Exercise and curcumin, the active ingredient in the yellow spice turmeric, are each good for the heart. Combining them, however, has synergistic cardiovascular benefits. Japanese researchers recruited 45 sedentary postmenopausal women for a two-month study of endurance exercise training and curcumin supplements. This pilot trial was randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled, although it was rather small, with only about 11 women in each arm of the study.
Those who cycled and walked daily and also took 150 mg of curcumin in readily absorbed pills had a measurable reduction in aortic blood pressure. There were no significant changes in the other groups, which included curcumin alone, exercise with placebo and placebo without exercise. The researchers concluded that this study offers preliminary evidence that curcumin together with exercise can reduce left ventricular afterload, an indication of heart health as we age.
[American Journal of Hypertension, June, 2012]
The People's Perspective on Medicine