Taking curcumin supplements may reduce muscle damage and soreness, according to a recent study from The Mississippi State University. Curcumin supplements also did this without impacting on the body’s natural inflammatory response. The data suggested that taking a curcumin supplement for 28 days resulted in decreased muscle damage and muscle soreness in active healthy men.
How Curcumin Can Protect You From Muscle Damage
The double-blind placebo-controlled trial indicated that taking a Curcumin supplement lead to significant reductions in creatine kinase, a muscle damage associated biomarker, along with lower perceived muscle soreness when compared to a placebo.
Researchers have inevitably concluded that supplementing with Curcumin may be a viable source for improving recovery time in trained individuals. The study published in the Journal of Dietary Supplements provides ever-growing evidence of the potential health benefits of taking Curcumin.
The study involved 19 men between the ages of 18 and 39. The men were randomly assigned to consume curcumin supplements at the rate of 69mg of curcuminoids or a placebo for 28 days. This was followed by a muscle-damaging protocol that was performed before and after the supplementation period. There were no significant differences between Curcumin and the placebo groups of biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress (OS) such as tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-Alpha) malondialdehyde (MDA).
However, there were significant reductions in creatine kinase (CK) in the Curcumin group (199.6 U/L) after supplementing, when compared to the placebo (287.0 U/L). Muscle soreness was also seen to decrease in the Curcumin group (VAS SCALE 2.88) when compared to the placebo group (VAS scale 3.36).
The study was the first implementation of a 28-day supplementation period. According to researchers, “Its main findings suggest that curcumin ingestion resulted in significantly lower plasma concentrations of creatine kinase (CK) and perceived muscle soreness when following the eccentric muscle damage protocol…despite any changes and biomarkers of inflammation and OS.”
How Curcumin Works
Curcumin is a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory that has many powerful benefits when it comes to improving your health. Derived from the ancient Indian spice turmeric and having been used for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine, Curcumin is renowned for its healing properties. Its particularly powerful for providing pain relief. Various studies also show that turmeric is effective at preventing joint inflammation and reducing it in turn.
What Curcumin Is Good For
Curcumin is especially good for treating arthritis and pain-related conditions. A 2010 clinical trial found that a turmeric supplement called Meriva (standardized 75% curcumin combined with phosphatidylcholine) provided long-term improvement in pain and function in 100 patients with knee osteoarthritis [1]. While a 2012 pilot study showed that curcumin reduced joint pain and swelling in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis. [2]
Curcumin – Who Should Not Take
Curcumin is safe to take for a variety of people and has no known set of contraindications. If you are at all concerned about taking curcumin, simply take the lowest dose. This ensures you can monitor for any potential side effects that may occur, if at all.
Its important to remember that everyone is different and it’s important to take into consideration your circumstances before taking any vitamin supplements. You may have read a variety of different studies indicating different results from taking Curcumin – some positive and some negative. It’s important to do your research but any contraindications that may arise from taking curcumin are extremely rare.
Are Curcumin and Turmeric The Same Thing?
Some of the confusion arises when people confuse the terms ‘curcumin’ and ‘turmeric’. Many articles are talking about the supposed health benefits of turmeric. Yet, it is the compound known as Curcumin that contains the active health benefits. It is this that provides the most potent results for your health.
Curcumin has many anti-inflammatory benefits. Yet its main downside is that it does not have a high bioavailability rate, meaning that it is poorly absorbed into the bloodstream. Curcumin is fat-soluble, however, and is therefore recommended to be taken with piperine – the active compound in black pepper.
Therefore, many supplement manufacturers combine Curcumin with black pepper to enhance its bioavailability rate. Its most significant benefit is its ability to boost the absorption rate of curcumin.
Ensuring You Get The Right Curcumin For Superior Absorption
Meriva technology provides a highly effective solution to ensure better absorption of curcumin. As the most clinically studied curcumin extract on the market, Meriva® Curcumin was found to have 29 times better absorption than an ordinary Curcumin extract. There are multiple studies showing Meriva® provides significant joint support. Studies also indicate that Meriva® reduces muscle soreness after physical exertion.
In one study, 20 healthy male volunteers randomly received Meriva® (one gram, twice daily) or a placebo for 48 hours before and 24 hours following a downhill running test. Subjects in the rival group also reported having significantly less thigh soreness. Significantly less muscle damage was also observed on an MRI in the Meriva® group. [3] Taking a Meriva® curcumin supplement can be the solution to most effectively protect your body from muscle damage and soreness.
Curcumin – Where To Buy?
As the popularity of Curcumin increases, there is more demand than ever for Curcumin supplements. However, it is difficult to determine the quality and effectiveness of Curcumin supplements. Especially without piperine or Meriva® technology to enhance its bioavailability.
For this reason we can only recommend the highest quality Meriva® curcumin supplements on the market. The other alternative is a Liposomal Curcumin supplement that uses liposome technology made from the same material as cell membranes.
This ensures that Curcumin and resveratrol are encapsulated in a highly-absorbable liposomal delivery system that mimics the nutrient delivery in the body’s natural form. Taken this way, Curcumin can be in the bloodstream within minutes for maximum effectiveness.
If you’re an athlete, fitness fanatic or someone simply looking to get in shape then adding Curcumin into your health and wellness regimen may help you to avoid muscle damage and muscle soreness in the long-term.
References:
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21194249
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22407780
[3] Drobnic F, Riera J, Appendino G, et al. Reduction of delayed onset muscle soreness by a novel curcumin delivery system (Meriva®): a randomised, placebo-controlled trial. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 2014 Jun 18;11:31. doi: 10.1186/1550-2783-11-31.
Recommended Reading
 Curcumin Nature’s Miracle Spice – Yоu can fіnd оut more about Curсumіn’ѕ mаnу amazing hеаlth bеnеfіtѕ bу reading thе bооk, ‘Curcumin – Nаturе’ѕ Mіrасlе Sрісе’ by Rоbеrt Rеdfеrn, available for frее download from nаturаllуhеаlthуnеwѕ.соm. Available for free download from Naturally Healthy News. |
Recommended Examples
Curcuminx4000™ – Contains 200mg of highly effective Curcumin Phytosome which in a recent study showed an increase in utilisation up to 45x when compared to ordinary Curcumin 95%. Provides natural anti-inflammatory properties, various health benefits and is bioavailability backed by clinical studies. Formulated to support a healthy a digestive system and is especially beneficial for anti-inflammatory processes. |
 BrainPower™ – Provides maximum nutrient strength Liposomal Curcumin with Resveratrol to provide natural anti-inflammatory protection. Curcumin and Resveratrol are encapsulated in a highly absorbable liposomal delivery system. This mimics the nutrient delivery in the body’s natural form. Available from Good Health Naturally. |
