What is Curcumin?

The best way to answer this is to first talk about Turmeric as curcumin is one of its active ingredients. Turmeric is more widely known, and it is likely that you already have turmeric in your diet as this distinct yellow spice gives curries their colouring and earthy flavour. 

Turmeric isn’t just colourful and tasty: in fact, it is also extremely effective nutritional support and has been used in India for thousands of years as both a spice and for its undoubted medicinal qualities (typically combating skin disorders, painful joints and respiratory conditions).  

Western science now supports the traditional claims that turmeric contains compounds which have strong medicinal properties.

Curcumin is a curcuminoid compound and the main active ingredient in turmeric.  

Also, unsurprisingly, a bright yellow colour, curcumin is a chemical produced by plants of the Curcuma Longa species and a member of the ginger family.

Benefits of Curcumin

The main benefits of curcumin are its incredibly powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Curcumin is praised for its ability to fight and stop inflammation within our body at a molecular level and reduce oxidative stress.  

It can also help to increase the number of antioxidants that our body produces. These antioxidants will combat and reduce the damage done when free radicals react adversely, yet naturally, within our body.

Many scientific studies have revealed that curcumin offers major benefits to our body and our brain and is widely believed to help manage:

  • Inflammatory Conditions
  • Metabolic Syndrome
  • Alzheimer’s Disease
  • Cardiovascular Disease
  • Leaky Gut & IBS
  • Hyperlipidemia (elevated levels of lipids/fats within the blood which often lead to cardiovascular disease)

More specifically:

Research also suggests that curcumin helps in the management of muscle soreness and exercise-induced inflammation.  As such, it can aid in enhancing recovery and the ensuing performance in athletes and people who partake in high levels of physical activity.

Supplementing your Diet with Curcumin

It isn’t possible to gain high-enough levels of curcumin to be beneficial simply by using turmeric in your daily diet.  

A primary reason for this is that curcumin is poorly absorbed in the bloodstream, so taking turmeric as a spice in food or as a tea is not an effective way to gain all of its best benefits.  

Note: taking high levels of turmeric in these ways can lead to an upset stomach.

Whilst including turmeric in your diet is clearly a good move, to reap the benefits it’s recommended to take curcumin in the form of a supplement.

Curcumin extracted and presented as a supplement has a far higher potency than the curcumin found by ingesting turmeric.  However, it is still not easily absorbed by our body so it’s important to take a supplement which has been created to improve its bioavailability (the rate at which our body absorbs a substance).

Effective supplements often combine curcumin with black pepper as it contains piperine, a natural substance which enhances our body’s absorption of curcumin by an incredible 2000%!  The most effective supplements will also contain Vitamins C and Vitamin D, but the balance of these ingredients needs to be measured to ensure that the full effect of the curcumin is maintained.

Curcumin is fat soluble so it’s best to take supplements with a meal which has a notable fat content.  Of course, dietary and health concerns regarding fat content remain very important.  There are good and bad fats: if you are in any doubt whatsoever you should consult with your doctor.  This is always a good and sensible approach to take when considering any kind of supplementation.

Failsafe Way to Receive Curcumin

Whilst the contents and effectiveness of oral supplements will vary, one of the best ways to ensure 100% absorption of curcumin is intravenously. As with any ingredient delivered directly into the bloodstream via an IV drip, curcumin administered this way is quickly and completely taken up by the body. 

And don’t worry, it won’t turn you yellow!

The IVBOOST UK Curcumin IV Drip is a pure and powerful anti-inflammatory therapy.