Increased recognition of the limits of conventional medicine has helped drive the growing interest in complementary and alternative medicine which is now being commonly used in patients with chronic diseases, including individuals with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Recently, scientific interest has unraveled the beneficial pharmacological effects of curcumin. We present an updated concise review of currently available in vitro, animal and clinical studies demonstrating the therapeutic effect of herbal medication in inflammatory bowel disease.