Turmeric Side Effects

I am sharing my personal experience with taking Turmeric as a nutritional supplement. For me, I've had several concerning side effects that made me stop taking Turmeric.

It was at my annual eye exam that my ophthalmologist mentioned Turmeric to me as a anti-inflammatory nutritional supplement. Then, I had a visit with my primary care physician and he too mentioned Turmeric. I got to thinking, I'll have to look for it at my local Publix the next time I go shopping!

Looking through the nutritional supplements at Publix, I saw more than one selection and checked the prices. I opted to purchase NatureMade Turmeric Curcumin 500mg 60 capsules. I started taking it that same day and took it every consecutive day until I had taken 53 capsules over 53 days. That's when I stopped taking it and discarded the 7 remaining capsules.

Quickly into taking the Turmeric, I started noticing that I was becoming extremely aware of my GERD Gastroesophageal reflux disease symptoms. The worst symptom came with a difficulty swallowing with intense chest pain that made me stop and try to remain calm until the pain would pass. That would be accompanied with an acidy burning sensation or heartburn. Depending upon what I was eating, along would come the regurgitation of stuff which was pretty nasty.

Probably the most concerning side effect that I attribute to the Turmeric was joint pain along with muscle and possibly nerve pain. I was diagnosed with Trochanteric Bursitis over 9 years ago and suffered a severe attack in my right hip this past Summer. I allowed my doctor to give me a cortisone+ shot in my right hip and then things got really dicey! It felt like my nerves became inflamed in my lower back, right hip and thigh, down into my right knee. For several months I experienced crippling and limiting pain that seriously affected my mobility. As I have sleep apnea and now insomnia, I was having more difficulty trying to get quality sleep from my level of pain.

That pain from the bursitis and cortisone shot had finally started to wane before I started the 53 days of Turmeric. During the course of the Turmeric, I noticed that I started to feel more body aches and pain in my right hip, then in the front of my right thigh radiating down and surrounding my right knee. My left shoulder began to ache and soon so was my right shoulder. I had SLAP surgery in the left shoulder many years ago along with an episode of RSD, reflex sympathetic disorder, that required over 2 courses of aggressive pain management. My right shoulder was recently diagnosed with bursitis after I thought I tore a tendon from yard work.

I had thought I would have felt better from taking Turmeric, but I wasn't. To me, having such a combination of joint, muscle and nerve pain was beginning to make it difficult for me to perform my usual daily tasks around the house and garden.

Another interesting thing I was noticing was the amount of bruising on my arms and legs. I'd wonder what I was doing to have gotten such bruises.

Today I researched online the side effects of Turmeric finding a number of interesting online resources. I was wondering what side effects have been reported and if anybody can be allergic. For the most part, it has been reported that Turmeric / Curcumin supplements are generally safe. However, there can be some additives like black pepper extract (piperine) which can cause issues for some people.

I am hoping to report in about 30 days on all the side effects I have been experiencing to gauge if I have returned to a state pre-Turmeric. Fingers crossed!!