How Effective are Turmeric Capsules in Offering the Desired Benefits?
How Effective are Turmeric Capsules in Offering the Desired Benefits?
Turmeric is a well-known spice, not only for its purpose in cooking but also for its medicinal properties, which have garnered interest from culinary enthusiasts and medical experts alike. It is the primary source of a bioactive polyphenol known as curcumin, which is beneficial in managing high cholesterol, anxiety, arthritis, metabolic syndrome, and inflammatory conditions. It can also aid in managing muscle soreness and exercise-induced inflammation to encourage performance and recovery in active individuals. Patients can use turmeric topically or orally in dosages ranging from 375 mg to 4000 mg once a day.
Curcumin is capable of increasing the number of antioxidants produced by the body. Curcumin longa in turmeric capsules has traditionally been in use as a medicinal herb in Asian countries for its anticancer, antimicrobial, anti-mutagenic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant benefits. This substance and other curcuminoids in turmeric can be used in the production of supplements when extracted. These turmeric capsules have a higher potency than the spice itself. Additionally, a relatively low dose of curcumin in turmeric capsules can offer health benefits for anyone without any diagnosed health conditions. Most of the turmeric capsule benefits can be credited to the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
However, the ingestion of curcumin by itself does not cause correlated health benefits as it has poor bioavailability due to its fast elimination, accelerated metabolism, and insufficient absorption. Because of this, different multiple formulations have been developed to enhance the bioavailability of curcumin in turmeric capsules. Certain components have been proven to enhance curcumin bioavailability such as lipids or piperine, black pepper’s main active component. When combined with curcumin, piperine can increase the bioavailability of the component by up to 2000% and combining these enhancing agents offers even more health benefits.
Turmeric capsules also have some role in weight loss as curcumin has exhibited benefits against obesity thanks to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant mechanisms. The component in turmeric capsules interacts directly with muscle cells, liver cells, pancreatic cells, and adipocytes. These interactions can reverse symptoms associated with obesity such as high cholesterol, high blood sugar, and insulin resistance.
Turmeric capsules are not bad for your liver either. Several study results have indicated extensive therapeutic and protective benefits of curcumin against liver diseases caused by oxidative stress thanks to molecular and cellular mechanisms. However, even though curcumin has a high potential as an anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory agent against liver damage, it still showed negative effects based on concentration. In high doses, turmeric can cause stomach upsets, nausea, and act as a blood thinner. People who are pregnant, have gallbladder disease, or taking blood-thinning medication such as warfarin should avoid taking turmeric capsules.
Doses of curcuminoids reaching up to 8 grams have not been shown to exhibit serious effects when taken in humans but more comprehensive, long-term studies are required.
In conclusion, the curcumin in turmeric capsules is very potent and must be used in relatively low doses in order to gain optimal benefits from the supplement.
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3144156/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3535097/
https://examine.com/supplements/curcumin/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5664031/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6073929/