Tag Archives: James Graham

Curcumin: a scientific literature review concludes health benefits may be overstated

Given the number of times I’ve featured ‘curcumin research’, it seems only right to include this latest work. A Jan. 11, 2017 American Chemical Society (ACS) news release (also on EurekAlert) describes the results of a review of the scientific literature on curcumin’s (a constituent of turmeric) medicinal effectiveness,

Curcumin, a compound in turmeric, continues to be hailed as a natural treatment for a wide range of health conditions, including cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. But a new review of the scientific literature on curcumin has found it’s probably not all it’s ground up to be. The report in ACS’ Journal of Medicinal Chemistry instead cites evidence that, contrary to numerous reports, the compound has limited — if any — therapeutic benefit.

Turmeric, a spice often added to curries and mustards because of its distinct flavor and color, has been used for centuries in traditional medicine. Since the early 1990’s, scientists have zeroed in on curcumin, which makes up about 3 to 5 percent of turmeric, as the potential constituent that might give turmeric its health-boosting properties. More than 120 clinical trials to test these claims have been or are in the process of being run by clinical investigators. To get to the root of curcumin’s essential medicinal chemistry, the research groups of Michael A. Walters and Guido F. Pauli teamed up to extract key findings from thousands of scientific articles on the topic.

The researchers’ review of the vast curcumin literature provides evidence that curcumin is unstable under physiological conditions and not readily absorbed by the body, properties that make it a poor therapeutic candidate. Additionally, they could find no evidence of a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial on curcumin to support its status as a potential cure-all. But, the authors say, this doesn’t necessarily mean research on turmeric should halt [emphasis mine]. Turmeric extracts and preparations could have health benefits, although probably not for the number of conditions currently touted. The researchers suggest that future studies should take a more holistic approach to account for the spice’s chemically diverse constituents that may synergistically contribute to its potential benefits.

Here’s a link to and citation for the paper,

The Essential Medicinal Chemistry of Curcumin by Kathryn M. Nelson, Jayme L. Dahlin, Jonathan Bisson, James Graham, Guido F. Pauli, and Michael A. Walters. J. Med. Chem., Article ASAP DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.6b00975 Publication Date (Web): January 11, 2017

Copyright © 2017 American Chemical Society

This paper is open access.