
Curcumin also has the potential to help with many more disorders. Curcumin has been found to have anti-cancerous, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. Curcumin also has an important role in preventing autoimmune, neurological, and cardiovascular diseases.
Research is still out on the exact method by which curcumin can have an impact on all these conditions. This is because curcumin, just like many other natural medicines, has a complicated physiological impact. However, it seems to have something to do with its polyphenol structure. Polyphenols have been known to have strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Therefore, its believed that curcumin’s structure allows it to have an impact on many natural processes.
Research shows that curcumin impacts multiple stages of cancer development including: “…suppress transformation, beginning, development and invasion of tumor, angiogenesis, and metastasis.” Curcumin’s impact on all these stages allows it to have preventive characteristics for colon, pancreas, breast, prostate, and lung cancers. Curcumin has also been shown to increase the effectiveness of radiotherapy. The extent and strength of curcumin’s preventive characteristics are still unknown. More research needs to be done to see the exact extent that curcumin prevents cancerous growth.
Curcumin has a low bioavailability, meaning that it does not get absorbed into the body very easily). This limits its benefits on human health. However, increasing the bioavailability of curcumin can potentially increase its benefits. Consuming piperine, a natural herb that is found in black pepper, with curcumin is one way to increase the bioavailability of curcumin. Many curcumin supplements will have added piperine. If you are staying with natural sources, add a little black pepper to your turmeric powder.
Is it safe and should you take it?
Curcumin is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA. Studies show that we can consume up to 12 grams of curcumin per day for an extended period of time with no side effects. Other studies show that, at most, overconsumption could cause gastrointestinal distress. With a recommended dose of 0 to 3mg per kg of body weight, it is unlikely you will experience any negative side effects when consuming the recommended dose.
Most supplements will contain 300 to 1000mg of curcumin per serving. This serving size should be adequate and at a safe range (this is higher than the recommended dose but it is much less than the maximum safe quantity). To maximize the effectiveness of a curcumin supplement, it should be taken in conjunction with a piperine supplement to increase bioavailability.
I am personally still on the fence about herbal medicines. However, there seem to be almost no negative side effects, especially compared to the huge potential health benefits of taking curcumin. Curcumin supplementation has the potential to be a preventive measure for cancer, inflammation, neurological disorders, autoimmune disease, and cardiovascular disease. However, curcumin supplementation can be expensive. If you don’t mind spending a little extra on another supplement, curcumin might be worth giving a shot. Or just eat more turmeric and curry.
Kocaadam, B., & Şanlier, N. (2017). Curcumin, an active component of turmeric (Curcuma longa), and its effects on health. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 57(13), 2889–2895. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2015.1077195
Piperine Benefits | Piperine Uses & Benefits | Xtend Life. (n.d.). Xtend-Life Natural Products. Retrieved December 11, 2022, from https://www.xtend-life.com/blogs/supplement-ingredients/piperine
Soleimani, V., Sahebkar, A., & Hosseinzadeh, H. (2018). Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and its major constituent (curcumin) as nontoxic and safe substances: Review. Phytotherapy Research: PTR, 32(6), 985–995. https://doi.org/10.1002/ptr.6054
Turmeric. (n.d.). NCCIH. Retrieved December 11, 2022, from https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/turmeric
