The Berry Doctor's Journal | Science - Nutrition - Health
| Emerging Cranberry Research |
From here at the bog..... Keeping with our theme of cranberries during US Thanksgiving Week! HealthCastle put out this message today about their Top 5 Healthy Holiday Foods, including cranberries! Cranberry research is such a “fruitful” area of science that there have been (by my quick count) 50 medical science papers logged in 2006 just for this berry! Reported on PubMed, the US National Library of Medicine online database of medical literature, http://pubmed.gov – search “cranberry”. Three interesting 2006 studies are covered briefly here. Report #1 Authors: Sun J, Hai Liu R. Department of Food Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-7201, USA. Title: Cranberry phytochemical extracts induce cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Published in Cancer Lett. 2006 Sep 8;241(1):124-34. Summary Extracts from cranberries (phenolics, antioxidants) were shown in this study to inhibit growth and reduce proliferation of human breast cancer cells in vitro. Studies in humans have consistently indicated an inverse association between cancer risk and amount of fruits and vegetables consumed in the diet. These health benefits are linked to an additive, perhaps synergistic, combination of phytochemicals (mainly pigments) in fruits and vegetables. In the lab, cranberries possess anti-carcinogenic activities inhibiting growth of several experimental cancer cell lines. Remember these terms: “Phytochemical” is a “plant-derived” chemical with properties not yet confirmed by adequate research to prove health or nutrient qualities (but, suspected of doing so, are being investigated). The pigments in colorful berries are phytochemicals mainly from the large group (several thousands) called “phenolics” (polyphenols or phenols) which apply to each of the research reports given here today. In a previous report, I gave you a few names of the cranberry phenolics: .... tannins, proanthocyanidins, anthocyanins, benzoic acid, quercetin .... These are some of the tongue-twisters creeping into public news about berries and other pigmented plant foods. Slowly over time, we'll get to know them better. “Phytonutrient”, by contrast to "phytochemical", is a plant chemical with known health properties, such as vitamin C.
Report #2 Authors: Bodet C, Chandad F, Grenier D. Groupe de Recherche en Ecologie Buccale, Faculte de Medecine Dentaire, Universite Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada G1K 7P4. Title: Anti-inflammatory activity of a high-molecular-weight cranberry fraction on macrophages stimulated by lipopolysaccharides from periodontopathogens. Published in J Dent Res. 2006 Mar;85(3):235-9. Summary Although the title of this paper is loaded with scientific jargon (apologies...), the finding is actually quite simple: cranberry juice concentrate contains a compound (probably one or many phenolics) that inhibits inflammatory responses to bacteria and other pathogens in the gums. Cranberry constituents may offer new ideas for developing a therapy to prevent and treat periodontitis. Report #3 Authors: Ruel G, Pomerleau S, Couture P, Lemieux S, Lamarche B, Couillard C. Institute of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods, Laval University, Quebec G1K 7P4, Canada. Title: Favourable impact of low-calorie cranberry juice consumption on plasma HDL-cholesterol concentrations in men. Published in: Brit J Nutr. 2006 Aug;96(2):357-64 Having a low concentration of HDL-cholesterol (“high-density” lipids, the “good” cholesterol) is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (therefore, having a high level of HDL is good!). Research to date indicates that increasing dietary intake of pigments (antioxidants) from color-rich plants such as berries may protect the heart and vascular system. This research showed that obese men who drank increasing daily doses of cranberry juice cocktail (up to 500 ml/day over a month) had an increase in concentration of plasma HDL-cholesterol. Phenolic pigment compounds from cranberries, therefore, may be responsible, supporting the notion that consuming color-rich foods can lower risk for cardiovascular diseases. Overall summary of these 3 reports: Cranberries contain health-giving pigments that early research is showing as beneficial in models of human cancer, periodontal inflammation and cardiovascular disease. There you go – a few more reasons to brighten your Thanksgiving celebrations with cranberry juice or sauce! Enjoy often knowing you are giving yourself cranberry antioxidants that may provide health benefits like those identified in today's report from The Berry Doctor's Journal! Dr. Paul If you think this information might be of interest to a contact, please suggest a visit to and sign in!
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