Curcumin shown to slow cognitive decline in older adults

Good news! A well designed study with an advanced form of curcumin shows cognitive benefits for older adults. It was Jacob Shor’s excellent article in Natural News that originally put me onto it.

What is Curcumin?

Curcumin, the main active ingredient in the Indian spice turmeric, has been the subject of many clinical trials because of its anti-inflammatory properties.  Chronic inflammation in the body can lead to many illnesses, so clearly substances that reduce inflammation, without causing unwanted side effects can be of great benefit.

I am a very big fan of the Linus Pauling Institute’s Micronutrient Information Center. They do award winning and painstaking research into human metabolism and disease.  They say that there is “mounting evidence from preclinical studies [showing] that curcumin modulates numerous molecular targets and exerts antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and neuroprotective activities.“¹

The trial

This eighteen month long, placebo-controlled trial reported in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, involved 40 non-demented adults aged between 41 and 84. They were randomised 21 to 19 to take Theracurmin^® (containing 90 mg of curcumin) twice a day or a placebo.  The following tests were carried out pre and post treatment:

• Verbal memory recall
• Visual memory recall
• Attention
• Scan for signs of Alzheimer’s in the brain (30 participants)

The Results

• Theracurmin^® improved long term memory significantly.
• Theracurmin^® improved long term visual memory significantly.
• Theracurmin^® improved attention significantly.
• PET scans performed pre and post treatment showed “decreases in plaque and tangle accumulation in brain regions modulating mood and memory”.²

These test results are very exciting because they show both improvement in symptoms AND a physical response can be seen in the brain.

Side effects

The results from numerous studies show that there do not appear to be any serious side effects. ? ¹

Theracurmin® vs Curcumin vs Turmeric

Curcumin has traditionally been difficult for the human body to absorb and is usually only fat, not water soluble. Theracumin® is made from a proprietary process that grinds curcumin finely enough to allow it to dissolve in water and thus it is better absorbed in the gut.

Turmeric contains 3% curcumin. Theracurmin® is 27 times stronger than curcumin. 

I am getting older… 54 this birthday with a brain recovering from chemotherapy and with some history of dementia in my family.

Now you can see why this news caught my eye. 🙂

Theracurmin® will certainly be on my next supplement order!

10 February 2019