What Happens When You Combine Turmeric and Honey for Weight Loss

Turmeric is hailed as an anti-inflammatory superfood—and pairing it with a spoonful of honey may up your antioxidants, reduce inflammation, and even help you lose weight. 

“Chronic inflammation can increase insulin’s resistance, inflammatory chemicals can stimulate appetite and fat storage, and inflammation has the potential to slow down your metabolism,” Julia Zumpano, a registered dietitian nutritionist RDN at the Cleveland Clinic, told Verywell.

However, according to Zumpano, adding just two anti-inflammatory ingredients to your diet is unlikely to help much.

Instead, you may lose weight by consistently eating various anti-inflammatory foods, getting enough sleep, and having an active lifestyle. “Blood sugar is better regulated to reduce fat storage, appetite, and cravings are more likely suppressed, and metabolism improves,” Zumpano said.

Can Turmeric and Honey Help You Lose Weight?

Eating a healthy diet focused on anti-inflammatory foods, including turmeric and honey, may help you lose weight, Tracey Brigman, EdD, MS, RDN, LD, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Georgia told Verywell. 

“An anti-inflammatory diet contains foods rich in fiber, nutrients, and phytochemicals and is an overall healthy eating plan that could result in weight loss if someone chooses this eating plan instead of the typical Western-type eating plan, which tends to be higher in processed meats, refined sugars, saturated fat and lower in fiber and nutrients,” said Brigman.

However, adding turmeric and honey to a diet full of inflammatory foods probably won’t do much for weight loss. “Chronic Inflammation affects your entire body; multiple steps need to be taken consistently to reduce inflammation,” Zumpano said. 

Aside from weight loss, turmeric and honey can benefit your health in other ways.

Turmeric gets its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties from a natural compound, or polyphenol, called curcumin. “It is also rich in phytochemicals which can have protective health benefits to fight against cancer and heart disease,” said Brigman.

Honey contains mainy sugar along with amino acids, minerals ,and vitamins that give it antioxidant sand anti-inflammatory benefits. 

“Research on honey shows the antioxidants may help reduce risk of heart disease, may help relieve gastrointestinal tract issues, and may offer antidepressant and anti-anxiety benefits,” Brigman said. 

How to Incorporate Turmeric and Honey into Your Diet

It’s easy to start adding turmeric and honey into your diet, particularly as a drink.

“Making tea with turmeric and sweetening it with honey is the easiest way,” Brigman said. “You could also make a glaze with honey and turmeric to put on your chicken or fish, add both to your salad dressings or in a smoothie if you are trying to increase your intake.”

Or, try warm milk and add turmeric and honey, said Zumpano. “I love golden milk,” she added. “It’s a warm drink that includes both turmeric and honey but also uses ginger for digestion and inflammation, and black pepper for increased absorption.”

Why It’s Best Not to Overdo It With Turmeric and Honey

In the case of turmeric and honey, consuming more does not always mean more health benefits. If you consume too much turmeric, especially via supplements, you can face various health issues, said Brigman.

“Side effects of supplementation can include GI disturbances, increased risk of kidney stones, and liver disease,” Brigman said. “Too much turmeric can also interfere with some medications like pain relievers, chemotherapy, blood thinners, and immunosuppressive drugs.”

Turmeric may also contain high levels of lead metals, so it’s best not to consume it in large amounts. You should always talk with your doctor if you are on medications before taking turmeric.

Brigman added that sugar is the main component of honey, so it should be treated as an added sweetener and consumed relatively sparingly.