Tumeric in treating Crohn's

[Tay]

Hello folks

I was just wondering if anyone has had any experience of using tumeric in treating Crohn's? It is supposed to have anti inflammatory properties and I've just started taking it.

Best wishes
Tay

 

[Mark63]

Hi Tay,

The short answer is no, but I've certainly seen it mentioned a number of times and it looks very interesting. I think that one of the problems may be that the Tumeric that is available is considered a food and as such is not guaranteed to contain a specific amount of the important active ingredient.

If you do give it a try it, then for the benefit of others it would be worth while posting the source of the Tumeric that you use and the dosing schedule.

In the mean time I'll stick to the occasional curry. The physical benefit may be in question, but psychologically I always feel better after I've had one! Luckily for me spicy food does not appear to bother the Crohn's much.

Mark

 

[Tay]

Hi Mark
Thanks for the reply. Interestingly, I too always feel better after a curry. I know this is sounds counter intuitive with Crohns but I definately feel physically better following a hot one!
I noticed this prior to hearing about the possible beneficial effects of tumeric.

I bought a supply on line from justvitamins.co.uk seem very effecient and get very positive reviews, I will be taking 475mg twice a day (2tabs).

 

[Mark63]

I'll be interested to hear how you get on.

Mark

 

[glum chump]

I have taken turmeric supplements in the past, but always with piperine (extracted from black pepper). You can buy turmeric with piperine, and I buy the co-supplement because my naturopath recommended it at the time. The explanation I got was that turmeric doesn't necessarily always absorb in the GI tract, but a study that was done indicated that turmeric's absorbency increased significantly with piperine. My naturopath said that although the study seemed to be sound, for the sake of full disclosure, he said it was funded by a company that produces piperine.

When I can't afford the co-supplements, I take the turmeric supplement and drink Japanese green tea at around the same time. It is also said to increase how well turmeric absorbs in the gut.

I also eat curries at least three times a week! I can do the spices---I just can't add chilli's to my curries as much as I'd like.

 

[ameslouise]

I always feel better after eating Indian food!

I have added turmeric capsules to my daily regimine, but not sure how much they help at my advanced state. I will continue to take them even after my surgery.

D Bergy uses them on a daily basis - you can search for his posts, he's quite knowledgeable.

- Amy

 

[leithcote]

Well there are always obvious exceptions to every rule. For me, personally, a Curry, turmeric and especially black pepper are all massive Crohn's triggers. I think I'll give this one a miss if you don't mind!

 

[jillyCD]

I've been taking turmeric for the last 4 months - by the brand name "Meriva"-500mg 2/day. I don't know how much it's doing for my Crohns, but it seems to be helping out my joint problems (knees especially) which is great now that ibuprofen is out of the picture. I also take shiitake supplements too, so that may also be part of it. I'll give anything a shot to avoid the scary side effects of the meds out there. You just have the patience to stick with natural remedies for awhile.

 

[mizgarnet]

I take Boswellia. I am adding Tumeric this weekend. I always start new things on Fridays so I can relax if I react. Always remember that it takes a while to reach a therapeutic level.