TURMERIC AND CURCUMIN

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TURMERIC AND CURCUMIN

Turmeric has been used in Asian cookery for thousands of years. Powder

ground from the dried root is an ingredient in curry. Turmeric is one

of the cheaper spices and makes a vivid splash of color, so it gets

heaped into low-market curry blends as fill. Not such a bad idea.

Turmeric holds a high place in Ayurvedic medicine as a " cleanser of

the body " and today science is finding a growing list of diseased

conditions which turmeric's active ingredient heals. Ground from the

root of a plant (Curcuma longa L.) of the ginger family, found wild in

the Himalayas and grown across South Asia, turmeric powder is

surprisingly bland, not hot, tangy or peppery. The powder tastes a

little sour. The first time I put some on my tongue I suspected my

jar, purchased from a supermarket, was stale. Turmeric is pungent,

bitter and astringent, not sweet like ginger. Fresh root, which goes

well in snacks and main meals, as yet may be hard to find outside of

stores in Asian neighborhoods. Turmeric capsules are sold through a

number of suppliers.

But why make this spice part of the diet? Let's not romanticize South

Asian nutrition today. Although India is doing relatively well, 47% of

children there are underweight (Nutrition for Health Development,

chart). South Asia's nutritional crises and disparities are harsh.

Centuries of charcoal fires for home and industry have contributed to

deforestation. Clean water, a cure for malaria, vaccinations and

reproductive health care, not more spices, are what most of the

citizens of those lands need to improve their health. Yet the very

survival of peoples in South Asia must at times have depended on

informed use of a wide array of stored dried plants including turmeric

root.

A Little Dab

Most North Americans consume only miniscule traces of turmeric, say,

by way of mustard lavished on meats of iffy provenance. Bright yellow

mustards like French's " classic American " contain, labels say, " no

more than 2 per cent " turmeric, paprika and other spices (as if more

would adulterate the product). Mustard itself is medicinal. But that

gaudy, store-bought, hot-dog-stand glow comes from curcumin, the

intense yellow pigment in turmeric. And curcumin protects the stomach

against tainted foods. According to University of Chicago scientists,

curcumin inhibits a cancer-provoking bacteria (H. pylor) associated

with gastric and colon cancer (Magad GB, Anticancer Res. 2002

Nov-Dec;22(6C):4179-81).

On the margins, so some biologists say, eco-diversity sprouts. Today

curcumin is on a margin between ancient food customs and cutting-edge

medicine. In suburban cuisine it can brighten and glorify nutritious

foods (cauliflower, white fish ). At ballpark, beach and food mall a

dab of " hidden " curcumin helps carnivore bellies lower risks from

gorging on over-handled broiled oddments. In Asia the root and powder

are used in cooking, home remedies and medicine: to gild and help

preserve festive dishes and in drinks, ointments and poultices to

treat sore throat, sprains, inflammation and wounds. In the lab,

scientists are dosing rats with curcumin to measure its effects on

cancer.

Prostate Cancer Patients Go For the Gold

Turmeric lore in recent decades drifted outwards from Asian diaspora

communities in European cities like Leicester, UK. Local researchers

and cancer patients listened up. Clusters of men on Internet prostate

cancer support groups (notably Don Cooley's lists) began seriously

experimenting with turmeric to cope with a troublesome side-effect of

androgen-suppression therapy, gynecomastia (sore swollen breasts).

Most men who take antiandrogen drugs like Flutamide (Eulexin) or

Casodex experience this breast swelling, which can be painful.

Gynecomastia can occur also with use of finasteride (Proscar),

prescribed for BPH (benign growth of the prostate) and now under

discussion as a chemo-preventive for prostate cancer. Before starting

Casodex some patients opt to receive a brief course of radiation to

the breasts. Others have tried low-dose tamoxifen, which raises levels

of circulating estradiol. Then there are the turmeric warriors, who

report that dietary intake of turmeric (in salads, soups and

sandwiches made with fresh root) and use of curcumin paste externally

brings some relief. Still more intriguingly, University of Leicester

began investigating dietary agents including curcumin, genistein, and

the vitamin A analogue 13-cis retinoic acid for tumor-suppressing

properties (Br J Clin Pharmacol 1998 Jan;45(1):1-12; update Toxicol

Lett 2000 Mar 15;112-113:499-505). They observed that curcumin slows

the rate at which hormone-responsive prostate cancer cells become

resistant to hormonal therapy.

Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties of

turmeric and curcumin are undergoing intense research. Tests in

Germany, reported July 2003, found that " All fractions of the turmeric

extract preparation exhibited pronounced antioxidant activity.... "

Turmeric extract tested more potent than garlic, devil's claw, and

salmon oil [ J Pharm Pharmacol. 2003 Jul;55(7):981-6]. Does this mean,

the more the better? Not necessarily. Some studies find no ill effects

from large doses but others (listed in references below) disagree. Of

note, a recent study of curcumin to prevent cataracts found,

unexpectedly, that in rats low doses did lower cataract rates but

heavy doses raised the rate of cataracts (Molecular Vision 2003;

9:223-230, full text free online). Another study found that rats fed

large amounts of turmeric for 14 days developed enlarged, damaged livers.

Several studies indicate that curcumin slows the development and

growth of a number of types of cancer cells. In Japan this year

researchers defined curcumin as a broad-spectrum anti-cancer agent.

Its induction of " detoxifying enzymes, " the researchers say, indicate

its " potential value ... as a protective agent against chemical

carcinogenesis and other forms of electrophilic toxicity. The

significance of these results can be implicated in relation to cancer

chemopreventive effects of curcumin against the induction of tumours

in various target organs " (Iqbal M, et al. Pharmacol Toxicol. 2003

Jan;92(1):33-8).

Since India won a claim against two US scientists who shamelessly

patented turmeric (see sidebar), the tide of interest may naturally be

driven in part by Asian pride in phytomedicinal heritage. But as

scientists at M. D. , Texas, wrote in January 2003: " Extensive

research over the last 50 years has indicated [curcumin] can both

prevent and treat cancer. The anticancer potential of curcumin stems

from its ability to suppress proliferation of a wide variety of tumor

cells, down-regulate transcription factors NF-kappa B, AP-1 and Egr-1;

down-regulate the expression of COX2, LOX, NOS, MMP-9, uPA, TNF,

chemokines, cell surface adhesion molecules and cyclin D1;

down-regulate growth factor receptors (such as EGFR and HER2); and

inhibit the activity of c-Jun N-terminal kinase, protein tyrosine

kinases and protein serine/threonine kinases. " In their latest of a

series of reports the M. D. say: " Curcumin can suppress tumor

initiation, promotion and metastasis. Pharmacologically, curcumin has

been found to be safe. Human clinical trials indicated no

dose-limiting toxicity when administered at doses up to 10 g/day. All

of these studies suggest that curcumin has enormous potential in the

prevention and therapy of cancer. " [Aggarwal, BB et al, Anticancer

Res. 2003 Jan-Feb;23(1A):363-98].

Several breast tumor cell lines, " including hormone-dependent and

-independent and multidrug-resistant (MDR) lines, " respond to

antiproliferative effects of curcumin. Aggarwal et al examined cell

lines " including the MDR-positive ones, " and found they were all

" highly sensitive to curcumin. The growth inhibitory effect of

curcumin was time- and dose-dependent.... Overall our results suggest

that curcumin is a potent antiproliferative agent for breast tumor

cells and may have potential as an anticancer agent. " (Anticancer

Drugs. 1997 Jun;8(5):470-81).

Other laboratories offer varying explanations but confirm the activity

level of curcumin against breast , prostate and other cancers. See

e.g., Ramachandran C, Miami 1999; Hidaka H, Japan, 2002 (human

pancreatic cells lines); Elattar TM, University of Missouri-Kansas

City, 2000(oral cancer cell-line). Some researchers say curcumin

inhibits angiogenesis, i.e. formation of new blood vessels, which

tumors use to nourish themselves as they spread (Mol Med 1998

Jun;4(6):376-83).

As an anti-inflammatory, turmeric triggers heat-shock stress response

(see Online Medical Dictionary entries for heat-shock). Heat shock

proteins stimulate the immune system. " The mechanism of the

stimulation by curcumin of the stress responses, " Japanese researchers

say (Cell Stress Chaperones 1998 Sep;3(3):152-60), " might be similar

to that of salicylate [aspirin and similar substances], indomethacin

and nordihydroguaiaretic acid [an anti-oxidant that interferes with

arachidonic acid metabolism]. "

To sum up -- regular healthy folks may benefit from adding turmeric to

the spice rack and using it more liberally on adult and childrens'

foods. Kids love bright colors. And turmeric is an ideal brightener

for rice and for steamed or gently fried tofu.

For cancer patients, until curcumin has been shown in well-designed,

well-conducted human clinical trials to have measurable effects on

existing disease, it remains just another interesting home remedy with

a lot of promise. Research at Memorial Sloan- Kettering a few years

back indicates that it makes sense to drink green tea along with a

meal spiced with turmeric for double-boosted anti-cancer protective

effects: " EGCG and curcumin, were noted to inhibit growth by different

mechanisms, a factor which may account for their demonstrable

interactive synergistic effect. " For new developments with curcumin,

M. D. is another place to watch. 

If you are taking medications or undergoing radiotherapy or

chemotherapy to treat cancer, be extremely cautious about possible

interactions and effects of turmeric/curcumin on your liver and other

organs. Talk to your oncologist and oncology nurse. A recent study,

available free online, finds that curcumin inhibits desired effects of

chemotherapy for breast cancer:

Cancer Research 62, 3868-3875, July 1, 2002, Dietary Curcumin Inhibits

Chemotherapy-induced Apoptosis in Models of Human Breast Cancer

Sivagurunathan Somasundaram et al, The Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer

Center and the Department of Medicine [R. Z. O.], Division of

Hematology/Oncology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,

Chapel Hill, North Carolina

1. On tumor cells in a lab dish, curcumin prevents or slows prostate

and lung cancer. But dietary consumption of turmeric, researchers

report, so far shows no effect on those organs and failed to inhibit

tobacco-induced tumors (Cancer Lett 1999 Apr 1;137(2):123-30).

2. Recent studies found that curcumin has a dose-dependent

chemopreventive effect in rats during promotion/progression stages of

colon cancer (Cancer Res 1999 Feb 1;59(3):597-601). It has similar

preventive effects against skin cancer, oral cancer and forestomach

and and other intestinal tumors (J Surg Res 2000 Apr;89(2):169-75).

3.Tufts researchers say " a mixture of curcumin and isoflavonoids is

the most potent inhibitor against the growth of human breast tumor

cells. These data suggest that combinations of natural plant compounds

may have preventive and therapeutic applications against the growth of

breast tumors induced by environmental estrogens " (Environ Health

Perspect 1998 Dec;106(12):807-12)

4. Curr Pharm Des. 2002;8(19):1695-706. Chemotherapeutic potential of

curcumin for colorectal cancer. Chauhan DP. Division of

Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, The University of

California, San Diego, CA 92093-0688, USA.

5. Turmeric compares with soy, licorice, red clover, and thyme in

binding to progesterone and estrogen receptors in breast cancer cells

(Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 1998 Mar;217(3):369-78).

6. Kentucky researchers report curcumin " inhibited proliferation of a

variety of B lymphoma cells " (Clin Immunol 1999 Nov;93(2):152-61).

7. Curcumin may or may not protect against cellular damage from

radiation, perhaps depending on dose. It appears to protect against

damage to certain organs brought about by some chemotherapy agents. In

hamsters it protects the kidneys from Adriamycin (Br J Pharmacol 2000

Jan;129(2):231-4). If you are taking radiation or chemotherapy, it is

very important to discuss your diet and use of any antioxidants with

your oncologist.

8. Typical dietary amounts of turmeric have an antioxidant effect that

protects rats from cataracts (Toxicol Lett 2000 Jun 5;115(3):195-204).

But in one study rats heavily dosed developed more cataract signs.

9. Curcumin protects rats from liver-damage caused by toxins (J Pharm

Pharmacol 2000 Apr;52(4):437-40; Carcinogenesis 2000 Feb;21(2):331-5)

But in one experiment, mice fed anti-cancer doses of curcumin for 14

days developed enlarged, damaged livers.

10. Dosing mice with curcumin for 14 days damaged their livers.

11. Curcumin prevents formation of some tumors: J Cell Biochem Suppl

1997;27:26-34 Inhibitory effects of curcumin on tumorigenesis in mice.

Huang MT, Newmark HL, Frenkel K Department of Chemical Biology,

College of Pharmacy, Rutgers-State University of New Jersey,

Piscataway, NJ 08854-8020, USA.

11. Arousal of the human system through " heat shock " response:

Curcumin induces the stress response.

12. Drink green tea with a meal spiced with turmeric for

double-boosted anti-cancer protective effects: " EGCG and curcumin,

were noted to inhibit growth by different mechanisms, a factor which

may account for their demonstrable interactive synergistic effect. "

Memorial Sloan- Kettering researchers, 1998

13 Curcumin and genistein protect breast cells against DDT and other

pesticides Tufts School of Medicine, 1997



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