Effects of Curcumin on Serum Vitamin E Concentrations in Individuals with Metabolic Syndrome

Vitamin E is an important lipid‐soluble antioxidant. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of curcumin on serum vitamin E levels in subjects with metabolic syndrome (MetS). A total of 120 subjects aged 18–65 years old with MetS were recruited in this study according to the International Diabetic Federation Criteria. Included subjects were randomized into three groups: subjects receiving lecithinized curcumin (1 g/day equivalent to 200‐mg pure curcumin per day) for a period of 6 weeks ) n  = 40), patients receiving unformulated curcumin (1 g/day) for a period of 6 weeks ) n  = 40) and a control group receiving placebo for the same period ( n  = 40). Vitamin E was determined in all patients before and after the intervention using high‐performance liquid chromatography method. Results showed that curcumin has no improving effect on serum levels of vitamin E ( p  > 0.05). There were significant differences between pre‐trial and post‐trial levels of vitamin E/low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio ( p  < 0.05), vitamin E/high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio ( p  < 0.05), vitamin E/total cholesterol ratio ( p  < 0.01) and vitamin E/triglyceride ratio ( p  < 0.05) between the three groups of the study. Results of the present study did not suggest any improving effect of curcumin supplementation on serum vitamin E concentrations in subjects with MetS. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.