Turmeric dosage // How much turmeric should I take daily?

Turmeric Dosage // How much turmeric should I take daily?

Turmeric is known for its vibrant yellow color and unbelievable health benefits. Interestingly, curcumin, the component of turmeric that gives turmeric its characteristic color, also happens to be the component credited for nearly all the health benefits of turmeric. Though estimates vary, it has been established that curcumin accounts for roughly 3-4% of the mass of turmeric. With curcumin in the spotlight, many supplement companies isolate and sell curcumin, ignoring the other components of the turmeric root. There is a bit of a problem, however. Curcumin is poorly absorbed and quickly metabolized. To combat this problem, many supplement producers also employ mechanisms to enhance the bioavailability of curcumin. The most common example is the addition of piperine, a component of black pepper that accounts for approximately 5% of black pepper’s mass. Research has demonstrated that the co-administration of 20 mg of piperine (or around 400 mg of black pepper) boosts the bioavailability of curcumin by 20X. However, this is merely the tip of the iceberg. Prasad et al. (2014) identified 46 different bioavailability-enhanced curcumin formulations. While bioavailability-enhancing mechanisms may represent a prime opportunity for supplement companies to establish a unique selling proposition, a good pharmacist would ask this question: Is it safe to take a spice like turmeric, known for its surprising health benefits, isolate the component credited for all the health benefits, administer that component in massive doses, and then boost that component’s availability in the bloodstream by 20X? Let’s try to find out.

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