Does Turmeric Have Side Effects?

Does turmeric have side effects? If you take high doses of turmeric some people have experienced digestive issues such as headaches, nausea, and skin rash issues. Turmeric is a popular spice and food dye that is used on foods for color and flavor. It is also used as a dietary supplement, and the main active ingredient is curcumin.

Curcumin or Turmeric supplements offer the following health benefits:

• Reduce chronic inflammation
• It has some anticancer properties
• It has antioxidant effects
• It supports neurological health
• Studies have shown that it improves blood vessel function

Does Turmeric have side effects? Photo credit: iStock-AD077

Not all turmeric powders are pure as some are filtered with illegal ingredients. Some of these products don’t show their cheap potentially toxic ingredients on the label. Turmeric has about 2% oxalate and high doses of that can lead to kidney stones.

Research studies have revealed the turmeric can possibly contain fillers like cassava, starch, barley, wheat, etc. This can potentially cause negative symptoms in people that have celiac disease because they are gluten intolerant. Some turmeric is high in lead and that type of heavy metal is bad for your nervous system and your overall health.

Taking curcumin supplements is safe and should not have any type of side effects or negative health conditions. There was a study with 10 adults who took 490 mg of curcumin for a week and there were no side effects. Another research review in 2021 showed that taking 1000 mg doses of curcumin per day showed no side effects.

If you take high doses of this you can potentially experience digestive issues like diarrhea, bloating, acid reflux, etc. High doses of 450mg or higher can potentially cause headache and nausea. There was also a study that showed that when people took more than 8000 mg of curcumin or more, they experienced skin rashes.

There have been some studies that have shown that there are some negative reactions with the following drug medications such as:

• Cardiovascular drugs
• Antibiotics
• Antidepressants
• Chemotherapy drugs
• Antihistamines

How Much Turmeric Should You Take?

The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee On Food Additives (JECFA) recommends that the dietary intake of turmeric be 1.4mg per pound of bodyweight per day. If you are a 150-pound person that equates to 210 mg per day.

How To Determine Turmeric Quality?

Unfortunately, there are a lot of turmeric supplements that contain a lot of bad cheap fillers. So, the only way to differentiate between what is good vs bad is making sure the products you buy have third party certifications. Some of the best 3^rd party certifications are NSF International, Informed Choice and the US Pharmacopeial convention which stands for USP.

Or seeing a certification that says it is certified organic by the US Department Of Agriculture, USDA. The best advice is to buy your turmeric supplements from a reputable supplier that has a credible 3^rd party certification.

The Bottom Line is turmeric and curcumin supplements have no real side effects. The only side effects you could feel are if you take too much of it. And those side effects are headaches, nausea, bloating, diarrhea, etc. It is important to be mindful of turmeric supplements that have cheap fillers. Please make sure any turmeric supplement you buy has a strong 3^rd party certification and comes from a reputable supplier.

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