What are the health risks associated with Turmeric?

Turmeric, also known as Indian Saffron, is a herbaceous plant with large green leaves, part of the Zingiberaceae family that can grow up to 1 metre high. It is native to South-East Asia and thrives in fertile, sunny soil. Its fleshy, cylindrical underground stems, known as rhizomes, are used for their typical orange-yellow colour, spicy flavour and medicinal properties. Turmeric has been part of Asian culinary, traditional, religious and medicinal culture for thousands of years. Over the years, it has spread throughout the world, becoming a spice in its own right, a food colouring agent, a natural preservative and a "functional food", i.e. a foodstuff with interesting medicinal properties that can be consumed as a food supplement, occasionally or as a course of treatment.

Used fresh or dried and ground into powder, the Turmeric rhizome contains precious molecules called curcuminoids (the majority of which are curcumin), which give it its characteristic yellow-orange colour and its powerful anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, digestive, stimulant, fluidifying and protective properties. Turmeric is also rich in vitamins (C, E, B1, B2, B3, B6, K) and minerals and trace elements (Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Calcium, Potassium).

Turmeric has very few side effects when taken in the recommended doses.

However, if ingested in high doses, it can cause yellow stools, flatulence, heartburn, dry mouth, skin rashes, headaches and even nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Turmeric is often combined with piperine (extracted from black pepper) to increase the bioavailability of its precious curcuminoids, so that they can be absorbed by the body. This combination can be very irritating to the digestive tract and can lead to intestinal permeability over the long term. Other natural formulations with no side effects have been developed, such as our Aroma-Zone ORGANIC Optimised Curcumin food supplement.

Contraindications of Turmeric

Turmeric is contraindicated in cases of:

• allergies

• liver problems

• pathology of the bile ducts (stones, obstructions, etc.)

• stomach or duodenal ulcers

Interactions of Turmeric with medicines

• Anticoagulants

Turmeric may have certain interactions with anticoagulant drugs (blood thinners). If you are taking this type of treatment, we advise you to ask your doctor for advice before taking Turmeric.

This also applies to the combination of Turmeric with plants with anticoagulant properties such as Gingko, Ginseng, White Willow, Ginger, Eleutherococcus, etc.

• Anti-inflammatories

Due to its strong anti-inflammatory properties, Turmeric can potentially interact with other anti-inflammatory drugs.

• Antibiotic, anti-tumour, anti-cancer or immunosuppressive treatments

If you are undergoing immunosuppressive, anti-tumour, chemotherapy or radiotherapy treatment, we recommend that you do not consume Turmeric before, during or after the days of treatment.

Turmeric: a hepatoprotector

Turmeric is often described as a liver protector thanks to its antioxidant and choleretic properties. Once again, the curcuminoids it contains are largely responsible for this. In fact, ESCOP (European Scientific Coordination on Phytotherapy) recognises the use of Turmeric in the symptomatic treatment of mild digestive disorders and minor biliary problems.

It stimulates the secretion of bile from the gall bladder and then from the liver, making digestion easier and relieving the role of the liver.

Turmeric and the liver: contraindications

In the event of liver or bile duct pathology, consumption of Turmeric in the form of food supplements should be avoided, particularly because of its choleretic action.

According to the EFSA (European Food Safety Authority), the recommended daily intake of curcumin in food is 180 mg per day for an adult weighing 60 kg. According to ANSES (the French National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety), the daily intake should not exceed 153 mg per day for an adult weighing 60 kg.

These dosages correspond to dietary use.

In the case of specific therapeutic needs (for a precise action on health), for example a digestive or anti-inflammatory action, higher doses of curcumin are required for optimal efficacy.

Dosage depends mainly on the form of turmeric you choose to take:

• As a powder: between 1.5 and 3g (i.e. ½ to 1 teaspoon) a day, sprinkled over your dishes or in your juices, smoothies, fruit purées, etc.

• As an infusion: 1 to 2g of dried turmeric rhizome powder to infuse in a cup of simmering water, 1 to 2 cups a day.

• Capsules: we advise you to always follow the recommendations on the label of your food supplement, as the dosage depends on the concentration of Turmeric per capsule and the process used to manufacture them.

For conventional turmeric rhizome powder capsules: 1 to 3g per day

For turmeric capsules with optimised curcumin: 300 mg per day, i.e. 1 capsule (always check the dosage indicated by the manufacturer of your product).

• The EMA: The European Medicines Agency considers the use of turmeric to relieve "difficult digestion" to be "traditional". It recommends a maximum treatment duration of two weeks.

• WHO: The World Health Organisation recognises as "clinically justified" the use of turmeric in "difficult digestion with hyperacidity and flatulence". It recognises as "traditional" its use in the treatment of "gastric ulcers, arthritis, painful or irregular menstruation, diarrhoea and skin problems".

• COMMISSION E: Commission E of the German Ministry of Health recognises the use of turmeric in the "treatment of digestive disorders".

• ESCOP: The European Scientific Coordination on Phytotherapy recognises the use of turmeric in "the symptomatic treatment of mild digestive disorders and minor biliary problems".

• On the subject of food supplements containing curcumin: After examining the scientific data, the European health authorities (EFSA, European Food Safety Authority and the European Commission) issued an opinion in 2018 on certain health claims made by food supplements containing curcumin. They ruled that these products cannot claim to contribute to normal joint function. It is now forbidden to mention this effect for food supplements containing curcumin.