I asked my dermy about taking turmeric alongside conventional PsA meds but drew a blank. She said she wasn't able to comment as herbal medicine isn't her preserve. So it's about protocols .... but she added that she didn't think there would be a problem.
Rachael said:
OK now you all have me curious about this and people at work have been talking about it as well. Please, please come back with a yeah or nay offer trying it. The idea of adding get another pill my poor liver may need to process unprescribed seems overwhelming at this point. The new Gabapentin regime has me reeling already. To think just over a year ago I tool nothing but allergy pills and ibuprofen as needed. Now well its 19 pills and the weekly shot, arg! But like everyone mentioned if it works well...
I finally bought some turmeric (curcumin) capsules. The bottle states: 95% curcuminoids. Serving size is 2 capsules, which total 1,000 mg daily. I took 2 today. Someone mentioned it can take up to 6 months to work. IDK if I have that much patience.
Anyway, a lot of people mentioned they were planning on trying it, so I'm wondering if anybody new to it has noticed a change in their inflammation. My bottle has 120 capsules, so it'll last me two months. :-)
Thanks for the 'update' reminder Grandma J ... I've been taking it daily now for a month. I've just checked the dose I'm taking which is one tablet of 500mg (95% curcumins). I remember thinking about this when Rebel Mom said how she'd read about the safety of doses up to 2,000mg daily but decided that I would start with the 500mg as this was the recommended dose (and I've got a very sensitive stomach) and also the dose mentioned in the RA study that Seenie linked. Although I have read on WebMD (which has a great vitamin info section) about other doses used in research. I think I also said that I've also got back into the swing of taking my fish oils.
Joint pain = no improvement, in fact I'm a bit worse than usual and my injection of Simponi last week has not yet come to the rescue. I remember this has happened a couple of times before in the 18 months or so I've been on it so I'm not reading anything into it (except more pain for a month, lol) unless things stay the same with the next dose.
Skin = I am finally seeing good improvement in the psoriasis on my feet but I think this is the result of the topical treatment regime I've been following the last six months which has delivered painfully slow but nevertheless sustained healing. I suppose the turmeric/fish oil could have helped a bit the last four weeks but I can't attribute anything specific to it.
Will revisit the dose question when I have had opportunity to discuss with my new rheumy when my apppointment comes through ... I hope in the next couple of months.
I'm still waiting for a doctor to tell me there are no contraindications. Derm said she couldn't possibly say as she's not a herbalist (but did add that she couldn't imagine there would be a problem). I think my rheumy will be more forthcoming one way or another.
However (off piste, sorry!) my right palm has been that bit better ever since I got chilli juice all over it. Probably coincidence. But anyway, when chopping chillies again last night I put on my very big brave girl pants and rubbed a half chilli all over my nastiest psoriasis plaque. Weirdly it didn't hurt. It's no better either. But I live in hope & might keep trying.
Hi Jules, I've been taking 1,000mg of fish oil for many years and 100mg of coq10 for a couple years and I'm not sure if they help my pain/inflammation or not. But, I know they help my cholesterol and pretty sure the coq10 helps my blood pressure, too. I refuse to take a statin--I had a bad reaction to Lipitor, so I said to hell with statins. I'm hoping my high hdl (75 - 85) will keep my arteries open. But, yeah, to me it's iffy whether or not turmeric will work--I'm keeping my hopes up as lately (and I think this is because I missed a couple Enbrel injections) I've been having a little more pain and stiffness than normal since I've been on Enbrel.