To what extent is curcumin destroyed by boiling?
I came across a "juice shot" / "anti inflammatory drink" recepie the other day which lists the following ingredients :
- lemon (in slices)
- ginger (in slices)
- turmeric (in slices)
- sugar
- water
The above ingredients should boil for 45 minutes, and then be ready to drink.
One of the advertised health boosters of this drink is curcumin (from the turmeric). However, does it withstand 45 minutes of boiling, or is the amount of curcumin reduced by the boiling?
Best Answer
Googling, I found this report, presenting a chemical and technical analysis of curcumin. Skimming through it, it seems that degradation of the substance should not be a problem due to temperature, although the report doesn't say much about it except that it shouldn't be a problem:
Curcumin is stable in dry food. It is relatively stable to heat so it can be used in thermally treated foods.
However, it warns about using it in solutions of a high pH, without stating which of the degradation products may be unfortunate to ingest. Furthermore curcumin is sensitive to light, so if you want as little as possible of it to degrade it is probably a good idea to keep a lid on the pan while you're heating the solution and consume it fairly quickly afterwards:
In native form curcumin is not suitable as a colouring agent in aqueous solutions of pH > 7
The principal colouring components of curcumin are not particularly stable to light, especially in solutions. After the photo-irradiation of compound 1, a cyclisation product was detected, as well as decomposition products, such as vanillic acid, vanillin, and ferulic acid (Sasaki et al, 1998). Commercial formulations of curcumin are available that are designed to minimize the inherent light instability.
With regards to the pH of your solution I don't think that should be a problem, as it is probably fairly acidic from juices of the lemon.
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Quick Answer about "To what extent is curcumin destroyed by boiling?"
Turmeric, with curcuminoids as the main bioactive components, is a popular food additive and condiment. However, curcuminoids readily degrade when heated, and cooking like boiling and roasting will result in the degradation of curcuminoids to a great extent (5–7, 16).Does turmeric lose potency when cooked?
\u2013 Yes, heating destroys some of the benefits of turmeric. When heated, the effect of curcumin \u2013 the bright yellow pigment and active ingredient in turmeric, which has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties \u2013 is destroyed. After 10 minutes of cooking, around 25-30% of the curcumin is lost.Is it OK to boil turmeric?
In Conclusion: Should You Be Cooking Turmeric? As the study suggests, boiling is the worst way to cook your turmeric, as it results in the maximum loss of curcumin. However, cooking it for short durations of time may actually increase its health benefits by making the curcuminoids more readily absorbed by the body.How long should turmeric be boiled?
The processing of turmeric is to be done 2 or 3 days after harvesting. If there is delay in processing, the rhizomes should be stored under shade or covered with sawdust or coir dust. Use turmeric boiler TNAU model 100 kg capacity especially for commercial growers and steam boil for 60 minutes.Can I put turmeric in boiling water?
A trendy way to take turmeric is hot, through turmeric tea. You can boil water, add the powder or root, let it simmer for a few minutes, strain (if necessary, and drink it this way.TURMERIC and CURCUMIN for inflammation by Dr. Andrea Furlan MD PhD
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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