What’s The Best Turmeric Supplement?

Not all turmeric supplements are created equal.

Many will give you no results at all.

Some will work mildly well.

Very few will bring exceptional results.

But even with the best turmeric supplements, it’s important to keep in mind that different people will get different results with turmeric.

Despite turmeric being the most well-studied herb with thousands of studies extolling its benefits, we still don’t know enough to be able to say for sure which turmeric supplement is by far the best. 

From all the studies I’ve read on turmeric, from the dozens of turmeric supplements I’ve tried, and from the anecdotal reports from thousands of people who regularly use turmeric, I’ve put together the 6 criteria, which, in my opinion, form the basis of a great turmeric supplement.

A great turmeric supplement meets ALL of the following 6 criteria:

Criteria #1: Contains 95% Standardized Curcuminoids

The vast majority of clinical studies on turmeric haven’t used turmeric powder, but have instead used curcumin, a constituent of turmeric. Curcumin is thought to be the most active component of turmeric, and responsible for most of the benefits of turmeric.

The thing is, curcumin comprises only 3% of the weight of turmeric powder, so you’d have to take a whole load of turmeric powder to benefit from the effects of curcumin.

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Curcumin comprises only 3% of the weight of standard turmeric root extract.

With 95% standardized curcuminoids, the curcumin has been extracted from turmeric to form a powder that’s 95% curcumin, so a small amount of this powder goes a long way.

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95% standardised curcumin contains a LOT more curcumin than standard turmeric root extract.

Having a good dose of 95% standardized curcuminoids helps you get the most out of the small amount of powder you can fit inside a capsule.

Criteria #2: Contains Black Pepper Extract

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Curcumin is broken down in the gut wall and in the liver by a process called glucuronidation. Piperine from black pepper is a known inhibitor of glucuronidation, and studies show it enhances the bioavailability of curcumin in turmeric by up to 2,000%.

This is yet another way to maximize the effects you get from such a small amount of powder inside a capsule.

Criteria #3: Contains Turmeric Root Extract (Turmeric Powder)

Although curcumin is the most widely KNOWN beneficial component of turmeric, turmeric also contains thousands of other components that science has not yet discovered. These components work alongside curcumin, and on their own, to bring to life all of turmeric’s benefits.

Only a handful of studies have been done to compare the effects of isolated curcumin vs turmeric, and they’ve all found turmeric to be more effective than isolated curcumin.

The trouble though, is these are all small animal studies, and most have used a bigger dose of turmeric than curcumin, which isn’t a fair comparison. One study used the same amount of turmeric and isolated curcumin, and found turmeric to be more effective.

But for now, the vast majority of the research points to isolated curcumin as bringing all of those ant-inflammatory, pain killing, and other healthful benefits. So ideally, you want a bit of both isolated curcumin and turmeric root extract in your turmeric supplement.

There are many supplements that only contain turmeric, and others that only contain 95% standardized curcuminoids. If I had to choose between the two, I’d definitely go for the ones that contain only turmeric…

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Some supplements contain only turmeric (left), others contain only 95% standardised curcumin (right). Most people wrongly believe only curcumin is effective.

…but it’s a good idea to have a small amount of the 95% standardised curcuminoids added in.

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Ideally you want your supplement to be mostly turmeric, with an added oomph from a small amount of extra curcumin.

Criteria #4: Contains Ginger

Ginger has traditionally been given with turmeric in the ancient healing art of Ayurveda. In a study by Khajuria et al, gingerol, the main active component in ginger, was found to increase the bioavailability of curcumin more-so than piperine from black pepper, and a combination of gingerol and piperine worked almost twice as well as either ingredient alone.

Other studies have also shown that the affects of curcumin are multiplied when taken together with gingerol. In a 2011 study in the Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, the author concluded:

“The combined effect (of curcumin and ginger) might be due to enhancement of curcumin uptake by ginger through attaching curcumin to its lipophilic oily portion, thus increasing its bioavailability.”

Criteria #5: Has A Good Ratio Of The Above

In my opinion, the best turmeric supplements are the ones that have a good ratio of the above 4 ingredients, with turmeric root powder taking up most of the space in the capsule, followed by ginger, then 95% curcuminoids, then black pepper extract.

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The best turmeric supplement has the perfect ratio of the above ingredients.

Ginger is the second most important ingredient here, because not only does it boost the bioavailability of curcumin, but ginger is also a superfood by its own right, with its own anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-proliferative, and countless other health benefits.

Yet the vast majority of turmeric supplements don’t have any ginger in them.

Criteria #6: Has No Artificial Ingredients

The vast majority of turmeric supplements come with artificial binders, fillers, and flow agents, the likes of magnesium stearate and microcrystalline cellulose.

These artificial substances are used in very small quantities and studies show they do no harm in such small amounts. But the trouble is there aren’t any studies showing what the long-term effects are, since many of these artificial substances build up in your body over time.

The studies also show that many of these artificial substances are harmful in large doses. So what happens when you’re taking multiple different supplements over a long period of time?

No-one knows.

Natural flow agents on the other hand, are not a big deal, the likes of silicon dioxide (which is found naturally in water, plants, animals, and the earth), rice flour, and Nu-Flow (derived from organic rice hulls).

One Turmeric Supplement That Fits ALL Of The Above Criteria

I have formulated – for myself – a turmeric supplement that fits all of the above criteria.

I’ve benefited from using it, more-so than with any other turmeric supplement I could find, so I decided to make it available to other people as well.

Click here to check out this supplement

This particular supplement contains per capsule:

  • 750 mg turmeric root extract
  • 70 mg ginger root extract
  • 50 mg 95% curcuminoids
  • 10mg Bioperine (black pepper extract)
  • no artificial ingredients
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I’ve found this to be the perfect ratio of ingredients that works well for me. I’ve given bottles to many others, and they’ve had great results with it.

Give it a go and see how you get on. Don’t just try it for a few days and quit, for some people it works after the very first dose, for others it can take up to 30 days to start seeing results.

Pick up a bottle today, take two capsules per day with a glass of water with a meal, and let me know how you get on.

You can get it here:

https://hewisandselby.com/turmeric

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