Ginger or turmeric: which is healthier?

For inflammation, neither clearly wins. Nearly all trials we hold tested capsules and extracts, none the spices in cooking amounts.

Both lower CRP, a blood marker of inflammation, by small and similar amounts: ginger by 0.86 mg/L across 29 trials that disagreed a lot, mainly in people already ill, and turmeric or curcumin by 0.58 mg/L across 66 trials. For knee osteoarthritis, ginger lowered pain in 3 trials of 330 patients, without changing stiffness or function. Turmeric extracts have the larger record. In pooled trials they eased pain moderately against placebo and about as much as anti-inflammatory painkillers. A wider review found no supplement with a clinically important effect on pain long term.

Safety is where they differ. Among 171 people on warfarin, those using ginger had about three times the odds of reporting bleeding. Turmeric has case reports of sharply raised INR on warfarin too. Turmeric supplements, especially products made to be better absorbed, have been linked to potentially severe liver injury, usually 1 to 4 months after starting. In pregnancy, ginger eased nausea in 13 trials, though not vomiting. NCCIH says ginger supplements may be safe, the EU medicines agency advises avoiding them as a precaution, and NCCIH calls turmeric supplements possibly unsafe.

If you take a blood thinner, are pregnant, or have liver problems, ask your doctor first.

Evidence behind this note

1. Level A A meta-analysis of 29 trials found ginger supplements lowered C-reactive protein by 0.86 mg/L, with high heterogeneity between studies. Inflammopharmacology, 2025
2. Level A In 66 RCTs of adults, turmeric or curcumin supplements lowered C-reactive protein by 0.58 mg/L, TNF-alpha by 3.48 pg/mL and IL-6 by 1.31 pg/mL versus control. Cytokine, 2023
3. Level A The same 29-trial meta-analysis says the benefit is mainly in people with underlying health conditions and that high heterogeneity calls for caution. Inflammopharmacology, 2025
4. Level A In knee osteoarthritis, 3 trials with 330 patients found ginger lowered pain but no other clinical measure. Nutrients, 2022
5. Level A A meta-analysis of 15 RCTs with 1,621 people found turmeric extract or curcumin lowered osteoarthritis pain versus placebo by a moderate amount (WOMAC pain SMD -0.66). Biosci Rep, 2021
6. Level A In the same meta-analysis of 15 RCTs turmeric extract or curcumin relieved osteoarthritis pain about as much as NSAIDs (WOMAC pain SMD 0.04), with fewer adverse events. Biosci Rep, 2021
7. Level A A review of 69 osteoarthritis supplement trials found large short-term pain relief with Curcuma longa extract and curcumin, but no supplement had clinically important effects on pain in the long term. Br J Sports Med, 2018
8. Level C Among 171 people taking warfarin followed for 16 weeks, those using ginger had about three times the odds of self-reported bleeding. Pharmacotherapy, 2007
9. Level D A 2026 USP expert review notes cases of sharply raised INR when people on warfarin started turmeric or curcumin supplements. Pharmaceutical Biology, 2026 (USP DSAEL Expert Committee)
10. Level E According to NIH's NCCIH, liver damage has been reported in some people who took curcumin products made to be better absorbed. NIH National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, Turmeric: Usefulness and Safety
11. Level D The US Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network concluded that turmeric can cause severe liver injury, typically 1 to 4 months after starting, strongly linked to the HLA-B*35:01 gene variant. Am J Med, 2023: Liver Injury Associated with Turmeric, A Growing Problem: Ten Cases from the Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network
12. Level A In a meta-analysis of 13 trials with 1,174 pregnant women, ginger eased nausea compared with placebo (SMD 0.82) but did not significantly reduce vomiting, and did no better than vitamin B6. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med, 2022
13. Level E NCCIH states that ginger supplements may be safe in pregnancy but that little is known about their safety while breastfeeding. NCCIH, Ginger: Usefulness and Safety, updated February 2025
14. Level E The EU medicines agency advises avoiding ginger root medicines in pregnancy as a precaution. European Medicines Agency, HMPC, European Union herbal monograph on Zingiber officinale Roscoe, rhizoma, Revision 1 (EMA/HMPC/885789/2022), adopted 7 May 2025
15. Level E According to NIH's NCCIH, turmeric supplements may be unsafe in pregnancy. NIH National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, Turmeric: Usefulness and Safety

Written from the studies and agency guidance we hold for both foods, reviewed by the Bioma editorial system. How we verify.

Read more about these foods

• Ginger: what the supplement trials found
• Turmeric: small capsule effects, and a spice nobody has tested

What the studies say

• Does ginger lower blood pressure? A few points in trials, on low certainty evidence
• Does ginger help with digestion and bloating? It speeds the stomach, relief is unproven
• Does ginger reduce inflammation? It lowers CRP a little, mostly in people who are ill
• Does turmeric lower blood pressure? Slightly, in supplement trials, and reviews disagree
• Does turmeric lower cholesterol? As a supplement, by about 5 mg/dL of LDL
• Does turmeric help digestion? Small effects, mostly in curcumin capsules

Rankings and guides

• Fiber: what it does and how much you need
• Sodium: what it does and how much you need
• Which foods are highest in potassium?
• Ginger: full nutrition facts
• Turmeric: full nutrition facts

• Ginger: USDA FoodData Central, Spices, ginger, ground, FDC ID 170926 · full profile · all forms of ginger
• Turmeric: USDA FoodData Central, Spices, turmeric, ground, FDC ID 172231 · full profile · all forms of turmeric

Each food is one USDA entry, chosen as it is usually eaten. Other cuts, brands and preparations differ; the links show them. % DV uses FDA Daily Values for adults. How we verify.