Turmeric
Curcuma longa, a root from the ginger family
A root from the ginger family, used as a spice and in Ayurvedic medicine, whose main compound is curcumin. This page covers only studies in people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life, most often mood. Here is every one we could find, sorted from each study's summary.
- Part used: root
- Taken as curcumin, often in forms made to absorb better
- Usually 12 weeks
From every paper to the studies that matter
Most research on turmeric and curcumin is in the lab or in animals, and most studies in people look at other topics. This page is about the small share that tested it in people and measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life.
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3,712 papers mention turmeric with thinking, mood, sleep or energy.Every record in PubMed, all years
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111 are about people.The rest: 1,659 lab and animal studies, 1,162 reviews, 780 on chemistry, farming and more
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74 give turmeric or curcumin on its own.19 more test it with piperine or inside a blend
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58 are randomised against a placebo.Randomised controlled trials In a randomised controlled trial, people are put into groups by chance, one taking the treatment and one a placebo or other comparison. Chance spreads differences such as age and health evenly, so a difference between the groups is more likely to be down to the treatment., the strongest kind of study
Bar lengths use a square-root scale so the small numbers stay visible.
How much research there is
- 74 studies of turmeric in people on thinking, mood, sleep or energy
- 58 of them randomised against a placebo A placebo-controlled trial compares a real treatment with a dummy that looks the same, the placebo. People often feel better when they expect to, so comparing against a placebo shows how much of the change comes from the treatment itself.
- 4,305 people taking part, where studies say
- 110 systematic reviews A systematic review searches for every study on a question in a set, written-down way, judges the quality of each and sums up what they show together. Many include a meta-analysis. The Atlas lists these as pooled reviews. pooling the trials
Studies in people, by year published
Turmeric or curcumin on its own. Most were published since 2015.
What the studies looked at
Each study can measure several things. Choose a topic to see its studies in the list below.
Studies in people with a diagnosed condition are counted here and listed with their population. We describe what they measured, not what they might treat. Most studies also report safety; see below.
What was tested, and how much
Curcumin is poorly absorbed, so many studies used forms made to raise absorption, such as Longvida, Theracurmin, Meriva or nano-curcumin. The same number of milligrams can mean very different amounts in the body, so doses don't compare well between studies. Most gave a dose every day for 8 to 12 weeks.
Daily amount, one dot per study
Studies per extract
Named extracts are the maker's brand. "Not named" means the study didn't say.
Have a label with a %? Work out the curcuminoids in your own label
All studies in people
Filter the list, then open a study on PubMed. Each row comes from the study's published summary. Only studies that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life are listed, so this isn't all the research on turmeric.
| Study | Who took part | People | Extract and daily dose | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kukushkina 2026RCT, active or other control | Adults with multiple sclerosis on IFN-beta | 60 | Micellar curcumin | 26 weeks |
| Ebrahimi Daryani 2026RCT, placebo | Adults with mild-moderate ulcerative colitis on 5-ASA | 43 | SinaCurcumin nano-curcumin, 160 mg | 4 weeks |
| Saji 2026RCT, placebo | Healthy adults 40-69 with subtle cognitive weakness | 40 | Curcuma longa extract (CLE) | 24 weeks |
| Manabe 2026Single-arm or open-label | Adults with MCI due to Alzheimer's | 13 | Curcuma longa extract (CLE) | 17 weeks |
| Osei-Bonsu 2026Single-arm or open-label | Youth with treatment-resistant bipolar depression | 6 | Not named | 8 weeks |
| Mohsenpour 2025RCT, placebo | Adults with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome | 128 | Curcumin-probiotic drink powder, 1,000 mg | 8 weeks |
| Alirezaei 2025RCT, active or other control | Adults with refractory post-burn pruritus | 100 | Curcumin nano-micelle, 80 mg | 12 weeks |
| Hamlbar 2025RCT, placebo | Primiparous postpartum women | 96 | Not named, 500 mg | 8 weeks |
| Juesas 2025RCT, placebo | Sedentary older adults | 81 | Bio-optimized curcumin formulation | 16 weeks |
| Shabani 2025RCT, placebo | Postmenopausal women | 74 | Not named, 500 mg | 8 weeks |
| Shojaei 2025RCT, placebo | Adults with migraine without aura | 70 | Phytosomal curcumin, 250 mg | 8 weeks |
| Kazemi 2025Single-arm or open-label | Adults with Alzheimer's disease plus healthy controls | 30 | Curcumin nanomicelle, 40 mg | 9 weeks |
| Yaikwawong 2024RCT, placebo | Obese adults with type 2 diabetes and depression | 227 | Not named | 52 weeks |
| Gimblet 2024RCT, placebo | Adults with stage 3b-4 chronic kidney disease | 88 | Longvida, 2,000 mg | 52 weeks |
| Merino 2024Non-randomised controlled | Adults with moderate anxiety plus controls | 81 | Not named, 1,800 mg | 2 weeks |
| Soltani 2024RCT, placebo | Adults with coronary slow flow phenomenon | 42 | Nano-curcumin, 80 mg | 12 weeks |
| Khan 2024Crossover, placebo | Healthy normal-weight adults | 20 | Not named | – |
| Bahrami 2023RCT, placebo | Women with premenstrual syndrome and dysmenorrhea | 124 | Curcuminoids, 500 mg | 13 weeks |
| Mamsharifi 2023RCT, placebo | Adult cigarette smokers | 70 | Nano-curcumin, 80 mg | 13 weeks |
| Das 2023RCT, placebo | Adults with moderate Alzheimer's dementia | 48 | CurQfen (CGM), 800 mg | 26 weeks |
| Talaei 2023RCT, placebo | Adults with severe major depressive disorder on sertraline | 45 | SinaCurcumin, 40 mg | 8 weeks |
| Farshbaf-Khalili 2022RCT, placebo | Healthy postmenopausal women | 84 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 8 weeks |
| Briskey 2022RCT, placebo | Adults aged 25-70 with joint pain | 80 | HydroCurc | 2 weeks |
| Kisiolek 2022RCT, placebo | Trained and recreational athletes during HIIT | 36 | Longvida, 1,000 mg | 2 weeks |
| Bai 2022Non-randomised controlled | Adolescent athletes | 28 | Not named | 12 weeks |
| Khanna 2022RCT, placebo | Healthy adults aged 35-65 | 18 | Curcumin-galactomannan (CGM), 1,000 mg | 4 weeks |
| Saberi-Karimian 2021RCT, placebo | Adults with metabolic syndrome | 120 | Curcuminoids, phospholipidated curcuminoids, 1,000 mg | 6 weeks |
| Dost 2021Non-randomised controlled | Older adults with MCI or Alzheimer's | 93 | Theracurmin | 26 weeks |
| Uchio 2021RCT, placebo | Healthy overweight adults aged 50-69 | 90 | Curcuma longa extract (CLE) | 12 weeks |
| Lopresti 2021RCT, placebo | Adults with self-reported digestive complaints | 79 | Curcugen, 500 mg | 8 weeks |
| Hosseininasab 2021RCT, placebo | Chronic schizophrenia inpatients, negative symptoms | 56 | Nanocurcumin, 160 mg | 16 weeks |
| Latif 2021Single-arm or open-label | Overweight or obese young women | 36 | Not named, 2,000 mg | 13 weeks |
| Varma 2021RCT, placebo | Healthy elderly with sarcopenia markers | 30 | Cureit | – |
| Ma 2021RCT, active or other control | Pulmonary hypertension patients | 30 | Not named | – |
| Saghatelyan 2020RCT, placebo | Women with metastatic breast cancer on paclitaxel | 150 | CUC-1 | 12 weeks |
| Ataei-Almanghadim 2020RCT, placebo | Postmenopausal women with hot flashes | 93 | Not named | 8 weeks |
| Asadi 2020RCT, placebo | Diabetic peripheral neuropathy patients | 80 | Nano-curcumin | 8 weeks |
| Cox 2020RCT, placebo | Healthy older adults aged 50-80 | 80 | Longvida, 400 mg | 12 weeks |
| Nouri-Vaskeh 2020RCT, placebo | Adults with liver cirrhosis | 70 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 12 weeks |
| Kalluru 2020Single-arm or open-label | Breast cancer patients on paclitaxel | 60 | Not named | 3 weeks |
| Shafabakhsh 2020RCT, placebo | Type 2 diabetes with coronary heart disease | 60 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 12 weeks |
| McAllister 2020Crossover, placebo | Trained men | 14 | Not named | – |
| Erken 2020Single-arm or open-label | Older woman with chemobrain (case report) | 1 | Theracurmin, 180 mg | 12 weeks |
| Thota 2020RCT, placebo | Adults at high risk of type 2 diabetes | – | Not named, 180 mg | 12 weeks |
| Uchio 2019RCT, placebo | Adults 50-69, overweight or prehypertension | 90 | Hot water extract of C. longa (WEC), 900 mg | 12 weeks |
| Miodownik 2019RCT, placebo | Chronic schizophrenia patients on antipsychotics | 38 | Not named, 3,000 mg | 24 weeks |
| da Silva 2019Single-arm or open-label | Woman with HIV on antiretroviral therapy (case) | 1 | Not named, 500 mg | 4 weeks |
| Ledda 2019Non-randomised controlled | Adults with temporary kidney dysfunction | – | Meriva, 1,500 mg | 4 weeks |
| Kucukgoncu 2019RCT, placebo | Schizophrenia patients | – | Not named | – |
| Kanchanatawan 2018RCT, placebo | Major depression patients on antidepressants | 65 | Not named, 1,500 mg | 12 weeks |
| Masoodi 2018RCT, placebo | Ulcerative colitis patients on mesalamine | 56 | Curcuminoid nanomicelles, 240 mg | – |
| Kawasaki 2018RCT, placebo | Healthy adults | 48 | Water extract of C. longa (WEC) | 8 weeks |
| Small 2018RCT, placebo | Non-demented adults aged 51-84 | 40 | Theracurmin, 180 mg | 78 weeks |
| Santos-Parker 2018RCT, placebo | Healthy middle-aged and older adults | 39 | Longvida, 2,000 mg | 12 weeks |
| Wynn 2018RCT, placebo | Schizophrenia patients | – | Not named | – |
| Ross 2018RCT, placebo | Unclear (abstract missing) | – | Theracurmin | – |
| Lopresti 2017RCT, placebo | Adults with major depressive disorder | 123 | Not named | 12 weeks |
| Rainey-Smith 2016RCT, placebo | Community-dwelling older adults | 96 | Biocurcumax, 1,500 mg | 52 weeks |
| Franceschi 2016Non-randomised controlled | Healthy older adults with tiredness | 86 | Meriva | 12 weeks |
| Fanaei 2016RCT, placebo | Women with premenstrual syndrome | 70 | Not named | – |
| Pandaran Sudheeran 2016RCT, placebo | Adults with occupational stress, anxiety and fatigue | 60 | CurQfen (curcumin-galactomannoside), 1,000 mg | 4 weeks |
| Yu 2015RCT, placebo | Men with major depression on antidepressants | 108 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 6 weeks |
| Khayat 2015RCT, placebo | Women with premenstrual syndrome | 70 | Not named | – |
| Cox 2015RCT, placebo | Healthy adults aged 60-85 | 60 | Longvida, 400 mg | 4 weeks |
| Lopresti 2015RCT, placebo | Adults with major depressive disorder | 50 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 8 weeks |
| Esmaily 2015Crossover, placebo | Obese adults | 30 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 4 weeks |
| Sciberras 2015Crossover, placebo | Recreational male cyclists | 11 | Not named | – |
| Sanmukhani 2014RCT, active or other control | Adults with major depressive disorder | 60 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 6 weeks |
| Lopresti 2014RCT, placebo | Adults with major depressive disorder | 56 | Not named, 1,000 mg | 8 weeks |
| Lee 2014RCT, placebo | Older adults with pre-diabetes | 48 | Not named, 1,000 mg | – |
| Bergman 2013RCT, placebo | First-episode depression patients on antidepressants | 40 | Not named, 500 mg | 5 weeks |
| Ringman 2012RCT, placebo | Mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease patients | 36 | Curcumin C3 Complex, 2,000 mg | 24 weeks |
| Agarwal 2011RCT, placebo | Adults after laparoscopic cholecystectomy | 50 | Not named | 3 weeks |
| Baum 2008RCT, placebo | Alzheimer's disease patients | – | Not named | 26 weeks |
What's known about safety
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In trials
Side effects reported are mostly stomach upsets, such as nausea, reflux and diarrhoea, and usual forms are thought likely safe for two to three months. Rare liver injury has been reported, often with forms made to absorb better or with added piperine.
NCCIH, updated April 2025; Xu 2025, umbrella review of 25 meta-analyses; Shrestha 2025, case and review of liver injury
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In the UK
Turmeric and curcuminoid extracts aren't novel foods when used in food supplements, so they can be sold in them. Tetrahydrocurcuminoids, a chemically changed form, are a separate novel food. The UK's toxicity committee said in 2024 that going well over the safe daily intake for curcumin in food (3 mg per kg of body weight) is a potential health risk.
FSA and FSS novel food assessment RP2124, April 2026, citing the COT 2024 statement on turmeric and curcumin supplements
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Check first
Turmeric supplements may be unsafe in pregnancy, and little is known about breastfeeding. The UK's toxicity committee raised extra concern for people with liver or bile problems and people taking other medicines. Speak to a pharmacist or doctor first if any of these apply to you.
NCCIH, updated April 2025; FSA and FSS assessment RP2124, April 2026, citing COT 2024
Where these studies come from
We list every published study in people that gave turmeric root, curcumin or curcuminoids, including forms made to absorb better, and measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life. Curcumin with piperine or other actives counts as a blend, and tetrahydrocurcumin is left out. This first version is built from each study's summary; full-paper checks come next.
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We search
PubMed, the world's main library of medical research, for every paper on L-theanine.
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We keep studies in people
Lab and animal work is counted but left out of the list, because it doesn't tell you what happens in people.
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We note the basics
Who took part, how many, how much and for how long, from each study's published summary. A second check corrects what the first read gets wrong.
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We read them in full
Results appear once we've read the whole paper and checked every number. The date at the top shows when this entry was last updated.
Download the study list
Every study in people as a spreadsheet, 74 rows, free to reuse with a link back.
Versions
Each update to the data gets a new version number, so you can tell what changed and when.
See every version
1.0 · 24 Oct 2026. First release. Every published study giving turmeric or curcumin to people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life is listed from its summary. None is read in full yet.
