Turmeric supplementation improves growth, short-chain fatty acid production and modulates the microbiota of weaned piglets.

Dear colleagues,

This week we would like to share an article written by several South Korean universities that provides some insights into how the active ingredients in turmeric improve intestinal health in piglets. Specifically, 1% turmeric powder was included in the animals’ diet.

It should be noted that turmeric powder contains between 1 and 6 per cent curcuminoids without any potentiation.

Even so, the results showed that the inclusion of turmeric in the diet statistically improved the total average daily gain and increased the production of short-chain fatty acids, including butyric acid, which, as we know, is used as an energy source by enterocytes.

In addition, the turmeric diet statistically improved the gut microbiome by decreasing the phylum Bacteroidetes and the genus Prevotella and showed a tendency to increase Lactobacillus.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the length of the intestinal villi increased and the depth of the crypts decreased.

As we mentioned a few weeks ago, at NBG we have achieved similar results but with NBG EnteroShield, which is a turmeric extract enhanced with NBG Protect and NBG BioBoost technology.

In our case, the product has been so effective that with only 0.05% in the piglets’ diet, we have managed to exceed production results, +6.42% ADG compared to a diet with 3000 ppm of zinc oxide.
Enjoy the article.