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Yes. And much more so.
There are entire organizations dedicated to tracking side effects of medications. The leaflet with every medication contains a list of known adverse effects and their frequency (at least in the EU).
Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
21–30 of 74 posts
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#22> she began taking turmeric capsules at a dose of 2,250 mg per day. That's a teaspoon. The average South-east asian eats close to that much in a day for their entire lives.
I think that's 2.2g curcumin. Powdered turmeric, the spice, contains approximately 3% curcumin by weight. So one teaspoon
turmeric sounds like it's pretty close to the RDA.
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#23So I live in the EU where such supplements are supposedly safe. Article said that supplements that mix pepper and turmeric are dangerous. And the dose that was dangerous to the woman was 2000mg. I looked on my table toward the bottle of turmeric my parents gifted me recently, saying they heard it was good and bought on a famous "health" store. Bottle is: turmeric + pepper "designed for max absorption" and dose is 100…
> Article said that supplements that mix pepper and turmeric are dangerous.
The article made it up. It's pure speculation. Hundreds of thousands of people take pepper+curcumin supplements and are totally fine.
What's likely the culprit here is an idiosyncratic immune response, or a heavy metal contaminated supplement. Of course, that's also speculative. Could be something she ate; could be that she didn't disclose a drinking problem.
The article reads like it has an axe to grind, tbh. "Oh no an unregulated racket!"
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#24So I live in the EU where such supplements are supposedly safe. Article said that supplements that mix pepper and turmeric are dangerous. And the dose that was dangerous to the woman was 2000mg. I looked on my table toward the bottle of turmeric my parents gifted me recently, saying they heard it was good and bought on a famous "health" store. Bottle is: turmeric + pepper "designed for max absorption" and dose is 100…
I was working at a small farm-shop at some point, we sold smoothies of turmeric and ginger, we had to label it clearly, and restrict sale for pregnant woman, young kids and the elderly because large doses can be dangerous. As far as I recall both are a natural blood thinner.
Edit: in europe
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#25> According to the World Health Organization, an acceptable daily dose is up to 3 mg per kilogram of weight per day—for a 150-pound (68 kg) adult, that would be about 204 mg per day. Mohan was taking more than 10 times that amount
I think it's extremely likely that the majority of people in India and surrounding countries - so, hundreds of millions of people - far exceeds the WHO recommendation every day, and frequently eat as much as this woman did, in foods that also contain black pepper. I googled to make sure, and the top five or so links all said that Indians eat an average of 2-2.5g of turmeric per day.
So perhaps the issue was something else? For example:
- contamination
- taking it on an empty stomach rather than with food
- genetics
- liver damage from something else entirely
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#26Turmeric is notorious for having lead added to it to brighten its colour.
That's a manageable risk if you buy from the small handful of reputable companies that do heavy metal testing like Life Extension or Natural Factors, who publish their COAs and have brand equity to protect.
The less manageable risk is the liver issue. The HLA-B*35:01 gene significantly increases the probability of it happening, and this gene can be screened for in theory. Periodic liver testing might be another way to manage the risk, to catch it before it's symptomatic.
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#27[flagged]
There are many more cases than just this one woman though. I can find dozens of case reports.
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#28So I live in the EU where such supplements are supposedly safe. Article said that supplements that mix pepper and turmeric are dangerous. And the dose that was dangerous to the woman was 2000mg. I looked on my table toward the bottle of turmeric my parents gifted me recently, saying they heard it was good and bought on a famous "health" store. Bottle is: turmeric + pepper "designed for max absorption" and dose is 100…
Secondarily, both contains oxalate in proportions of 1% of black pepper and 2% of turmeric by mass, which leads to the formation of kidney stones. It's worse in the US because the FDA effectively "washes its hands" of anything deemed a "supplement". In general, the precautionary principle is difficult to find in America outside of FDA-approved procedures, medical devices, and medications. Food and supplements are des…
IIR, the FDA is legally forbidden from touching "supplements" - thanks to Congress, and the small army of supplement-industry lobbyists who tell Congress exactly what the law should say.
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#29So I live in the EU where such supplements are supposedly safe. Article said that supplements that mix pepper and turmeric are dangerous. And the dose that was dangerous to the woman was 2000mg. I looked on my table toward the bottle of turmeric my parents gifted me recently, saying they heard it was good and bought on a famous "health" store. Bottle is: turmeric + pepper "designed for max absorption" and dose is 100…
That sounds crazy, are you sure you didn't misread the labeling?
When I checked the turmeric supplement I use. Which I buy in a reputable health food, and supplement chain in Norway. It is 40mg of turmeric, which according to the article is well under the acceptable daily dose. As far as I understand Norway follows the EU directives on this, but has some additional strictures as well. I wouldn't expect the difference to be this stark though.
Btw. the reason I use turmeric supplements is that I have a tendency to get persistent inflammation, and for me, the supplements seems to help with that. But if I didn't have this problem, I would not take it, and also, it isn't given that it works for you, even if it does for me.
Re: Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage
#30Mohan vowed: "I’ll never put another supplement in my body again." Maybe just don't do such large doses?
I came here to say this. Of course she is understandably emotional after coming so close to a terrible death.