Curcumin
Turmeric and curcumin supplements in capsules, tablets, liquid drops and powders, from standard 95 percent extracts to phytosome and liposomal forms. We explain how the forms differ and how to take them.Read more →
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Choosing a turmeric curcumin supplement: extract strength, forms and absorption
Turmeric is the dried root of Curcuma longa, a plant from the ginger family. Its deep yellow colour comes from curcuminoids, and curcumin is the main one. Culinary turmeric powder holds only about 2 to 5 percent curcuminoids. Supplements use a concentrated root extract instead, most often standardised to 95 percent curcuminoids.
That is where the confusion starts. A label that shouts 10,000 mg turmeric usually means a small amount of extract, expressed as its equivalent in raw root. Read the curcuminoid figure, not the equivalence figure. It is the only number you can compare across products in our range of herbal supplements.
Absorption decides what reaches your blood
Curcumin dissolves in fat, not in water, and the body clears it quickly. Plain extract on its own barely reaches the bloodstream. Makers solve that in three ways:
- Piperine, black pepper extract: it slows the breakdown of curcumin in the gut and liver. Cheap and effective, but it slows the breakdown of some medicines too.
- Phytosome: curcumin bound to a phospholipid, a fat from soy or sunflower, so it travels with dietary fats. This is the best documented of the three.
- Liposomal and micellar liquids: curcumin wrapped in tiny fat droplets so it mixes with water. Higher price, easier if capsules are a problem for you.
Take any form with a meal that contains some fat, and split a higher daily amount over two moments. Both steps cost nothing and often do more than paying for a bigger number on the jar.
How we choose the curcumin we stock
Curcumin is a category where the form matters more than the milligrams, so that is where we start. We carry standardised extracts with 95 percent curcuminoids, phytosome capsules and liquid micellar forms, and we say plainly which one suits whom. Products with piperine stay in the range, but we name the medicine interaction instead of advertising the 2,000 percent absorption figure. Dosages have to match what studies actually used. We buy directly from the brands, our compliance team checks every product before it goes live, and independent labs spot-check batches. Read more about how we select brands and products.
Combinations that make sense
Curcumin is usually combined with plants from the same culinary and herbal tradition, most often ginger root extract, sometimes with vitamin C or vitamin D added. We prefer short, readable formulas: three or four ingredients at a dose you can check, rather than a long list where each item sits at a token amount.
Who it suits and what to expect
Most people who buy curcumin are over 40, take it daily for months rather than weeks, and often also look at resins such as Boswellia. If you eat curry twice a week, that is flavour, not a supplement dose: the spice simply does not carry enough curcuminoids.
One honest point. Turmeric and curcumin currently have no authorised health claims in the UK or the EU, so we describe what a product contains and how it is absorbed, and we leave the promises out. Give any form a run of two to three months of consistent daily use before you judge it, and choose on extract, dose and form rather than on the loudest label.
Frequently asked questions
Turmeric is the whole dried root of Curcuma longa, the spice you cook with. Curcumin is one compound inside it, part of a group called curcuminoids. Dried turmeric contains only about 2 to 5 percent curcuminoids, so a spice jar and a supplement are not comparable. Most supplements use a concentrated extract standardised to 95 percent curcuminoids, which means the curcumin content per capsule is known and consistent between batches.
