Nutritional enrichment with curcumin during perinatal period alleviates metabolic disorders in the adult life

Background: The `fetal origins' hypothesis proposes that alterations in fetal nutrition result in a permanent change in physiology and metabolism, thereby predisposing to metabolic disorders in adult life. Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.), the wonder queen of Indian spice and a nutraceutical was extensively used in Ayurveda, Unani, and Siddha for various diseases. Having multiple benefits of Curcumin, we hypothesized that, rats suffered undernutrition during their perinatal period would develop metabolic disorders in their adult life, which would be effectively modulated by Curcumin. Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate the effect of Curcumin supplementation during perinatal life. Methods: It is an experimental study conducted using a rat model. The animals were divided into six groups. The insulin level was estimated by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Plasma glucose and lipid profile by autoanalyzer method. HOMA-IR and AI were calculated. The difference was compared between the groups and within the group was done by one-way ANOVA. The p < 0.05 was considered as the level of significance. Results: The Bodyweight mean Triglyceride, Total cholesterol, LDL-C, Glucose, AI, and HOMA-IR was significantly increased (p=0.0001) in the Perun group, whereas HDL-C and Insulin were significantly decreased (p=0.001) as compared to control animals, which was effectively modulated by Curcumin in the animals of PeriCur group. Conclusion: The present study showed that perinatal undernutrition caused metabolic disorders in adult life and was effectively modulated by Curcumin supplementation during the perinatal period.