Pomegranate:Ancient Fruit of Life Yields Modern Promise.
Article Content:
- .Basic Botanical Info of Pomegranate.
- .Pomegranate Origin and History.
- .Pomegranate Constituents and Phytochemicals.
- .Pomegranate Food Value and Uses.
- .Other Uses of Pomegranate.
- .Pomegranate Medicinal Action and Uses.
- .Suggestions and Administration of Pomegranate.
- .Safety and Toxicity Study.
- .Pomegranate and Its Modern Research Update.
Other Uses of Pomegranate.
All parts of the tree have been utilized as sources of tannin for curing leather. The trunk bark contains 10 to 25% tannin and was formerly important in the production of Morocco leather. The root bark has a 28% tannin content, the leaves, 11%, and the fruit rind as much as 26%. The latter is a by-product of the "anardana" industry. Both the rind and the flowers yield dyes for textiles. Ink can be made by steeping the leaves in vinegar. In China, an insecticide is derived from the bark. The pale-yellow wood is very hard and, while available only in small dimensions, is used for walking-sticks and in woodcrafts.
Medicinal Uses: The juice of wild pomegranates yields citric acid and sodium citrate for pharmaceutical purposes. Pomegranate juice enters into preparations for treating dyspepsia and is considered beneficial in leprosy.
The bark of the stem and root contains several alkaloids including isopelletierine which is active against tapeworms. Either a decoction of the bark, which is very bitter, or the safer, insoluble Pelletierine Tannate may be employed. Overdoses are emetic and purgative, produce dilation of pupila, dimness of sight, muscular weakness and paralysis.
Because of their tannin content, extracts of the bark, leaves, immature fruit and fruit rind have been given as astringents to halt diarrhea, dysentery and hemorrhages. Dried, pulverized flower buds are employed as a remedy for bronchitis. In Mexico, a decoction of the flowers is gargled to relieve oral and throat inflammation. Leaves, seeds, roots and bark have displayed hypotensive, antispasmodic and anthelmintic activity in bioassay.
Pomegranate, also known as Granada, Grenade, Grenadier, and Granatum, is a native of Persia, but is now cultivated around the world. The Pomegranate can grow to thirty feet in height and can live for centuries. The fruit has been a staple in the Middle East since Biblical times and is mentioned often in the Old Testament. The fruit is a nutritious source of protein, iron, calcium, phosphorus, and potassium. Pomegranate is also a source of citric acid and tannic acid. It is high in antioxidants and in some studies has lowered LDL cholesterol levels. Pomegranate is used medicinally in cases of dyspepsia, diarrhea, dysentery, and leprosy. It has been used for centuries as an effective vermifuge, especially in cases of tapeworm infestation and other parasites present in the intestines. Pomegranate has also been used as a gargle for sore throat. Pomegranate has also been found to contain some antimicrobial compounds. It has also been studied as a potential chemoprotective substance in cases of breast cancer.
Reining in Free Radicals:
Free radicals:the oxygen-reactive byproducts of normal cellular metabolism that attack healthy cells,have been implicated in the acceleration of the body's natural aging processes. Free radicals can also be formed by external environmental factors such as cigarette smoke and other forms of air pollution. Damage by unchecked free-radical compounds can manifest as serious illnesses; for example, cancer is now known to be associated with free-radical damage to healthy cellular DNA.
More than a decade ago, pomegranate peel extracts were shown to possess significant antioxidant activity in various in-vitro models. An extract of pomegranate peel was fed to rats, which were then exposed to carbon tetrachloride, a toxic chemical. The pretreatment with pomegranate extract protected levels of the antioxidant enzymes catalase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase in the rats. The pomegranate extract also helped to protect the rats livers from the toxic effects of carbon tetrachloride.
Another more recent study focused on the antioxidant effectiveness of plant pigments called bioflavonoids, commonly found in berries, cherries, grapes, and citrus. Pomegranate juice was found to exhibit three times more antioxidant activity than red wine or green tea. The active constituent that appears to be responsible is ellagic acid, a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound in pomegranates.
Unclogging Arteries:
Numerous studies of atherosclerosis suggest that the disease is at least partly caused by free-radical reactions involving diet-derived lipids that induce harmful changes in the arterial walls.
A recent study by the Lipid Research Laboratory in Haifa, Israel, explored dietary supplementation with polyphenolic antioxidants in animals. The researchers noted that pomegranate juice was associated with the inhibition of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation and with slowing the development of atherosclerosis.
The Israeli researchers further ascertained the effects of pomegranate juice consumption by atherosclerotic patients with carotid artery stenosis (a narrowing of the carotid artery walls). Ten patients supplemented with the juice for one year. In the pomegranate-supplemented group, carotid intima-media thickness, an indicator of atherosclerosis progression, was reduced by up to 30%. By contrast, in a control group that did not consume pomegranate juice, carotid intima-media thickness increased by 9% over 12 months. Moreover, in the pomegranate-supplemented patients, serum LDL levels were also significantly reduced while serum total antioxidant status increased by 130% after one year.
Reducing Hypertension:
Hypertension (high blood pressure) affects an estimated 50 million Americans and augments the risk for stroke, heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, and kidney disease. Pomegranates may be of benefit in modulating this often silent yet potentially lethal risk factor for heart disease.
In the Israeli study, systolic blood pressure was reduced by 21% after one year of pomegranate juice consumption. This effect is believed to be related to the particularly potent antioxidant properties of pomegranate polyphenols.
A similar study at the same research facility examined consumption of pomegranate juice to ascertain its effectiveness in lowering blood pressure. Researchers studied the effect on hypertensive patients of daily consumption of 50 ml of pomegranate juice. After two weeks, a 5% reduction in systolic blood pressure was noted, along with a 36% decrease in serum angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) activity.10 Reduc-tion in serum ACE activity has previously been shown to attenuate atherosclerosis, independent of its effects on blood pressure. The study authors concluded, Pomegranate juice can offer wide protection against cardiovascular diseases, which could be related to its inhibitory effect on oxidative stress and on serum ACE activity.
Improving Lipid Profiles:
A recent Iranian study examined the effects of concentrated pomegranate juice on lipid profiles of type II diabetes patients with elevated blood lipids, or hyperlipidemia. The patients supplemented with pomegranate juice for eight weeks. The study participants saw significant reductions in their total cholesterol, LDL, LDL:HDL (high-density lipoprotein) ratio, and total cholesterol:HDL ratio. Serum HDL and triglycerides did not change significantly. The study authors concluded that consumption of concentrated pomegranate extract may modify heart-disease risk factors in patients with high cholesterol. Further research is needed to determine whether pomegranate helps lower blood lipid levels in non-diabetic individuals.
Anti-Tumor-Promoting Effects:
In recent years, chemoprevention has received as much attention as chemotherapy in the fight against cancer. The search for new ways to stop cancer before its onset has led investigators to examine a wide variety of natural agents. A recent study at the University of Wisconsin argues that agents capable of intervening at more than one critical pathway in the process of carcinogenesis "will have greater advantage over other single-target agents."
The Wisconsin researchers found that pomegranate fruit extract possesses strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The extract was evaluated for anti-tumor-promoting effects, specifically involving topical application against skin tumors. The researchers concluded that animals pretreated with pomegranate fruit extract showed 70% less tumor incidence compared to animals that did not receive it. The study authors believe that their results provide "clear evidence that [pomegranate fruit extract] possesses anti-skin-tumor-promoting effects," and may possess chemopreventive activity "in a wide range of tumor models."
These findings support the promising results of a pair of 2003 studies in South Dakota that explored pomegranate seed oil as a safe and effective agent against skin cancer and colon cancer tumors, respectively. In a 2002 study, pomegranate seed oil inhibited the proliferation of human breast cancer cells up to 90%, while fermented pomegranate juice polyphenols inhibited 47% of cancerous lesion formation in mammary gland cells from mice. Ellagic acid, a polyphenol derived from pomegranate, has been identified to have potent antioxidant, anti-cancer, and anti-atherosclerotic properties.
Reference:
1.Pomegranate:Ancient Fruit of Life Yields Modern Promise.Pomegranate Extract.
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