A natural compound found in turmeric may be as effective as omeprazole – used to reduce excess stomach acid and treat indigestion – according to the first study of its kind from scientists in Thailand.
Turmeric contains a naturally active compound called curcumin, thought to have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, and has long been used as a medicinal remedy, including for the treatment of indigestion in south-east Asia.
However, reports The Guardian, until now it has been not clear how well it compares with conventional drugs for indigestion, largely because there have been no comparative studies.
In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, researchers, led by a team from Chulalongkorn University Faculty of Medicine, Bangkok, studied 206 patients aged 18 to 70 with recurrent upset stomach.
They were recruited from hospitals in Thailand between 2019 and 2021, and randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups for 28 days.
These were: turmeric (two large 250mg capsules of curcumin four times a day) and one small dummy capsule; omeprazole (one small 20mg capsule daily and two large dummy capsules four times a day); and turmeric plus omeprazole.
Omeprazole is a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) used to treat dyspepsia (indigestion). Most people have the condition at some point in their lives. Usually, it is not a sign of anything more serious and people can treat themselves.
However, long-term use of PPIs has been linked to increased fracture risk, micronutrient deficiencies, and a heightened risk of infections, the researchers said.
Patients in all three groups had similar clinical characteristics and indigestion scores, as assessed by the severity of dyspepsia assessment score or Soda, at the start of the trial.
Patients were reassessed after 28 days and then again after 56.
Researchers found that oral curcumin was safe and well tolerated, and that patients in all three groups experienced a similar improvement in symptoms.
They acknowledged the small size of the study (published in the journal BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine) as well as several other limitations, including the short intervention period and lack of long-term monitoring data. Further larger, long-term studies were needed, they said.
Nevertheless, they concluded: “This multi-centre randomised controlled trial provides highly reliable evidence for the treatment of functional dyspepsia,” adding that “the new findings from our study may justify considering curcumin in clinical practice”.
Study details
Curcumin and proton pump inhibitors for functional dyspepsia: a randomised, double blind controlled trial
Pradermchai Kongkam, Wichittra Khongkha, Monthaka Teerachaisaku, Krit Pongpirul, et al.
Published in The BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine on 12 September 2023
Abstract
Objective
To compare the efficacy of curcumin versus omeprazole in improving patient reported outcomes in people with dyspepsia.
Design
Randomised, double blind controlled trial, with central randomisation.
Setting
Thai traditional medicine hospital, district hospital, and university hospitals in Thailand.
Participants
Participants with a diagnosis of functional dyspepsia.
Interventions
The interventions were curcumin alone (C), omeprazole alone (O), or curcumin plus omeprazole (C+O). Patients in the combination group received two capsules of 250 mg curcumin, four times daily, and one capsule of 20 mg omeprazole once daily for 28 days.
Main outcome measures
Functional dyspepsia symptoms on days 28 and 56 were assessed using the Severity of Dyspepsia Assessment (SODA) score. Secondary outcomes were the occurrence of adverse events and serious adverse events.
Results
206 patients were enrolled in the study and randomly assigned to one of the three groups; 151 patients completed the study. Demographic data (age 49.7±11.9 years; women 73.4%), clinical characteristics and baseline dyspepsia scores were comparable between the three groups. Significant improvements were observed in SODA scores on day 28 in the pain (−4.83, –5.46 and −6.22), non-pain (−2.22, –2.32 and −2.31) and satisfaction (0.39, 0.79 and 0.60) categories for the C+O, C, and O groups, respectively. These improvements were enhanced on day 56 in the pain (−7.19, –8.07 and −8.85), non-pain (−4.09, –4.12 and −3.71) and satisfaction (0.78, 1.07, and 0.81) categories in the C+O, C, and O groups, respectively. No significant differences were observed among the three groups and no serious adverse events occurred.
Conclusion
Curcumin and omeprazole had comparable efficacy for functional dyspepsia with no obvious synergistic effect.
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