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 Scientists
in Israel have shown that drinking a daily
glass of the fruit's juice can reduce the
risk of cardiovascular disease.
"Pomegranate juice contains the highest
antioxidant capacity compared to other
juices, green tea," said Professor Michael
Aviram, who led the team.
This is good news, for antioxidants are the
naturally occurring substances in plants
that protect the body from free radicals -
'bad' chemicals in the blood.
Free radicals alter cholesterol in a process
known as oxidation, which is thought to
speed up the hardening of the arteries.
In studies at the Rambam Medical Center in
Haifa, the juice of the fruit was found to
slow down cholesterol oxidation by almost
half, and reduce the retention of LDL.
That is the 'bad' cholesterol which forms
atherosclerotic lesions, the fatty deposits
which narrow the arteries and lead to heart
disease.
Scientists in
Israel have shown that drinking a daily
glass of the fruit's juice can reduce the
risk of cardiovascular disease.
"Antioxidants can protect us against the
oxidative stress in our industrialised
world, such as pollution, chemicals, viruses
and bacteria, and consequently
cardiovascular diseases and cancer," said
Professor Aviram.
The theme is being taken up by a team at
London's Hammersmith Hospital, who are
launching a study to see if they can
replicate the Haifa findings.
Their work will focus on people whose
arteries are currently healthy.
Researcher Dr Richard Bogle said the fruit
contained polyphenolics, tannins and
anthocyanins - all compounds that could have
a beneficial effect.
Dr Bogle said: "This study will test the
idea that drinking a glass of pomegranate
juice every day improves the function of
blood vessels, reduces hardening of the
arteries and improves heart health."
Preliminary studies suggest that pomegranate
juice may contain almost three times the
total antioxidant ability compared to the
same quantity of green tea.
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