FAQ: What's the Difference Between Curcumin and Turmeric?

Turmeric is one of the most popular and widely available supplements on the market today. The robust orange spice is broadly used in culinary recipes around the world, but its use as a health supplement has been taking off in recent years. You may also have heard of curcumin in discussions of turmeric, which brings up many questions. Is there a difference between turmeric and curcumin? Is turmeric (or curcumin) a valuable health supplement? Are they safe to take? Read on to find out what the science is saying.

Also, if you would prefer to watch this article in video form, you can do so on my YouTube channel here:

Are Turmeric and Curcumin the Same Thing?

Recently, a series of critical studies have been published on the subject of curcumin, which is the active ingredient in turmeric. These studies provide strong evidence of benefit. But, these new studies need to be interpreted with nuance; there's always more to the story than simply saying, "this supplement is good." Before we dive in, though, what are the potential benefits we should look for?

In previous research, studies have indicated that curcumin may have possible benefits for:

• Alzheimer's disease and related dementia
• Heart disease and cardiovascular health
• Diabetes and blood sugar regulation
• Obesity and weight management
• Cancer

These benefits are presumed to come from curcumin's anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

What is Inflammaging?

This stems from something that happens to our bodies as we age, called inflammaging. Inflammaging occurs as we age. Inflammation is a natural process and is part of the body's response to infection and disease. The immune system triggers inflammation in the form of increased body temperature, fever, and localized swelling, to help increase blood flow and facilitate the recovery of the cells in the affected area.

Inflammaging is when our bodies are not necessarily fighting off an infection; rather, we have generalized, high levels of inflammation-causing damage throughout our bodies. So, if we can use something like curcumin to stop inflammaging from happening, that's an exciting prospect.

What is the Greatest Challenge with Curcumin?

Turmeric isn't exactly a brand-new molecule, so why aren't we already using it? The issue is that curcumin has poor bioavailability, which is the body's ability to absorb and use it. It's poorly absorbed, and what is absorbed is metabolized and eliminated very rapidly.

One of the more recent developments is the discovery that combining curcumin with other ingredients, such as piperine (the active component in black pepper), can increase the bioavailability of curcumin by as much as 2,000%.

Is Curcumin Safe?

Safety is always a primary concern with any supplement, so is curcumin considered safe? For now, I have some general statements, but we'll look at this again later once we've covered the benefits.

To date, curcuminoids have been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration and have been given the label GRAS, or Generally Recognized As Safe. Moreover, this approval extends to significant doses, even up to between 4,000 and 8,000 milligrams per day.

So, it's safe in large doses, can be made to be much more effective with the addition of piperine, and has a wide range of potential benefits to the body. That's the potential, but the question is, what does the science say? Fortunately, numerous human clinical trials are being and have been conducted, so we have good results to discuss.

Does Curcumin Have an Impact on Inflammation?

Before we get into the really exciting human clinical trials, let's talk about inflammation. When examining the research, we want to look at the totality of the evidence; as in, what do all of the clinical studies show? The best way to do that is by looking at meta-analyses that combine all of the randomized clinical trials together to see what the results are overall.

What we're trying to figure out is whether or not there's a benefit to taking curcumin versus taking a placebo or dummy pill. When looking at the evidence with respect to inflammation, things get a bit weird.

In 2021, a meta-analysis involving 32 randomized clinical trials showed that, yes, there does seem to be a reduction in inflammatory markers. However, in a meta-analysis, it's important to keep in mind that not all studies are created equal. Some are very high quality, while others are less well-designed and may include study bias.

In this meta-analysis, the majority (19 out of 32) of the studies were evaluated as neutral, but several studies had negative methodological quality relating to the lack of detail in reporting interventions. Moreover, many of them did not adjust for potential confounders or collect data on important factors such as habitual diet and exercise among participants.

So, overall, the results are interesting but aren't particularly robust due to these factors.

Skipping forward a couple of years, we come to a 2023 umbrella meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. It also showed that curcumin supplements reduced the markers of inflammation.

It's important to note here that these studies show a statistically relevant reduction in inflammation levels associated with taking curcumin supplements. The actual reduction is small, but the studies show that it's very likely to be associated with curcumin rather than random variability, placebo effect, or another reason.

So far so good, right? So, where's the weirdness I mentioned?

A different meta-analysis was conducted on a group of patients who all had some kind of inflammatory disease, such as rheumatic diseases, chronic kidney disease, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. Since these patients have the largest amount of bodily inflammation, this is where curcumin should have the greatest effect. The results are surprising: curcumin did not seem to lower inflammation levels in these patients.

The end result here is that it seems likely that curcumin has a beneficial impact on bodily inflammation, but the results may be somewhat limited in scope and scale. However, none of this is why I'm excited about curcumin.

Is Curcumin Effective for Weight Loss?

Because research thus far hasn't panned out for lifespan studies, curcumin hasn't been used in human lifespan studies to date. Lifespan studies have been conducted in mice and have not shown any increase in lifespan; however, some weight loss benefits were displayed in mice. So, let's talk about weight loss next.

Once again, we look at a meta-analysis combining the results of numerous randomized controlled trials. This meta-analysis looked at a total of 21 studies across 18 articles involving 1,600 people. These studies found that curcumin supplements seemed to induce a statistically significant reduction in weight. Unfortunately, just like the effects on inflammation, this reduction is small in actual values. In other words, curcumin seems to induce some weight loss, but not very much.

Is Curcumin Effective for Diabetes?

Diabetes is commonly associated with obesity, so it's easy to continue the line of thinking from weight control to blood sugar control. In yet another meta-analysis, we see that curcumin does seem to have a statistically relevant impact on reducing the markers of diabetes, including HBA1c and insulin resistance markers.

Crucially, no effect was seen in patients without diabetes. And again, while the effects are statistically relevant, they are small in actual values.

For all of these factors, from inflammation to weight loss to diabetes, it's better to focus on the overall core pillars of health, most notably a great diet and routine exercise. Curcumin and turmeric may be able to assist you in achieving your goals, but the impact they have on their own is very small.

Is Curcumin Effective for Dementia?

As you might be able to guess, the impact curcumin has on dementia is similar to what it has on other bodily issues. We have a handful of small pilot studies examining the effects of curcumin on cognitive performance, which seem to show some small impact on reducing cognitive decline.

The problem is that most of these are very small pilot studies. They have very short durations and thus can't show long-term effects, and they involve very few patients, so their statistical relevance is limited. It's not that curcumin can't help; we simply don't have enough evidence either way.

Is Curcumin Effective for Cancer Prevention?

The same story is told again with cancer prevention.

Results from early-phase trials are moderately promising, but studies are still very short and limited, so we don't have a significant body of evidence proving the efficacy of curcumin for use in cancer prevention.

Is Curcumin Effective for Arthritis?

So, when considering all of these limited results, you may wonder why I'm excited about curcumin at all. Well, we've finally come to the reason. It's for osteoarthritis.

We have multiple randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials showing that curcumin does seem to improve osteoarthritis pain compared to placebo. Recent meta-analyses support this, with a 2021 meta-analysis of 10 studies showing benefits from turmeric therapy on osteoarthritis pain. Crucially, this impact wasn't as small; it was similar in quality to NSAIDs.

This is a big deal. NSAIDs are hard on your body, particularly in areas such as your kidneys, your gut, and even your heart. Since the majority of people with osteoarthritis are already struggling with problems with these systems as well, finding an alternative to a harsh pain medication is promising.

Revisiting the Issue: Is Curcumin Safe?

As with any medication or supplement, the issue of safety is paramount. Does curcumin have side effects?

The answer is yes, and one of the most important is a rare but serious side effect: liver injury. A study published in 2023 looked at cases of curcumin causing liver injury. Five patients were hospitalized, and one died of acute liver failure after taking turmeric supplements.

What this means is that if you choose to take curcumin supplements, you should regularly check your liver function.

Is it Recommended to Take Curcumin Supplements?

Curcumin supplements seem to have some tangible benefits but also the potential for serious side effects. In general:

• Curcumin supplements may be most beneficial for patients with arthritis, especially osteoarthritis.
• Curcumin is not necessarily relevant for other issues, such as diabetes, dementia, heart disease, or weight loss.
• Turmeric is generally recognized as safe, so if you want to use it in your cooking, go for gold.

In broad strokes, it's always better to focus on the core pillars of health, including good, restful sleep, regular exercise, and a healthy diet. Turmeric, even outside of supplements, is a delicious spice and can augment a healthy diet without issues.

A great diet can be difficult to manage, however, and it's often a challenge to make sure you get the recommended daily intake of all of the critical micronutrients, vitamins, and minerals your body needs. That's why I developed MicroVitamin; as a way to help myself balance my own diet.

As always, just because I take a supplement or recommend it to certain patients does not mean you should take it as a matter of course. Always talk to your doctor about your own health goals and whether or not something like turmeric can have a beneficial impact on your health.

Sources:

1. Curcumin: A Review of Its Effects on Human Health: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5664031/
2. Anti-inflammatory effects of oral supplementation with curcumin: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34378053/
3. Profiling Inflammatory Biomarkers following Curcumin Supplementation: An Umbrella Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9870680/
4. Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of curcumin/turmeric supplementation in adults: A GRADE-assessed systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1043466623000224
5. Oral turmeric/curcumin effects on inflammatory markers in chronic inflammatory diseases: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31121255/
6. Evaluation of Resveratrol, Green Tea Extract, Curcumin, Oxaloacetic Acid, and Medium-Chain Triglyceride Oil on Life Span of Genetically Heterogeneous Mice: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3598361/
7. The Effects of Curcumin on Weight Loss Among Patients With Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6582779/
8. Potential Therapeutic Effects of Curcumin on Glycemic and Lipid Profile in Uncomplicated Type 2 Diabetes—A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7912109/
9. Curcuminoids for Metabolic Syndrome: Meta-Analysis Evidences Toward Personalized Prevention and Treatment Management: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2022.891339/full
10. Influence of CurQfen®-curcumin on cognitive impairment: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, 3-arm, 3-sequence comparative study: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/dementia/articles/10.3389/frdem.2023.1222708/full
11. Curcumin (Curcuma, Turmeric) and Cancer (PDQ®)–Health Professional Version: https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/cam/hp/curcumin-pdq
12. Short-term effects of highly-bioavailable curcumin for treating knee osteoarthritis: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled prospective study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25308211/
13. Efficacy and safety of curcumin and its combination with boswellic acid in osteoarthritis: a comparative, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5761198/
14. Therapeutic effects of turmeric or curcumin extract on pain and function for individuals with knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7812094/
15. Efficacy and Safety of Turmeric Extracts for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33511486/
16. The Effects of Curcuma Longa on the Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review of Placebo-Controlled Clinical Studies: https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/2888
17. Efficacy and Safety of Curcumin and Curcuma longa Extract in the Treatment of Arthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9353077/
18. Effect of curcumin on rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2023.1121655/full
19. Liver Injury Associated with Turmeric-A Growing Problem: Ten Cases from the Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network [DILIN]: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36252717/