The French have long enjoyed rich pasta dishes laden in heavy cream sauces and fatty cheeses accompanied by oil soaked breads and decadent desserts. However, the French have one of the lowest rates of cardiovascular disease. The difference in their dietary habits is simple, wine in abundance. Finally, the rest of the world has taken notice and managed after all these years to put two and two together.
The fact that the French have a much lower rate of cardiovascular disease compared to Americans and Europeans who live outside of wine country is no coincidence. French red wine grapes contain one of the highest sources known of naturally occurring resveratrol, a super potent anti-aging compound.
Resveratrol has been shown to have very strong effects in preventing cardiovascular disease, reducing inflammation of the heart, keeping bone structure healthy and functioning properly, and maintaining loco-motor and balance activity. Red wine grapes, high in antioxidants and polyphenols, have recently began to be advertised for their many health benefits. French red wine grapes are the super-antioxidants of the red wine grape world.
The natural progression to the studies done on French red wine grapes was to find a way to bottle this fountain of youth miracle. Hence, French red wine extract capsules hit the market and seem to be flying off shelves faster than the bottles can be stocked.
French red wine extract allows us to enjoy the health benefits of French red wine without the alcohol or extra calories. The mixture of compounds in red wine have been shown to prevent Alzheimer's disease and dementia, as well as cardiovascular disease. Red wine has also been shown to be highly effective in inhibiting prostate and breast cancer cell lines and an effective method of lowering cholesterol.
French red wine extract is available in capsule form in pharmacies and over the internet at an average cost of thirty dollars a month. There are also red wine extract capsules available on the market that did not come from France's wine growing region. The buyer must be aware of what they are purchasing to obtain maximum results.
French red wine extract may prove to be the obese person's ticket to freedom to enjoy the foods they love without restricting their diet. Test studies performed on mice at the National Institute on Aging in Baltimore, Maryland, have shown that resveratrol improved the health and lifespan of middle-aged obese mice on a high calorie diet. The mice which remained on a high calorie diet lived longer than the mice put on a restricted diet. For those of us who enjoy eating as much as cooking, this news was like receiving an unexpected gift in a 24K gold box!
Regardless of your desire to use French red wine extract to combat Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, or one of its many other benefits, consult your physician before taking this food supplement.
Source: Helium
Monday, March 23, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Resveratrol: Live Long Eating More
David Sinclair and his collaborators think not only that the protective effects of fasting occur in people, but that they can be supplied in a pill. Research by Sinclair and his colleagues pointed to an ingredient in red wine called resveratrol as a candidate for triggering the life-lengthening benefits of dieting in humans. Their research was published August 24, 2003 in the online version of the journal Nature.
Curiously, the scientists may have found the answer to a famous paradox about the French. The paradox goes like this: even though the French consume very fatty food considered risky for the heart, they live as long as everyone else. The French also drink a lot of red wine, which has long been suspected as the reason for their longevity.
So far, resveratrol has only been a fountain of youth for laboratory yeast and fruit flies.
The laboratory yeast now benefiting from resveratrol helped lead to the chemical's discovery in the first place. Leonard Guarente began looking for long-lived yeast in his Massachusetts Institute of Technology laboratory in the early 1990s. In 1997, he and Sinclair found a strain of yeast that could outlast the others—and this strain had an active sir2 gene. Guarentee later found that normal yeast that don't belong to this long-lived strain will activate sir2 if they are starving.
Sinclair and Konrad Howitz, a colleague at Biomol Research Laboratories in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, screened a large number of chemicals hoping to identify a few that would enhance the activity of sirtuin, the enzyme made by sir2. Such a chemical could be used in place of fasting to take advantage of sir2's beneficial effects. Using a test they designed to measure sirtuin's activity, they identified two chemicals, both members of the family called polyphenols. After screening a batch of polyphenols, they found a chemical that stimulated sirtuin more than any of the others: resveratrol.
Concerning his possible solution of the French paradox, Sinclair told the New York Times he was amazed that "in an unbiased screen we pulled out something already associated with health benefits."
Guarente estimates that, assuming the life-lengthening effects of fasting or resveratrol are the same in humans as in laboratory organisms, people taking a drug that contains resveratrol might extend their normal life expectancy by one-third. For example, a person aged 50 years and expected to live to 80 might instead live to 90.
Other experts are less optimistic about the life-extending capacity of fasting and resveratrol. "At this point we have no indication that there will be a benefit in people," David Finkelstein, project officer at the National Institute of Aging, told the New York Times.
As for red wine itself, Toren Finkel, head of cardiovascular research at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, told the New York Times, "I would be cautious in sending out the message that one glass of wine a day will make you live 10 years longer. The concentration of resveratrol in different wine differs." The newspaper reported that levels of the chemical are higher in red wines made from grapes grown under stressful conditions, such as a cool climate or the presence of a fungal infection.
Biologists believe resveratrol may unlock an ancient mechanism, whose purpose may be to protect an organism when food is scarce, preserving the organism for reproduction in better times.
Sources
"It's Never Too Late." James W. Vaupel, James R. Carey, and Kaare Christensen. Science, September 19, 2003, page 1679.
"Study Spurs Hope of Finding Way to Increase Human Life." Nicholas Wade. The New York Times. August 25, 2003, page A10.
"Forget Botox. Anti-Aging Pills May Be Next." Andrew Pollack. The New York Times. September 21, 2003, section 3, page 1.
"Demography of Dietary Restriction and Death in Drosophila." William Mair, Patrick Goymer, Scott D. Pletcher, and Linda Partridge. Science, September 19, page 1731.
"Small Molecule Activators of Sirtuins Extend Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Lifespan." Konrad T. Howitz, Kevin J. Bitterman, Haim Y. Cohen, Dudley W. Lamming, et al. Nature, September 11, 2003, page 191.
Source: AssociatedContent.com
Curiously, the scientists may have found the answer to a famous paradox about the French. The paradox goes like this: even though the French consume very fatty food considered risky for the heart, they live as long as everyone else. The French also drink a lot of red wine, which has long been suspected as the reason for their longevity.
So far, resveratrol has only been a fountain of youth for laboratory yeast and fruit flies.
The laboratory yeast now benefiting from resveratrol helped lead to the chemical's discovery in the first place. Leonard Guarente began looking for long-lived yeast in his Massachusetts Institute of Technology laboratory in the early 1990s. In 1997, he and Sinclair found a strain of yeast that could outlast the others—and this strain had an active sir2 gene. Guarentee later found that normal yeast that don't belong to this long-lived strain will activate sir2 if they are starving.
Sinclair and Konrad Howitz, a colleague at Biomol Research Laboratories in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, screened a large number of chemicals hoping to identify a few that would enhance the activity of sirtuin, the enzyme made by sir2. Such a chemical could be used in place of fasting to take advantage of sir2's beneficial effects. Using a test they designed to measure sirtuin's activity, they identified two chemicals, both members of the family called polyphenols. After screening a batch of polyphenols, they found a chemical that stimulated sirtuin more than any of the others: resveratrol.
Concerning his possible solution of the French paradox, Sinclair told the New York Times he was amazed that "in an unbiased screen we pulled out something already associated with health benefits."
Guarente estimates that, assuming the life-lengthening effects of fasting or resveratrol are the same in humans as in laboratory organisms, people taking a drug that contains resveratrol might extend their normal life expectancy by one-third. For example, a person aged 50 years and expected to live to 80 might instead live to 90.
Other experts are less optimistic about the life-extending capacity of fasting and resveratrol. "At this point we have no indication that there will be a benefit in people," David Finkelstein, project officer at the National Institute of Aging, told the New York Times.
As for red wine itself, Toren Finkel, head of cardiovascular research at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, told the New York Times, "I would be cautious in sending out the message that one glass of wine a day will make you live 10 years longer. The concentration of resveratrol in different wine differs." The newspaper reported that levels of the chemical are higher in red wines made from grapes grown under stressful conditions, such as a cool climate or the presence of a fungal infection.
Biologists believe resveratrol may unlock an ancient mechanism, whose purpose may be to protect an organism when food is scarce, preserving the organism for reproduction in better times.
Sources
"It's Never Too Late." James W. Vaupel, James R. Carey, and Kaare Christensen. Science, September 19, 2003, page 1679.
"Study Spurs Hope of Finding Way to Increase Human Life." Nicholas Wade. The New York Times. August 25, 2003, page A10.
"Forget Botox. Anti-Aging Pills May Be Next." Andrew Pollack. The New York Times. September 21, 2003, section 3, page 1.
"Demography of Dietary Restriction and Death in Drosophila." William Mair, Patrick Goymer, Scott D. Pletcher, and Linda Partridge. Science, September 19, page 1731.
"Small Molecule Activators of Sirtuins Extend Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Lifespan." Konrad T. Howitz, Kevin J. Bitterman, Haim Y. Cohen, Dudley W. Lamming, et al. Nature, September 11, 2003, page 191.
Source: AssociatedContent.com
Friday, March 13, 2009
Wine-Related Cancer Treatment Shows Promise Against Neuroblastomas
Resveratrol--the intriguing substance that seems to make red wine heart-healthy--is being proposed for clinical trials later in 2009 as a treatment against neuroblastoma, a type of cancer that affects infants and young children.
Dr. Arthur Polans, professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UW; Madison, USA) and the UW Paul P. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center, has been studying the substance for about five years, and has been using it successfully to treat several types of cancer in mice. His research group has applied for permission to use it to treat neuroblastoma, a nervous-system cancer that mostly affects infants and children.
“Resveratrol is a promising treatment for young children because it’s not toxic to healthy cells, only to cancer cells,’’ Dr. Polans said. “How do you treat infants without causing other problems in the years to come? That is the kind of question that intrigues us.”
Because it seems to kill cancer kills while leaving healthy tissue alone, resveratrol is also being looked at to treat ocular or uveal melanoma, a cancer of the eye that can lie dormant for many years before metastasizing and becoming fatal. So far, there are no good treatments for melanoma that begins in the colored tissues of the eye; it doesn’t respond the same way as melanoma that begins in the skin. “It’s one of those rotten cancers,’’ Dr. Polans noted. “We don’t know what causes it and we don’t know how to treat it effectively.”
While the cancers are very different, adults who develop melanoma of the eye have something in common with babies who develop neuroblastoma--they may live for a long time after their diagnosis, so potential treatments shouldn’t cause other health problems.
“What neuroblastoma and uveal melanoma have in common is the factor of time,” said Dr. Polans. “Ideally, you’d like to be able to treat them aggressively at first, and then treat them with lower doses of a non-toxic compound over time. Otherwise, you run the risk of damage to vital organs or an increase in secondary tumors.”
So far, the Polans lab has shown that resveratrol shrinks tumors and kills malignant cells in five types of cancer: skin melanoma, breast cancer, neuroblastoma, ocular melanoma and retinoblastoma. A poster outside Dr. Polans’ office shows a mouse with a large neuroblastoma tumor that is then shrunken to nothing by resveratrol. “Mice that were treated with resveratrol are healthy, gain weight, and don’t seem to have side effects,’’ he said, “but when you look at the cancer cells, they’re dying.”
Dr. Polans’ lab has also done a lot of essential research on resveratrol, developing new forms of the compound that are more potent, and active in the body for longer than the common forms of the substance.
If it shows to be effective, resveratrol will join a large class of cancer-fighting compounds derived from plants, including taxol, which comes from yew trees, and etopside, derived from the mayapple. Resveratrol, which can be derived from grape skins, is also seen as the substance at work in the so-called “French Paradox,’’ in which French hearts stay healthy (due to drinking red wine) in spite of all the high fat foods consumed.
“About 70% of new chemotherapeutics are derived from natural products or based on their structures,’’ concluded Dr. Polans. “There’s a lot of interest worldwide in finding new substances from plants and other natural sources, including microbes from the soil and a variety of species from the ocean.”
Source: Biotechdaily.com
Dr. Arthur Polans, professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UW; Madison, USA) and the UW Paul P. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center, has been studying the substance for about five years, and has been using it successfully to treat several types of cancer in mice. His research group has applied for permission to use it to treat neuroblastoma, a nervous-system cancer that mostly affects infants and children.
“Resveratrol is a promising treatment for young children because it’s not toxic to healthy cells, only to cancer cells,’’ Dr. Polans said. “How do you treat infants without causing other problems in the years to come? That is the kind of question that intrigues us.”
Because it seems to kill cancer kills while leaving healthy tissue alone, resveratrol is also being looked at to treat ocular or uveal melanoma, a cancer of the eye that can lie dormant for many years before metastasizing and becoming fatal. So far, there are no good treatments for melanoma that begins in the colored tissues of the eye; it doesn’t respond the same way as melanoma that begins in the skin. “It’s one of those rotten cancers,’’ Dr. Polans noted. “We don’t know what causes it and we don’t know how to treat it effectively.”
While the cancers are very different, adults who develop melanoma of the eye have something in common with babies who develop neuroblastoma--they may live for a long time after their diagnosis, so potential treatments shouldn’t cause other health problems.
“What neuroblastoma and uveal melanoma have in common is the factor of time,” said Dr. Polans. “Ideally, you’d like to be able to treat them aggressively at first, and then treat them with lower doses of a non-toxic compound over time. Otherwise, you run the risk of damage to vital organs or an increase in secondary tumors.”
So far, the Polans lab has shown that resveratrol shrinks tumors and kills malignant cells in five types of cancer: skin melanoma, breast cancer, neuroblastoma, ocular melanoma and retinoblastoma. A poster outside Dr. Polans’ office shows a mouse with a large neuroblastoma tumor that is then shrunken to nothing by resveratrol. “Mice that were treated with resveratrol are healthy, gain weight, and don’t seem to have side effects,’’ he said, “but when you look at the cancer cells, they’re dying.”
Dr. Polans’ lab has also done a lot of essential research on resveratrol, developing new forms of the compound that are more potent, and active in the body for longer than the common forms of the substance.
If it shows to be effective, resveratrol will join a large class of cancer-fighting compounds derived from plants, including taxol, which comes from yew trees, and etopside, derived from the mayapple. Resveratrol, which can be derived from grape skins, is also seen as the substance at work in the so-called “French Paradox,’’ in which French hearts stay healthy (due to drinking red wine) in spite of all the high fat foods consumed.
“About 70% of new chemotherapeutics are derived from natural products or based on their structures,’’ concluded Dr. Polans. “There’s a lot of interest worldwide in finding new substances from plants and other natural sources, including microbes from the soil and a variety of species from the ocean.”
Source: Biotechdaily.com
Antioxidants: The Rise of Polyphenols
For many consumers, antioxidant doesn’t go beyond vitamins C and E, and beta-carotene, but as understanding of the antioxidant compounds in fruit and vegetables increases, more research is pointing towards the potential of polyphenols.
In the final part of its series on antioxidants, NutraIngredients looks at the rise of polyphenols and flavonoids, and what still needs to be done.
Data from Leatherhead Food International (LFI) shows that the world functional antioxidants market is increasing year on year by around 3 per cent, and was valued at US$ 400 million in 2004, and US$ 438 million in 2007. Europe, the US, and Japan account for 90 per cent of this market.
With flavonoids and polyphenols reported to be 45 per cent of this functional antioxidant market, equivalent to almost US$ 200 million, it is no wonder that many companies are already offering such ingredients, including Naturex, Burgundy, Chr. Hansen, DSM, Futureceuticals, Danisco, Indena, Frutarom, Genosa, Natraceutical, Cognis, and ADM.
However, while the science is beginning to point to the significant potential and benefits of polyphenols, Ming Hu from the University of Houston recently issued "a call to arms" for more relevant research into the bioavailability and utilisation of the antioxidants, particularly polyphenols, in order to help "the successful development of polyphenols as chemopreventive agents in the future".
Definitions
Polyphenols are receiving extensive research due to their potent antioxidant activity, their ability to mop-up harmful free radicals, and the associated health benefits. Many have also been implicated in possible protection against diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease, while some have been reported to potentially offer protection from Alzheimer's.
A recent study by French researchers using a series of antioxidant assays, including DPPH, ABTS, ORAC, SOD, FRAP of extracts from 30 plants found a “significant relationship between antioxidant capacity and total phenolic content […], indicating that phenolic compounds are the major contributors to the antioxidant properties of these plants” (J. Agric. Food Chem., 2009, Vol. 57, pp. 1768-1774).
Furthermore, according to an editorial in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (July 2008, Vol. 88, pp. 12-13), Johanna Geleijnse and Peter Hollman from Wageningen University in the Netherlands stated that the contribution of flavonones to a person's antioxidant capacity was significant.
"More than 6000 different flavonoids in plants have been described, and their total intake could amount to 1 g/d, whereas combined intakes of beta-carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E from food most often are less than 100 mg/d," they said.
The chemical class refers to compounds called phenylpropanoids, which includes flavonoids, and hydrolyzable tannins such as the gallic acid esters of glucose,
Flavonoids can be split into a number of sub-classes, including anthocyanins found in berries, flavonols from a variety of fruit and vegetables, flavones from parsley and thyme, for example, flavanones from citrus, isoflavones from soy, mono- and poly-meric flavonols like the catechins in tea, and proanthocyanidins from berries, wine and chocolate. The non-flavonoids include phenolic acids, lignans, and stilbenes such as resveratrol.
Structure is key
Polyphenols, and flavonoids in particular, are not all created equal. For example, scientists from The Ohio State University reported that the structure of anthocyanins, the antioxidant pigments from a range of fruit and vegetables, is key to the cancer fighting abilities.
According to findings published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (doi: 10.1021/jf8005917), certain types of anthocyanins have greater activity against colon cancer than others.
“The chemical structures of anthocyanins do have a significant impact on their biological activity, and data suggest that non-acylated monoglycosylated anthocyanins are more potent inhibitors of colon cancer cell growth proliferation,” wrote lead author Pu Jing.
The researchers cautioned that more research is necessary to explore the role of anthocyanin structure and the chemo-protective effects.
Much work left to do…
In addition to the potential benefits for reducing the risk of cancer, the most science has pointed towards a protective role in cardiovascular health. Geleijnse and Geleijnse added, however, that significant study was still needed in this area.
"Substantial evidence for a vasoprotective effect of specific flavonoids is, however, still lacking. Optimal doses of specific flavonoids for cardiovascular protection […] are still beyond the horizon,” they wrote in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
“Flavonoid research has made large progress since the [early days], but, to really advance the field, the step to individual flavonoids must be made now."
Source: Nutraingredients.com
In the final part of its series on antioxidants, NutraIngredients looks at the rise of polyphenols and flavonoids, and what still needs to be done.
Data from Leatherhead Food International (LFI) shows that the world functional antioxidants market is increasing year on year by around 3 per cent, and was valued at US$ 400 million in 2004, and US$ 438 million in 2007. Europe, the US, and Japan account for 90 per cent of this market.
With flavonoids and polyphenols reported to be 45 per cent of this functional antioxidant market, equivalent to almost US$ 200 million, it is no wonder that many companies are already offering such ingredients, including Naturex, Burgundy, Chr. Hansen, DSM, Futureceuticals, Danisco, Indena, Frutarom, Genosa, Natraceutical, Cognis, and ADM.
However, while the science is beginning to point to the significant potential and benefits of polyphenols, Ming Hu from the University of Houston recently issued "a call to arms" for more relevant research into the bioavailability and utilisation of the antioxidants, particularly polyphenols, in order to help "the successful development of polyphenols as chemopreventive agents in the future".
Definitions
Polyphenols are receiving extensive research due to their potent antioxidant activity, their ability to mop-up harmful free radicals, and the associated health benefits. Many have also been implicated in possible protection against diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease, while some have been reported to potentially offer protection from Alzheimer's.
A recent study by French researchers using a series of antioxidant assays, including DPPH, ABTS, ORAC, SOD, FRAP of extracts from 30 plants found a “significant relationship between antioxidant capacity and total phenolic content […], indicating that phenolic compounds are the major contributors to the antioxidant properties of these plants” (J. Agric. Food Chem., 2009, Vol. 57, pp. 1768-1774).
Furthermore, according to an editorial in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (July 2008, Vol. 88, pp. 12-13), Johanna Geleijnse and Peter Hollman from Wageningen University in the Netherlands stated that the contribution of flavonones to a person's antioxidant capacity was significant.
"More than 6000 different flavonoids in plants have been described, and their total intake could amount to 1 g/d, whereas combined intakes of beta-carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E from food most often are less than 100 mg/d," they said.
The chemical class refers to compounds called phenylpropanoids, which includes flavonoids, and hydrolyzable tannins such as the gallic acid esters of glucose,
Flavonoids can be split into a number of sub-classes, including anthocyanins found in berries, flavonols from a variety of fruit and vegetables, flavones from parsley and thyme, for example, flavanones from citrus, isoflavones from soy, mono- and poly-meric flavonols like the catechins in tea, and proanthocyanidins from berries, wine and chocolate. The non-flavonoids include phenolic acids, lignans, and stilbenes such as resveratrol.
Structure is key
Polyphenols, and flavonoids in particular, are not all created equal. For example, scientists from The Ohio State University reported that the structure of anthocyanins, the antioxidant pigments from a range of fruit and vegetables, is key to the cancer fighting abilities.
According to findings published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (doi: 10.1021/jf8005917), certain types of anthocyanins have greater activity against colon cancer than others.
“The chemical structures of anthocyanins do have a significant impact on their biological activity, and data suggest that non-acylated monoglycosylated anthocyanins are more potent inhibitors of colon cancer cell growth proliferation,” wrote lead author Pu Jing.
The researchers cautioned that more research is necessary to explore the role of anthocyanin structure and the chemo-protective effects.
Much work left to do…
In addition to the potential benefits for reducing the risk of cancer, the most science has pointed towards a protective role in cardiovascular health. Geleijnse and Geleijnse added, however, that significant study was still needed in this area.
"Substantial evidence for a vasoprotective effect of specific flavonoids is, however, still lacking. Optimal doses of specific flavonoids for cardiovascular protection […] are still beyond the horizon,” they wrote in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
“Flavonoid research has made large progress since the [early days], but, to really advance the field, the step to individual flavonoids must be made now."
Source: Nutraingredients.com
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Grape Extracts May Be Effective Against Harmful Gut Bacteria
In a new study researchers from Clemson University found various grape extracts and their compounds to be effective at inhibiting Helicobacter pylori, one of the leading causes of gastritis in humans.
H. pylori is the bacterial agent most commonly associated with peptic ulcers, gastritis, mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma, and gastric cancer. Antibiotic therapy has proven effective at providing initial relief, however resistance can develop over time and relapse can occur. Previous studies have examined other natural plant extracts with anti-H. pylori activity such as garlic, broccoli, cranberries and green tea, however, grapes have yet to be evaluated despite being well known for their high levels of antioxidants and polyphenols.
The antibacterial effects of extracts from red, white, black and muscadine grapes as well as the pure compounds resveratrol, ellagic acid, and myricetin were tested for anti-H. pylori activity using agar dilution, laser scanning microscopy and cell proliferation. Following 24 hour treatment, results showed that muscadine grape skin extract had the highest anti-H. pylori effect, followed by muscadine grape synergy and seed extract. Additionally, two of the three compounds, resveratrol and ellagic acid, also inhibited H. pylori.
"In this study, grape extracts and their compounds were effective at inhibiting H. pylori in vitro, with highest efficacy by muscadine grape skin extract," say the researchers.
Source: ScienceDaily.com
H. pylori is the bacterial agent most commonly associated with peptic ulcers, gastritis, mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma, and gastric cancer. Antibiotic therapy has proven effective at providing initial relief, however resistance can develop over time and relapse can occur. Previous studies have examined other natural plant extracts with anti-H. pylori activity such as garlic, broccoli, cranberries and green tea, however, grapes have yet to be evaluated despite being well known for their high levels of antioxidants and polyphenols.
The antibacterial effects of extracts from red, white, black and muscadine grapes as well as the pure compounds resveratrol, ellagic acid, and myricetin were tested for anti-H. pylori activity using agar dilution, laser scanning microscopy and cell proliferation. Following 24 hour treatment, results showed that muscadine grape skin extract had the highest anti-H. pylori effect, followed by muscadine grape synergy and seed extract. Additionally, two of the three compounds, resveratrol and ellagic acid, also inhibited H. pylori.
"In this study, grape extracts and their compounds were effective at inhibiting H. pylori in vitro, with highest efficacy by muscadine grape skin extract," say the researchers.
Source: ScienceDaily.com
Monday, March 2, 2009
The Healthy Effects of Pomegranate
THE POMEGRANATE:
A Health-Supporting
Ancient Gift of Nature
In ancient and medieval worlds, the pomegranate symbolized fertility, birth and death.
The power and symbolism of the pomegranate is seen within religious and spiritual cultures around the world and throughout time. In ancient myth, Persephone ate the seeds of a pomegranate as her only meal during her yearly decent into the underworld.
The pomegranate is a fruit that has survived history and its popularity has blossomed recently as more studies have been done which show exactly how powerful the pomegranate can be in enhancing longevity and vitality.
What is it about the pomegranate that is causing such a stir? The pomegranate contains one of the highest natural antioxidant contents found in any natural food. Antioxidants are the powerful chemicals found naturally in certain foods, which neutralize cancer-causing free radicals in the body.
Antioxidants are helpful in the protection and healing of cells in the body. They help protect us from disease and premature aging.
What is it specifically about the antioxidants found in the pomegranate that make it so special? The pomegranate boasts high levels of specific polyphenol antioxidents and tannins which make it such a powerful health tonic.
Tests which were conducted by the POM Wonderful company concluded that compared to red wine, pomegranate juice contains 17% more potent polyphenol antioxidants.
What other health benefits have been found from drinking pomegranate juice?
According to the POM Wonderful website, "A 2005 study published in the American Journal of Cardiology showed improved blood flow to the heart in patients drinking 8 oz. daily of POM Wonderful 100% pomegranate juice for 3 months." The POM Wonderful company has spent $25 million in medical research to back the effectiveness of their product.
These studies have also shown that men suffering from mild to moderate erectile dysfunction who drank 8 oz. of POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice daily for 4 weeks, were found to be 50% more likely to experience an improvement in the frequency of erections.
Pomegranate juice has been shown to show hopeful improvements in the prevention of prostate cancer. It has also been shown that drinking pomegranate juice daily may help manage diabetes and may even help to relieve symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis.
The health benefits of the pomegranate are clear. How can we try to incorporate the pomegranate into our diet?
Pomegranate seeds eaten raw are crunchy, sweet and delicious. Drinking pomegranate juice is easy when it can be mixed into delicious concoctions such as smoothies and Pomegranate Martinis.
Pomegranate seeds can be incorporated into other foods as a garnish or splash of flavor.
Try adding them to your fruit salad for an extra antioxidant boost.
Sprinkle pomegranate seeds as a garnish on desserts which are decorated with whipped topping. Anything from soup recipes to desserts can incorporate the use of pomegranate seeds or juice.
Finding a way to enjoy the pomegranate is easy, and finding a reason to enjoy it is even easier. Take pleasure in enjoying this gift from nature that has been symbolized and passed down throughout the ages.
Source: Helium.com
A Health-Supporting
Ancient Gift of Nature
In ancient and medieval worlds, the pomegranate symbolized fertility, birth and death.
The power and symbolism of the pomegranate is seen within religious and spiritual cultures around the world and throughout time. In ancient myth, Persephone ate the seeds of a pomegranate as her only meal during her yearly decent into the underworld.
The pomegranate is a fruit that has survived history and its popularity has blossomed recently as more studies have been done which show exactly how powerful the pomegranate can be in enhancing longevity and vitality.
What is it about the pomegranate that is causing such a stir? The pomegranate contains one of the highest natural antioxidant contents found in any natural food. Antioxidants are the powerful chemicals found naturally in certain foods, which neutralize cancer-causing free radicals in the body.
Antioxidants are helpful in the protection and healing of cells in the body. They help protect us from disease and premature aging.
What is it specifically about the antioxidants found in the pomegranate that make it so special? The pomegranate boasts high levels of specific polyphenol antioxidents and tannins which make it such a powerful health tonic.
Tests which were conducted by the POM Wonderful company concluded that compared to red wine, pomegranate juice contains 17% more potent polyphenol antioxidants.
What other health benefits have been found from drinking pomegranate juice?
According to the POM Wonderful website, "A 2005 study published in the American Journal of Cardiology showed improved blood flow to the heart in patients drinking 8 oz. daily of POM Wonderful 100% pomegranate juice for 3 months." The POM Wonderful company has spent $25 million in medical research to back the effectiveness of their product.
These studies have also shown that men suffering from mild to moderate erectile dysfunction who drank 8 oz. of POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice daily for 4 weeks, were found to be 50% more likely to experience an improvement in the frequency of erections.
Pomegranate juice has been shown to show hopeful improvements in the prevention of prostate cancer. It has also been shown that drinking pomegranate juice daily may help manage diabetes and may even help to relieve symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis.
The health benefits of the pomegranate are clear. How can we try to incorporate the pomegranate into our diet?
Pomegranate seeds eaten raw are crunchy, sweet and delicious. Drinking pomegranate juice is easy when it can be mixed into delicious concoctions such as smoothies and Pomegranate Martinis.
Pomegranate seeds can be incorporated into other foods as a garnish or splash of flavor.
Try adding them to your fruit salad for an extra antioxidant boost.
Sprinkle pomegranate seeds as a garnish on desserts which are decorated with whipped topping. Anything from soup recipes to desserts can incorporate the use of pomegranate seeds or juice.
Finding a way to enjoy the pomegranate is easy, and finding a reason to enjoy it is even easier. Take pleasure in enjoying this gift from nature that has been symbolized and passed down throughout the ages.
Source: Helium.com
Here's a Toast to Red Wine Pill
How do the French differ from North Americans?
They eat fat-rich, calorie-packed baked goodies that are not heart healthy.
Yet they're less likely to die from cardiovascular disease than North Americans. It's called "The French Paradox", believed to be linked to resveratrol, a substance found in red wine. Now, a new study shows that a red wine pill provides more health benefits than drinking hundreds of glasses of the "sweet nectar of the gods."
Dr. David Sinclair at The Harvard Medical School, has developed a concentrated form of resveratrol. He's tested the effects on mice and believes it will help to offset the effect of high fat diets, decrease the chance of diabetes and slow down aging in humans.
Middle-aged mice were fed a diet in which 60 percent of calories came from fat. They developed signs of diabetes and died much sooner than mice fed on a regular diet.
Another group of middle aged mice were fed the same diet along with resveratrol. This prevented the onset of diabetes and even though obese, they lived as long as those fed a regular diet. It showed mice could be gluttons at mealtime without paying the price later on.
Dr Johan Auwerx at the Institute of Molecular Biology in Illkirch, France, showed that an ordinary mouse could run one kilometre on a treadmill.
But mice given resveratrol ran twice as far and had a slower heart rate, similar to trained athletes. As Dr. Auwerx remarked, "Resveratrol makes you look like a trained athlete without the training."
Auwerx believes resveratrol generates energy in the body's cells thereby burning more fat and avoiding weight gain. Examination of muscle fibers of the mice revealed they had been remodeled by resveratrol into a type prevalent in trained human athletes.
There, scientists believe that enzymes, such as sirtuin, keep the body healthful in youth, but become less powerful with age. They claim that resveratrol restores the activity of these enzymes.
At this point I'm ready to pour myself a glass or two of Cabernet Sauvignon. But according to Dr. Sinclair I would have to drink 1,500 bottles of red wine daily to get the same amount of resveratrol that was given to mice. The alternative is the Red Wine Pill.
Sinclair's research is driven by his own desire to slow down aging. As he told me, "This is the Holy Grail of Aging Research." And he says he, his wife, parents and half of his research staff take the red wine pill.
So what is the choice?
If you're a moderate drinker you can continue to enjoy a frequent glass of Cabernet Sauvignon. Many studies show you will live longer. But Dr. Sinclair stresses his research is not about red wine which provides miniscule amounts of resveratrol. Rather, it's about getting a concentrated dose of resveratrol in the Red Wine Pill.
For years, doctors have feared promoting the health benefits of wine because of social problems associated with excessive use of alcohol. Now the Red Wine Pill allows teetotalers the health benefits of wine without the alcohol or calories.
Since 50 per cent of patients with diabetes die from heart attack.
The Red Wine Pill will hopefully help decrease this complication in years ahead. And if Dr. Auwex's and Dr. Sinclair's research is right, the Red Wine Pill should help to decrease the chance of cancer, Alzheimer's Disease, and give energy to those who are tired all the time.
Source: SaultStar.com
They eat fat-rich, calorie-packed baked goodies that are not heart healthy.
Yet they're less likely to die from cardiovascular disease than North Americans. It's called "The French Paradox", believed to be linked to resveratrol, a substance found in red wine. Now, a new study shows that a red wine pill provides more health benefits than drinking hundreds of glasses of the "sweet nectar of the gods."
Dr. David Sinclair at The Harvard Medical School, has developed a concentrated form of resveratrol. He's tested the effects on mice and believes it will help to offset the effect of high fat diets, decrease the chance of diabetes and slow down aging in humans.
Middle-aged mice were fed a diet in which 60 percent of calories came from fat. They developed signs of diabetes and died much sooner than mice fed on a regular diet.
Another group of middle aged mice were fed the same diet along with resveratrol. This prevented the onset of diabetes and even though obese, they lived as long as those fed a regular diet. It showed mice could be gluttons at mealtime without paying the price later on.
Dr Johan Auwerx at the Institute of Molecular Biology in Illkirch, France, showed that an ordinary mouse could run one kilometre on a treadmill.
But mice given resveratrol ran twice as far and had a slower heart rate, similar to trained athletes. As Dr. Auwerx remarked, "Resveratrol makes you look like a trained athlete without the training."
Auwerx believes resveratrol generates energy in the body's cells thereby burning more fat and avoiding weight gain. Examination of muscle fibers of the mice revealed they had been remodeled by resveratrol into a type prevalent in trained human athletes.
There, scientists believe that enzymes, such as sirtuin, keep the body healthful in youth, but become less powerful with age. They claim that resveratrol restores the activity of these enzymes.
At this point I'm ready to pour myself a glass or two of Cabernet Sauvignon. But according to Dr. Sinclair I would have to drink 1,500 bottles of red wine daily to get the same amount of resveratrol that was given to mice. The alternative is the Red Wine Pill.
Sinclair's research is driven by his own desire to slow down aging. As he told me, "This is the Holy Grail of Aging Research." And he says he, his wife, parents and half of his research staff take the red wine pill.
So what is the choice?
If you're a moderate drinker you can continue to enjoy a frequent glass of Cabernet Sauvignon. Many studies show you will live longer. But Dr. Sinclair stresses his research is not about red wine which provides miniscule amounts of resveratrol. Rather, it's about getting a concentrated dose of resveratrol in the Red Wine Pill.
For years, doctors have feared promoting the health benefits of wine because of social problems associated with excessive use of alcohol. Now the Red Wine Pill allows teetotalers the health benefits of wine without the alcohol or calories.
Since 50 per cent of patients with diabetes die from heart attack.
The Red Wine Pill will hopefully help decrease this complication in years ahead. And if Dr. Auwex's and Dr. Sinclair's research is right, the Red Wine Pill should help to decrease the chance of cancer, Alzheimer's Disease, and give energy to those who are tired all the time.
Source: SaultStar.com
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