Q. I began taking turmeric to see if its anti-inflammatory properties would relieve joint pain. I had to stop because my fingers would get bruised without any real trauma. Presumably this was a side effect of its anticoagulant activity.
While I was taking it, though, I unexpectedly found that my mild depression diminished. I don’t take anything else and wondered if 500 mg of turmeric could have antidepressant action. A little Internet searching turned up a few mentions of using it for that purpose. Perhaps this will help someone else.
A. We were as surprised as you to discover that there are numerous references in the medical literature to the antidepressant effects of curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric (Journal of Psychopharmacology, Dec. 2012). Sadly, most of the research has been done in rodents. We could find no clinical trials testing this spice for antidepressant properties in humans. We do hope there will be some in the future.
There are a number of other ways to fight depression, however, and not all of them include drugs. We discuss exercise, light therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy and St. John’s wort in our Guide to Dealing with Depression.
