Larry H Pastor, MD
16 August 2026
A good doctor is by definition a holistic doctor. If a gentler or more natural treatment can do the job instead of prescriptions or surgical interventions, or combined synergistically with standard prescription meds, that should be our number one recommendation. If physical therapy is as good as surgery, or a healthy diet is as good as a prescription medicine, then your doctor should encourage the former over the latter.
In that spirit, I’ve recently run across some remarkable evidence for the common spice curcumin, found in turmeric and curry seasoning, as a potentially effective treatment for depression and anxiety.
Zoom in on Curcumin: what is it?
Curcumin is a biologically active compound found in turmeric root (Curcuma longa), and exhibits an elegant, symmetrical beauty when its chemical structure is diagrammed (see illustration). Chemically, it is a “polyphenol” an incredibly healthy natural nutrient that turns certain foods into superfoods. Other foods high in polyphenols include berries, tea, coffee, dark chocolate, grapes, spinach, onions, sweet potatoes, lima beans, olive oil, nuts, whole grains, and other spices.
Why is it good for you?
According to a 2022 review in the journal CNS Drugs, curcumin “has been shown to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, anticancer, antimicrobial, and cardioprotective effects.”[1] Wow, just wow. That is an incredibly powerful statement: “anti-cancer,” “cardio-protective,” “neuro-protective.” Just imagine if Pfizer or Eli Lilly or Johnson & Johnson announced that they’d patented a new prescription pill with powerful “antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, anticancer, antimicrobial, and cardioprotective effects.” The headlines would make it to every major news outlet and their stock would soar. But somehow, because these incredible health benefits come from a natural component of our diet, the humble Curcuma Longa, it’s a yawner. Crickets. It flies under the radar. Like the old comedian Henny Youngman, it doesn’t get any respect at all. In this blog we’ll look at curcumin’s effect on depression and anxiety.
Curcumin for Depression & Anxiety
According to a 2024 article in the peer-reviewed journal Life,[2] human trials of curcumin have been conducted both in individuals diagnosed with anxiety disorders, as well as non-diagnosed individuals reporting high levels of stress and worry. While overall results were mixed, with some studies showing significant improvement and others showing modest or negligible improvement, the majority of studies overall showed significant clinical improvement in groups treated with daily curcumin supplements. In some of the studies, curcumin was added to either standard prescription medication for anxiety or depression, and other interventions such as increased sunlight and exercise.
Curcumin is a relatively large molecule and the studies that employed a form of curcumin packaged in ‘colloidal submicroscopic particles’, or Theracumin, thought to be more capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier, were generally more effective in treating symptoms of depression and anxiety. Curcumin is naturally ‘hydrophilic’, or water-soluble, and the various compounding strategies are aimed at making curcumin more ‘lipophilic’, or fat-soluble, and therefore more bioavailable by virtue of lipophilic molecules more easily crossing the blood-brain barrier.
The 2022 review article in CNS Drugs identified several rigorous trials of curcumin for depression in adults and reported that “positive antidepressant effects were reported in six of the seven trials”. Various analyses of different studies in treating depression with curcumin have implied an effect size of 0.3 to 0.75, suggesting a clinically significant, overall medium effectiveness for curcumin as a treatment for depression.[3] When combined with the virtual absence of side effects and low cost of this natural compound, the case for treating depression and anxiety with curcumin, with or without concomitant prescription medication and psychotherapy, becomes compelling.
How does curcumin work?
Because clinical depression is a complex conundrum, determining how any antidepressant works is tricky business. Depression is thought to involve many mechanisms (apart from the spiritual and psychological dimensions of depression). Curcumin, as an anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, anti-cancer, anti-microbial, and cardio-protective polyphenolic nutrient, may work in multiple ways to fight depression and anxiety.
Curcumin may work on neurotransmitter activity in the brain, boosting serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. Curcumin supports mitochondrial activity within brain cells to protect against oxidative stress and neurotoxicity. Given the strong association between gut health and brain health, curcumin alters the gut biome and reduces GI inflammation. Curcumin is, intriguingly like another natural element Lithium, protective of brain cells and prevents ‘apoptosis’, or cell death, of neurons. Curcumin, as an anti-inflammatory molecule, reduces inflammatory markers such as IL-6, TNF-alpha, and salivary cortisol. Curcumin may also re-regulate the ‘HPA-axis’ or human stress axis, lowering adrenalin and glucocorticoid levels after a stressful life event.
What else is curcumin good for?
Robust animal studies show that curcumin has demonstrated cancer-fighting abilities, including the ability to reduce tumor development, inhibit cell growth, prevent metastasis, and augment traditional chemotherapy. Human studies are currently underway and not yet conclusive. Because curcumin has an anticoagulant effect on blood clotting, careful consultation with one’s doctor is necessary before cancer patients start taking curcumin.
What can go wrong?
Any medicine or, in a broader sense, any intervention powerful enough to cure is inherently powerful enough to harm as well. Prescription medicines or surgery may have side effects. Exercise can lead to injury. Counseling or psychotherapy runs a risk of iatrogenic harm as well. The side effect profile for curcumin, however, is overall low. There is some weak anticoagulation (blood-thinning) effect and individuals at risk or already on anticoagulant medication would be at greater risk. Curcumin by itself is poorly absorbed and must be combined with a black pepper extract, piperine or bioperine, or formulated into more lipophilic nano-particles for optimal bioavailability. Curcumin does not work instantly and may require two months or so to determine whether it is effective or not. The optimal dose of curcumin has not been clearly established but probably runs around 1,000 mg per day, with a range of 500 to 2,000 mg per day.
The bottom line: are Curcumins good for Humans?
So there you have it, a natural polyphenolic powerhouse with a much lower side effect profile than standard medications, that can supplement traditional treatment of anxiety and depression.
Given that we have no perfect, foolproof cure for the worldwide, widespread, and potentially life-destroying epidemic of depression and anxiety in our mad, mad, modern world, I can’t understand why we’re not using curcumin more often in our panoply of treatments for depression, alongside medications, therapies, exercise, spiritual and existential healing, and other dietary supplements.
[1] “Potential Role of Curcumin for the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder”, CNS Drugs (2022) 36:123-141, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40263-022-00901-9.
[2] “Review: Curcumin as a Multifunctional Spice Ingredient against Mental Disorders in Humans: Current Clinical Studies and Bioavailability Concerns”, Life (2024) 14,479. https://doi.org/10.3390/Life14040479.
[3] These numbers actually compare favorably to the putative effect size of SSRI antidepressants for the treatment of clinical depression.
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