10 Proven Turmeric and Curcumin Health Benefits

10 Proven Turmeric and Curcumin Health Benefits

Turmeric is the spice that gives curry its yellow color.

It has been used in India for thousands of years as both a spice and a medicinal herb. Recently, science has started to support traditional claims that turmeric contains compounds with medicinal properties (1).
These compounds are called curcuminoids. The most important is curcumin. Curcumin is the main active ingredient in turmeric. It has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and is a very strong antioxidant.
Here are the top 10 evidence-based health benefits of turmeric and curcumin.

1. Turmeric contains bioactive compounds with medicinal properties

However, the curcumin content of turmeric is not that high. It's about 3% by weight (2). Most studies on this herb use turmeric extracts, which primarily contain curcumin itself, with doses typically exceeding 1 gram per day.
It would be very difficult to reach these levels just by using turmeric as a spice in your food.
For this reason, some people choose to use supplements.
However, curcumin absorbs poorly into your bloodstream. To experience the full effects of curcumin, its bioavailability (the rate at which your body absorbs a substance) must be improved (3).
Consuming it with black pepper, which contains piperine, helps. Piperine is a natural substance that increases the absorption of curcumin by 2000% (4).
In fact, the best curcumin supplements contain piperine, which makes them much more effective.
Curcumin is also fat soluble, which means it breaks down and dissolves in fat or oil. Therefore, it can be a good idea to take curcumin supplements with a meal with high fat.

2. Curcumin is a natural anti-inflammatory

Inflammation is incredibly important. It helps fight against foreign invaders and plays a role in repairing damage in your body.
Although short-term inflammation is advantageous; this can be a problem if it becomes chronic and attacks your own tissue in your body. Scientists now believe that chronic low-level inflammation may play a role in certain health conditions and diseases. These include (5Trusted Source, 6Trusted Source, 7Trusted Source):
• heart disease
• cancer
• metabolic syndrome
• Alzheimer's disease
• various degenerative conditions
That's why anything that can help fight chronic inflammation is potentially important in preventing and helping to treat these conditions.
Although the subject of inflammation is multi-layered and there is probably no simple answer, the main conclusion regarding curcumin is that it is a bioactive substance that can fight inflammation. However, very high doses are required to produce medicinal results (8Trusted Source, 9Trusted Source, 10Trusted Source).

3. Turmeric can increase the body's antioxidant capacity

Oxidative damage is believed to be one of the mechanisms behind aging and many diseases.
These are free radicals, highly reactive molecules with unpaired electrons. Free radicals tend to react with important organic substances, such as fatty acids, proteins, or DNA.
The main reason antioxidants are so beneficial is that they protect your body from free radicals. Curcumin is a powerful antioxidant that, due to its chemical structure, can neutralize free radicals (11).
Additionally, animal and cell studies suggest that curcumin may block the effects of free radicals and boost the effects of other antioxidants. More human clinical trials are needed to confirm these benefits (12).

4. Curcumin May Increase Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor

Before scientists had a better understanding of neurons, it was believed that they could not divide and multiply after infancy. However, they now know that is not the case.
Neurons are able to form new connections, and in certain areas of the brain, they can multiply and increase in number.
One of the main drivers of this process is the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). This is a gene involved in the manufacture of a protein responsible for promoting the life of neurons.
The BDNF protein plays a role in memory and learning and is found in areas of the brain responsible for eating, drinking, and body weight (13, 14). Many common brain disorders have been linked to reduced levels of the BDNF protein, including depression and Alzheimer's disease (15Trusted Source, 16Trusted Source).
Interestingly, animal studies have found that curcumin can increase brain levels of BDNF (17, 18).
In this way, it can be effective in delaying or even reversing many brain diseases and decreases in age-related brain function. However, because these studies were conducted on animals, it is difficult to say what the results mean for humans (19Trusted Source, 20).
It can also help improve memory and attention, which seems logical given its effects on BDNF levels. However, more studies are needed to confirm this (21).

5. Curcumin can reduce the risk of heart disease

Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide (22). Researchers have been studying it for many decades and have learned a lot about why it happens. Unsurprisingly, heart disease is incredibly complicated, and several things contribute to it. Curcumin can help reverse many steps in the heart disease process (23, 24).
Perhaps the biggest benefit of curcumin for heart disease is improving the function of the endothelium, the lining of your blood vessels (25).
Endothelial dysfunction is a major driver of heart disease. It happens when your endothelium can't regulate blood pressure, blood clotting, and various other factors (26).
Several studies suggest that curcumin may improve heart health (27, 28). Additionally, one study found it to be as effective as exercise in postmenopausal women (29).
Additionally, curcumin can help reduce inflammation and oxidation (as discussed above), which can play a role in heart disease.
In a study of 121 people undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery, researchers gave them a placebo or 4 grams of curcumin per day for a few days before and after surgery.
The curcumin group had a 65% lower risk of a heart attack in the hospital (30).

6. Turmeric can prevent cancer

Cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth. There are many different types of cancer that seem to be affected by curcumin supplements (31).
Curcumin has been studied as a beneficial herb in the treatment of cancer and has been shown to affect the growth and development of cancer (32).
Studies have shown that it can (33, 34):
• contribute to the death of cancer cells
• Reduction of angiogenesis (growth of new blood vessels in tumors)
• Reduce metastases (spread of cancer).
Whether high-dose curcumin—preferably with an absorption enhancer like piperine—can help treat cancer in humans has yet to be thoroughly studied.
However, there is some evidence that it may prevent cancer in the first place, especially cancers of the digestive system like colon cancer (35). In a 30-day study of 44 men with colon lesions that sometimes become cancerous, 4 grams of curcumin per day reduced the number of lesions by 40% (36).

7. Curcumin can help cure Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia and can contribute to 70% of dementia cases (37).
While treatment stops for some symptoms, there is still no cure for Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, it is so important to prevent this from happening.
There may be some good news on the horizon, as curcumin has been shown to cross the blood brain barrier (38). Inflammation and oxidative damage are known to play a role in Alzheimer's disease, and curcumin has beneficial effects on both (39).
Additionally, a key feature of Alzheimer's is a build-up of protein tangles called amyloid plaques. Studies show that curcumin can help eliminate these plaques (40).
It is currently unknown whether curcumin can slow or even reverse the progression of Alzheimer's disease in humans and needs to be studied.

8. People with arthritis respond well to curcumin supplements

Arthritis is a common problem in Western countries. There are different types of arthritis, most of which involve inflammation of the joints.
Since curcumin is a powerful anti-inflammatory compound, it makes sense that it could help fight arthritis. In fact, several studies show that there is a link.
In a study of people with rheumatoid arthritis, curcumin was even more effective than an anti-inflammatory drug (41). Many other studies have looked at the effects of curcumin on arthritis and noted improvements in various symptoms (42Trusted Source).

9. Curcumin has benefits against depression

Curcumin has shown some promise in treating depression.
In a controlled study, 60 people with depression were randomized into three groups (43Trusted). One group took Prozac, another group took 1 gram of curcumin, and the third group took both Prozac and curcumin. Curcumin had produced similar improvements to Prozac after 6 weeks. The group that took both Prozac and curcumin did best (44).
According to this small study, curcumin is as effective as an antidepressant.
Depression is also linked to reduced levels of BDNF and a shrunken hippocampus, an area of the brain that plays a role in learning and memory. Curcumin may help increase BDNF levels and potentially reverse some of these changes (45). There is also some evidence that curcumin can increase the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine in the brain (46, 47).

10. Curcumin can help slow aging and fight chronic age-related diseases

If curcumin can really help prevent heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer's, it could also have longevity benefits.
This suggests that curcumin may have potential as an anti-aging supplement (48).
Since oxidation and inflammation are thought to play a role in aging, curcumin can have effects far beyond just disease prevention (49).

Resources:

15Trusted Source, 16Trusted Source