Turmeric in Dentistry

Introduction Turmeric (Curcuma longa Linn) is extensively used as a spice and grown widely throughout Indian subcontinent. Turmeric plant has been used in traditional medicine as a remedy for various diseases including cough, diabetes and hepatic disorders. For the last few decades, extensive works have been done to establish the pharmacological actions of Turmeric and its extracts. Curcumin is the main chemical compound of Turmeric and proven for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimutagenic, antidiabetic, antibacterial, hepatoprotective, expectorant and anticancerous pharmacological activities. This review gives update mainly on the pharmacological activities of the Turmeric, its extracts and plausible medicinal applications, dental and oral applications of Turmeric along with their safety evaluation. Material and Method A hand search for the articles was made along with search over the internet by using the mESH terms Turmeric and use in dentistry Curcumin Curcumin in dentistry Out of the literature search made only 25 articles which matched the mESH terms were included in the review. Conclusion The review of literature suggested that Curcumin which is the pure form of turmeric has shown promising results in the field of dentistry. The use of curcumin needs to be studied in greater depth and its pharmacological effects should be put into more use.