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Session: Bioactives in Health and Disease (Oral 2)

(OR02-05-24) Bioenhancing Assessment of Black Pepper With Turmeric on Self-Reported Pain Ratings: A Randomized, Crossover Clinical Trial

Saturday, June 29, 2024
3:48 PM – 4:00 PM CT
Location:  W375C
CELA ELPC

    Presenting Author(s)

  • Leandra Durham, MS, RD, LD

    PhD Candidate
    The University of Alabama at Birmingham
    Birmingham, Alabama, United States

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.

    • Co-Author(s)

  • MI

    Matt Ithurburn

    American Sports Medicine Institute, United States

  • CR

    Chelsi Reynolds, PhD Student

    PhD Student
    The University of Alabama at Birmingham
    Birmingham, Alabama, United States

  • James O. Hill, PhD

    Professor and Director, Nutrition Obesity Research Center
    University of Alabama at Birmingham
    Birmingham, Alabama, United States

  • DS

    Daniel L. Smith, Jr, Ph.D.

    Assistant Professor
    University of Alabama at birmingham
    Birmingham, Alabama, United States

Objectives: Chronic pain that lasts 3 months or longer is estimated to affect 51 million US adults. Those with chronic pain do not always tolerate pharmaceutical therapies. Integrative or alternative approaches may be safe and effective tools to combat chronic pain. Turmeric has been shown to exhibit pain relieving and anti-inflammatory properties, albeit with limited bioavailability. Black pepper is also shown to have bioenhancing effects, increasing the bioavailability or bioactive effectiveness of other dietary components. Black pepper may enhance dietary levels of turmeric to decrease pain in adults.

Methods: A randomized, crossover clinical trial (NCT05206266) tested the effectiveness of turmeric only or turmeric with black pepper to reduce pain in adults aged 40 years and older. Participants (n=30, with moderate pain: 4–7 on 10-point scale) were enrolled in a 21-day trial and randomized into receiving one of three different amounts of turmeric (3 grams, 1 gram, or 300 mg) and two sequenced treatment periods: a 7-day treatment period (turmeric with or without black pepper), a 7-day washout period, and a 7-day treatment period (turmeric with or without black pepper). Participants were blinded to treatment assignment (via encapsulation of the spices) and, using an experience sampling methodology approach, were prompted to report current pain using the numeric pain rating scale (NPRS; 0-10) via text message three times per day for the full study period. Analysis of covariance (ANOVA) was used to analyze differences between turmeric amount and sequenced treatment groups.

Results: A total of n=29 participants (completers) were included in the analysis. Data collected included age (54.3±6.8 years), sex (predominately female, 93.10%), BMI (35.3±5.5, baseline pain ratings (4.3±2.2), washout period pain ratings (3.0±2.1), turmeric only pain ratings (3.0±1.9), and turmeric with black pepper (3.0±2.1) pain ratings. Results show significant differences in treatment periods and baseline for reported pain (p= < 0.0001). Turmeric amounts and pain ratings are statistically different between groups (p= < 0.0001).

Conclusions: Turmeric at dietary amounts with or without black pepper may reduce pain in older adults.

Funding Sources: NHLBI T32 grant and McCormick Spice Institute