Does Turmeric and other supplements cause liver damage? If you read the recent articles on mainstream news, it does. What is the real truth? Most of the research is done by Big Drug companies who do not want you to use herbs for healing. They don’t make money selling herbs. So what factors are they leaving out in these research studies? When you look at this research there are many flaws.
Note: I don’t sell Turmeric so I have no financial reasons for writing this article
IMP context in writing this article: My husband and I have been taking Turmeric and other herbs in large doses for 20 years. Never in any of our yearly exams and blood tests did it show elevated liver enzymes or any markers for liver disease? We do not take OTC drugs or prescription drugs. I do not use makeup except when I go to church and only certain lipsticks. I do not use a lot of body products either. The garlic I buy comes from CA and my rice is mainly from CA. I buy herbs only if they have been tested in the US for heavy metals and other toxins. Turmeric is only purchased with that testing being stated on the company website. Read this full article to the end because I will give you the information at the end on how to buy Turmeric, spices, and herbs safely!
Flaw #1:
- How many of these research-monitored people are taking OTC drugs and prescription medicines daily with herbs?
- What doses and how often are the research participants taking these OTC drugs or prescribed medications?
- Did they monitor their food intake or cosmetic use? If you eat a lot of rice at every meal as Hispanic and other ethnic groups do, that could be a real issue.
Today, it is hard to find anyone these days that does not use OTC drugs and prescription drugs on a daily basis.
If you are taking both herbs and drugs there is no way to tell which is causing the problem.
Let’s look at the medicines that cause liver and kidney problems first.
Drugs that cause liver and kidney damage.?? Deaths from OTC drugs like Acetaminophen Below:
“People all over the world pop Tylenol like candy corn without a second thought, so it must be pretty safe, right? Hardly. The drug can be lethal when taken in a dose that isn’t all that much higher than the dose you might take for flu or a headache. Perhaps more surprising, a bottle of 50 Tylenol pills will probably kill you while a bottle of 500 Valium will probably not.”https://www.acsh.org/news/2017/09/11/tylenol-far-most-dangerous-drug-ever-made-11711
“Analysis of national databases shows that acetaminophen-associated overdoses account for about 50,000 emergency room visits and 25,000 hospitalizations yearly. Acetaminophen is the nation’s leading cause of acute liver failure, according to data from an ongoing study funded by the National Institutes for Health. Analysis of national mortality files shows about 450 deaths occur each year from acetaminophen-associated overdoses; 100 of these are unintentional.” https://www.acsh.org/news/2017/09/11/tylenol-far-most-dangerous-drug-ever-made-11711 .”
Tylenol: “Tylenol (acetaminophen) is a common over-the-counter (OTC) pain reliever and fever reducer. It’s not toxic to the liver when you take it now and then, and stay within recommended dosages. But large doses and long-term use can cause liver damage.
In fact, just one large dose of Tylenol can cause liver damage. Tylenol can also cause liver damage if you take it too often — especially over time. This concern is more relevant among people who have a serious illness, alcohol use disorder, or pre-existing liver issues.”
There are hundreds of medications that cause liver and kidney problems
Amiodarone, (gout med), Anti-seizure medications, like phenytoin, Isoniazid (antibiotic), Azathioprine (Imuran) is a medication that intentionally suppresses the immune system, cancer medications — including chemotherapy, targeted therapies, and hormonal agents — can cause liver issues. More medications include antifungal medications have some potential to cause liver injury. Fluconazole (Diflucan) is the most common antifungal medication found to cause liver damage. Statin drugs have been associated with liver enzyme elevations.
Flaw #2 You are eating Foods and wearing body products daily that contain lead and heavy metals
Did these research projects carefully review their diety and what medicines might be causing the liver toxicity?
Rice: Researchers detected lead levels between 6 and 12 milligrams per kilogram in all the samples they tested of commercially available rice imported into the United States from Taiwan, China, the Czech Republic, Bhutan, Italy, India, and Thailand. In many of these countries, farmers grow rice in areas close to factories and cities.
Chocolate -“A study by Consumer Reports has found that much of the dark chocolate we eat contains lead and cadmium1234. Of 28 dark chocolate bars tested, all contained both metals, and 18 were considered high in either lead or cadmium while five were high in both14. No amount of either metal is considered safe to ingest1. Dark chocolates, including bittersweet and semisweet candies, had the highest lead concentrations.”https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/a-third-of-chocolate-products-are-high-in-heavy-metals-a4844566398/?msockid=092e436d813c635b1f66505580da62a8
Lead is often found in certain candy, chocolate, chili powder, spices and teas.
Lead in Cosmetic Products
This includes many lipsticks and other products for your hair and face.
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/05/study-lead-metals-lipstick-top-20/
Can lead be a problem with Turmeric, spices, and teas? Yes
Turmeric, teas and spices are purchased from countries like China, India, Mexico and other countries. In China and India there is a great problem with pollution and chemical contamination at soil and air level. There labs have a bad reputation for their testing procedures. Teas and spices get almost no testing before they are imported into the US. This is what causes the liver issues…not the spice or the Turmeric but the lead exposure. This is an important issue and is part of the problem in liver issues.
How do you avoid the issue of liver problems?
Do not buy Turmeric and spices unless you see it stated that the product has been tested in a lab in the US for lead and heavy metals. The example below is from Banyan herbs which I buy a lot of my products like ginger and Turmeric from. They are quite explicit in their quality standards and that they do tests for lead and heavy metals. This is EXTREMELY important. Herbs and spices …teas must be tested in a US lab with 3rd party testing for its products. It does not matter what you buy in herbs, spices, or teas, the product needs this kind of testing to be safe! Do not buy store brands like Sams because they do not tell you much about where the herb was imported from and what if any testing was done in this country and if quality testing was performed.
“What kind of testing does Banyan conduct for each herb?
We strive to ensure the highest possible standards for quality control of our herbs. Our system conforms with the reputable standards specified by the AHPA (American Herbal Products Association), a national trade association and voice for the herbal industry. We conduct testing for the following:
Heavy metals: Our herbs and products are tested for arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury using independent third party laboratories.
Identification: Banyan uses industry-accepted practices for the proper identification of our botanicals. This includes organoleptics, which involves the physical examination of the herbs using the senses of sight, taste, smell, touch, and microscopic identification, as well as High-Performance Thin-Layer Chromatography (HPTLC).
Pesticides: For an herb to be certified organic, its entire production must be free from the use of pesticides, sewage sludge, ionizing radiation, and genetic engineering (GMOs). We do spot testing for pesticides in third-party labs to ensure the integrity of the organic certification of our partner farms.
Microbiologicals: Banyan requires microbiological testing and certificates of analysis from our suppliers for every batch of herbs. However, we do not solely rely on vendor certificates of analysis for testing data—all of our herbs, tablets, and other products are tested at qualified third party labs.
Learn more about our Quality Control and Testing.” https://help.banyanbotanicals.com/hc/en-us/articles/360056911372-What-kind-of-testing-does-Banyan-conduct-for-each-herb
How to safely buy products on Amazon and or from other companies.
If you buy on Amazon, look up the main company website off Amazon and go to their quality control page to see what tests are performed on their products. Call the company as well to talk to them. Ask them what tests are done and if the products are tested for heavy metals. If they refuse to answer you, that is your answer. Do not buy their products. This is important folks!
Go to this website and read their quality control statement at https://www.naturewise.com/products/turmeric-curcumin?selling_plan=1304166465 and scroll down until you get to the parts about the quality control statements. If you go to a website that does not list anything about their testing, it either means they just retail other company’s products or they do NOT do testing here in the US. GMP compliant is not all the testing required to really know the product is free of contamination and heavy metals.
In ending this article, I would far more be worried about the drugs and personal products you use daily in regards to liver and kidney damage. As I stated it is important as well to only buy tested herbs, spices, and teas.
