Australian Health Authority Raises Concerns About Turmeric and Curcumin Supplements

The medical regulatory authority of Australia has offered guidance to both consumers and healthcare practitioners regarding the potential for medicines and herbal supplements that include Curcuma longa (turmeric) and/or curcumin to result in infrequent instances of liver injury (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Medicines containing turmeric or curcumin - risk of liver injury

Go to source). There are over 600 listed medicines included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) that contain these Curcuma species and/or curcumin. The country's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said in a statement that turmeric and curcumin can cause injury in rare cases. The TGA said it has received 18 reports of liver problems experienced by consumers taking products containing Curcuma longa (turmeric) and/or curcumin up to June 29.

Association Between Curcuma-Based Products and Liver Injury

“Nine of these reports had enough information to suggest a liver injury that may have been caused by the Curcuma longa (turmeric) or curcumin product. Of these, in 4 cases there were no other ingredients likely to have contributed to the liver injury,” the TGA said in a statement. Two of these cases were severe, including one that had a fatal outcome. The other 5 cases involved products that contained other ingredients that may have contributed to liver injury. The risk also relates to other ingredients from the Curcuma species as they contain naturally occurring curcumin: Curcuma aromatica, Curcuma zanthorrhiza and Curcuma zedoaria, the health watchdog warned.

“In addition to these cases, there have been several Australian and overseas case reports in the scientific literature, and multiple cases reported to regulators in other countries,” said TGA. “While liver injury is a rare adverse event it can be severe. However, the risks are reduced if you recognize the early signs and stop taking the medicine or herbal supplement,” the TGA warned.

Reference:

1. Medicines containing turmeric or curcumin - risk of liver injury - (https://www.tga.gov.au/news/safety-alerts/medicines-containing-turmeric-or-curcumin-risk-liver-injury)

Source-IANS