As a nutrition coach, personal trainer, and all-around health and wellness obsessive, curcumin is probably the supplement I’ve recommended to friends, family members, colleagues, and clients more often than any other. I have been taking a daily dose of curcumin, a natural one anti-inflammatoryfor over three years. It is just as important to me as my daily multivitamin. As someone who works out five or six times a week, a lot of that runCurcumin helps with joint health, reduces muscle pain and promotes recovery. If I don’t use it for a few days, I get pain around my knees. I also find it beneficial for intestinal problems due to its anti-inflammatory properties.
I have recommended it for complaints of back and shoulder pain, swollen feet, colds, bruises and more generally as a preventive aid against the inevitable inflammations that come with age. Research about curcumin has also shown that its antioxidant properties can help reduce acne and support a healthy aging process, as well as alleviate inflammatory diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and eye conditions. It can help with blood vessel function and brain health, while working against diabetes, cognitive decline, mood swings and depression. Clinical trials have shown that it can play a role in killing cancer cells, so much so that it is being promoted as a holistic cancer treatment.
So, what is curcumin?
If this list of benefits sounds familiar, that’s because curcumin offers the same benefits as turmericthe better known host herb. However, these results are supercharged because it is a lot more effective. “Curcumin is the active ingredient in turmeric – and curcuminoids are the anti-inflammatory components,” explains sports nutritionist. Ben Coomber. This is the bright orange/yellow compound found in the turmeric root and it is the part that provides the most benefits. By extracting it for use in supplements, you remove the turmeric, which provides fewer health benefits.
“Research shows that you need 1,500 milligrams of active curcumin per day to improve joint pain, osteoarthritis and depression,” Coomber adds. “So if you take 1,500 milligrams of turmeric, it’s very unlikely you’ll get anywhere near the research-recommended dose. Turmeric still contains curcumin, you just have to take a lot of it.” In fact, turmeric only contains between two and six percent curcumin.
Nevertheless, turmeric continues to make headlines, largely thanks to its marketing, the easier accessibility of the spice itself, and the fact that it is a lot cheaper for supplement companies to produce than using expensive extraction processes – something Coomber, who is also the founder by Great supplementsfound early. “Curcumin is a premium product. You can buy turmeric for about €10, but we only spend that to make our product.” Despite the costs and risks, Coomber was an early adopter and takes curcumin daily to help him recover from exercise and an inflamed elbow joint. He also added curcumin to the brand’s offering about four years ago. “The data on curcumin was simply too strong to ignore, and the number of people now suffering from joint disease and the proliferation of depression – two of the most important things curcumin can help with – prompted us to enter that space. ”, he explains.