An investigation of the effects of curcumin on anxiety and depression in obese individuals: A randomized controlled trial

While curcumin is known to be a natural polyphenolic compound with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, this 2015 double-blind, cross-over trial investigated its correlation with incidences of anxiety and depressive symptoms among an obese sample. Thirty obese subjects were randomly allocated to receive either curcumin (1 g/day) or placebo for 30 days. A two-week wash-out period followed, before the participants were provided with the alternative regimen for another 30 days. Assessments were made at baseline and at weeks 4, 6 and 10 to determine the severity of the participants’ depression and anxiety. Although Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores did not show significant changes, the intake of curcumin was associated with significant reductions in mean Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) score of the sample. This trial suggests curcumin may possess anti-anxiety ability among obese individuals. [NPID: curcumin, turmeric, antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, anxiety, depression, obesity, herbs]

Year: 2015

Reference: Esmaily, H., Sahebkar, A., Iranshahi, M., Ganjali, S., Mohammadi, A., Ferns, G., & Ghayour-Mobarhan, M. (2015). An investigation of the effects of curcumin on anxiety and depression in obese individuals: A randomized controlled trial. Chinese journal of integrative medicine, 21(5), 332–338. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11655-015-2160-z

Related Studies

Relevance of the anti-inflammatory properties of Curcumin in neurodegenerative diseases and depression

This 2014 review presented the case for curcumin’s potential use as a neuroprotectant and an antidepressant, describing some of its varied mechanisms of action: its possible anti-inflammatory effects and interactions with signal transduction proteins. Tizabi et al. (2014) write that curcumin is believed to be devoid of any side effects and could combat commonly observed […]

Antidepressant-like effects of penta-acetyl geniposide in chronic unpredictable mild stress-induced depression rat model: Involvement of inhibiting neuroinflammation in prefrontal cortex and regulating hypothalamic-pituitaryadrenal axis (animal)

Cai et al. (2020) report their findings on the antidepressant-like effects of penta-acetyl geniposide ((Ac)5GP, a derivative of geniposide (a major active component of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis). While the rats were under chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS), (Ac)5GP treatment seemed to alleviate the depression-like behaviors induced by CUMS. Moreover, the elevations in interleukins (IL-1β, IL-6) […]