A study found that citrus juices enable more of green tea’s unique antioxidants to remain after simulated digestion, making the pairing even healthier than previously thought.

The study compared the effect of various beverage additives on catechins, naturally occurring antioxidants found in tea. Results suggest that complementing green tea with either citrus juices or vitamin C likely increases the amount of catechins available for the body to absorb.

“Although these results are preliminary, I think it’s encouraging that a big part of the puzzle comes down to simple chemistry,” said Mario Ferruzzi, assistant professor of food science at Purdue University and the study’s lead author.

Catechins (pronounced KA’-teh-kins), display health-promoting qualities and may be responsible for some of green tea’s reported health benefits, like reduced risk of cancer, heart attack and stroke. The problem, Ferruzzi said, is that catechins are relatively unstable in non-acidic environments, such as the intestines, and less than 20 percent of the total remains after digestion.

“Off the bat you are eliminating a large majority of the catechins from plain green tea,” Ferruzzi said. “We have to address this fact if we want to improve bodily absorption.”

Ferruzzi tested juices, creamers and other additives that are either commonly added to fresh-brewed tea or used to make ready-to-drink tea products by putting them through a model simulating gastric and small-intestinal digestion. Citrus juice increased recovered catechin levels by more than five times, the study found. Ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, used to increase shelf life in ready-to-drink products, increased recovered levels of the two most abundant catechins by sixfold and 13-fold, respectively.

The study, published this month in Molecular Nutrition and Food Research, also found that soy, dairy and rice milk appeared to have moderate stabilizing effects. But Ferruzzi said the result is misleading; a chemical interaction between milk proteins and tea catechins apparently helps shelter the complex from degradation, a force likely overcome by enzymes within a healthy human digestive system.

Lemons and tea go even better together than their popularity might suggest. Lemon juice caused 80 percent of tea’s catechins to remain, the study found. Following lemon, in terms of stabilizing power, were orange, lime and grapefruit juices. Ferruzzi said both vitamin C and citrus juices must interact with catechins to prevent their degradation in the intestines, although data made it clear that citrus juices have stabilizing effects beyond what would be predicted solely based on their vitamin C content.

“If you want more out of your green tea, add some citrus juice to your cup after brewing or pick a ready-to-drink product formulated with ascorbic acid,” Ferruzzi said.

Ready-to-drink green tea products should optimally contain 100-200 mg of catechins, but oftentimes do not have sufficient levels of tea extract since some people do not like green tea’s flavor, Ferruzzi said.

Although this study only examined green tea, Ferruzzi said he suspects that some of the results also could apply to black tea, which is produced by fermenting green tea. Many prefer black tea’s flavor, although it contains lower total levels of catechins.

Studies have shown catechins from the green tea plant, Camellia sinensis, are able to detoxify toxic chemicals, inhibit cancer cell activity and stimulate production of immune-strengthening enzymes. Finding methods to improve uptake of these catechins may, therefore, be important in improving health, part of the study’s goal, Ferruzzi said.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Ferruzzi currently is conducting an in vivo study, or study on a live organism, to quantify the ability of juices and vitamin C to increase levels of catechins in the intestines and bloodstream of animals and, by extension, in humans. He collaborates with the NIH-funded Purdue Botanicals Research Center on this project.

“This next study is designed to get us past the limitations imposed by our digestive model, which is really just a simple screening process that relies on preset physiology parameters,” he said. “Human digestion is a lot more complicated.”

To see if juices and vitamin C actually increase catechin absorption, researchers will have to find out if increased levels of intestinal catechins translate to higher levels of absorbed catechins in live animals and humans. They also will need to better document effects upon catechin metabolism in order to prove, for instance, that increased levels of absorbed catechins are not leveled off by metabolic factors, Ferruzzi said.

“This study tells us a lot of interesting things, but it raises many questions that have yet to be answered,” he said.

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Writer: Douglas M. Main, (765) 496-2050, dmain @ purdue.edu

Source: Mario Ferruzzi, (765) 494-0625, mferruzz @ purdue.edu

Citrus juice, vitamin C give staying power to green tea antioxidants is a post from: Shakes and Juices

UTIs are one of the most common reasons why people seek outpatient medical treatment, and lead to over one million hospital admissions a year in the USA alone. Cranberries, and particularly cranberry juice, have been used for decades as a means of preventing or treating UTIs. The mechanism of action is unsure. One theory is that molecules in the juice may make it harder for bacteria such as E. coli to stick to surfaces, and therefore make it difficult for an infection to build up.

A team of Cochrane Researchers set out to establish whether there was good evidence that cranberries were effective. They identified 10 studies that included a total of 1,049 participants. The trials compared various combinations of cranberry products, placebos and water.

They found some evidence that cranberry juice and capsules could prevent recurrent infections in women, although there was no evidence of benefit in elderly men or elderly women. In addition, cranberry juice had no benefit for people using catheters.

“It’s worth noting that many people in the trials stopped drinking the juice, suggesting that it may not suit everyone’s taste, or it may be too burdensome and costly to drink the two recommended glasses a day,” says lead researcher Ruth Jepson who works at the Department of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Stirling, UK.

“We now need to discover how much a person needs to drink, and how long it needs to be used before the juice starts to have an effect,” says Jepson.

Cranberry juice may help women with recurrent urinary tract infections is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Using human fecal matter as the test substance, German researchers Dr. Dieter Schrenk, M.D. and his colleagues hypothesized that the compound butyrate could be increased in the presence of apple pectin and apple juice extracts.

Butyrate has been suggested to be a chemopreventative metabolite that might prevent the occurrence of colorectal cancer, which is very common in Western industrialized countries. It is a short chain fatty acid which is seen as a major factor contributing to healthy colon mucosa. The research notes, “Butyrate not only serves as a major nutrient for the colon epithelia but is also thought to play an important role in the protective effect of natural fiber against colorectal cancer.”

So how do apple pectin and apple juice extracts play a role in increasing amounts of butyrate? The laboratory tests performed by Schrenk found that by the increased production of butyrate via the addition of apple components, histone deacetlyases (HDAC) were inhibited. With slowed production of HDAC, there would be significantly less growth of precancerous and tumor cells.

The research, published in the April 2008 issue of Nutrition, notes, “apples are a major source of natural fiber and of low molecular weight plan polyphenols in the Western diet.” The researchers conclude, “Pectin-rich apple products can thus be expected to exert anticarginogenic effects in the colon.”

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Histone-deacetylase inhibition and butyrate formation: Fecal slurry incubations with apple pectin and apple juice extracts. M Waldecker, T Kautenburger, H Daumann, S Veeriah, F Will, H Dietrich, BL Pool-Zobel, D Schrenk. Nutrition. 24 (2008). 366-374.

Apple juice extracts shown to have anticarcinogenic effects on colon is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Researcher Kelly Decorde from the Universite Montpelier in France was part of the European research team that found apples have similar cardiovascular protective properties to grapes. The researchers also observed that processing the fruit into juice has the potential to increase the bioavailability of the naturally-occurring compounds and antioxidants found in the whole fruit.

Using a variety of established analytical techniques, aortic plaque was evaluated to determine the effectiveness in decreasing plaque that is associated with atherosclerosis.

According to the research, “This study demonstrates that processing apples and purple grapes into juice modifies the protective effect of their phenolics against diet induced oxidative stress and early atherosclerosis in hypercholesterolemic hamsters.”

Researchers also noted, “These results show for the first time that long-term consumption of antioxidants supplied by apples and purple grapes, especially phenolic compounds, prevents the development of atherosclerosis in hamsters, and that the processing can have a major impact on the potential health effects of a product.”

In summary, the researchers stated that their work would help provide encouragement that fruit and fruit juices may have significant clinical and public health relevance.

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Source: Decorde, K., Teisserdre, C., Cristol, J., Rouanet, J. Phenolics from purple grape, apple, purple grape juice and apple juice prevent early atherosclerosis induced by an atherogenic diet in hamsters. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research. 2008, 52, 400-407.

Apple juice shown to prevent early atherosclerosis is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Worcester, Mass. – For generations, people have consumed cranberry juice, convinced of its power to ward off urinary tract infections, though the exact mechanism of its action has not been well understood. A new study by researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) reveals that the juice changes the thermodynamic properties of bacteria in the urinary tract, creating an energy barrier that prevents the microorganisms from getting close enough to latch onto cells and initiate an infection.

The study, published in the journal Colloids and Surfaces: B, was conducted by Terri Camesano, associate professor of chemical engineering at WPI, and a team of graduate students, including PhD candidate Yatao Liu. They exposed two varieties of E. coli bacteria, one with hair-like projections known as fimbriae and one without, to different concentrations of cranberry juice. Fimbriae are present on a number of virulent bacteria, including those that cause urinary tract infections, and are believed to be used by bacteria to form strong bonds with cells.

For the fimbriaed bacteria, they found that even at low concentrations, cranberry juice altered two properties that serve as indicators of the ability of bacteria to attach to cells. The first factor is called Gibbs free energy of attachment, which is a measure of the amount of energy that must be expended before a bacterium can attach to a cell. Without cranberry juice, this value was a negative number, indicating that energy would be released and attachment was highly likely. With cranberry juice the number was positive and it grew steadily as the concentration of juice increased, making attachment to urinary tract cells increasingly unlikely.

Surface free energy also rose, suggesting that the presence of cranberry juice creates an energy barrier that repels the bacteria. The researchers also placed the bacteria and urinary tract cells together in solution. Without cranberry juice, the fimbriaed bacteria attached readily to the cells. As increasing concentrations of cranberry juice were added to the solution, fewer and fewer attachments were observed.

Cranberry juice had no discernible effect on E. coli bacteria without fimbriae, suggesting that compounds in the juice may act directly on the molecular structure of the fimbriae themselves. This reinforces previous work by the WPI team that showed that exposure to cranberry juice alters the shape of the fimbriae, causing them to become compressed. Using an atomic force microscope as a minute strain gauge, the team also showed that the adhesive force exerted by bacteria on urinary tract cells declined in direct proportion to the concentration of cranberry juice in the solution.

“Our results show that, at least for urinary tract infections, cranberry juice targets the right bacteria—those that cause disease—but has no effect on non-pathogenic organisms, suggesting that cranberry juice will not disrupt bacteria that are part of the normal flora in the gut,” Camesano says. “We have also shown that this effect occurs at concentrations of cranberry juice that are comparable to levels we would expect to find in the urinary tract.”

Camesano notes that unpublished work has shown that while cranberry juice has potent effects on disease-causing bacteria, those effects are transitory. “When we takes E. coli. bacteria that have been treated with cranberry juice and place them in normal growth media, they regain the ability to adhere to urinary tract cells,” she says. “This suggests that to realize the antibacterial benefits of cranberry, one must consume cranberry juice regularly—perhaps daily.”

For those watching calories, Camesano says other recent work in her lab has shown that the effects of regular cranberry juice cocktail and diet (sugar-free) cranberry juice are identical. “That’s good news for people who do not like to consume a lot of sugary juice,” she says.

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About Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Founded in 1865 in Worcester, Mass., WPI was one of the nation’s first engineering and technology universities. WPI’s 18 academic departments offer more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science, engineering, technology, management, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts, leading to the BA, BS, MS, ME, MBA and PhD. WPI’s world-class faculty work with students in a number of cutting-edge research areas, leading to breakthroughs and innovations in such fields as biotechnology, fuel cells, and information security, materials processing, and nanotechnology. Students also have the opportunity to make a difference to communities and organizations around the world through the university’s innovative Global Perspective Program. There are more than 20 WPI project centers throughout North America and Central America, Africa, Australia, Asia, and Europe.

Cranberry juice creates energy barrier that keeps bacteria away from cells is a post from: Shakes and Juices

In the first research involving people, the acai (ah-sigh-EE) berry has proven its ability to be absorbed in the human body when consumed both as juice and pulp. That finding, by a team of Texas AgriLife Research scientists, was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Showing the berry’s absorption in humans is important because it is known to contain numerous antioxidants. The berry is heavily marketed in the U.S. as a health food.

The study involved 12 healthy volunteers who consumed a single serving of acai juice or pulp. Researchers believe the results point to the need for continued research on the berry which is commonly used in juices, beverages, smoothies, frozen treats and dietary supplements.

“Acai is naturally low in sugar, and the flavor is described as a mixture of red wine and chocolate,” said lead investigator Dr. Susanne Talcott, “so what more would you want from a fruit?”

Talcott, who also is assistant professor with the Texas A&M University’s nutrition and food science department, said that previous studies have shown the ability of the human body to absorb target antioxidants (from other produce), but “no one had really tested to see if acai antioxidants are absorbed in humans.”

Sales of acai products have increased dramatically in the U.S. where it has been touted as a metabolism booster, weight reducer and athletic enhancer. Advertisements use buzzwords such as health, wellness, energy, taste and organic.

About the only buzzword not used with acai is “local.” The berries are harvested in the Brazilian rainforest from acai palms that may reach heights in excess of 60 feet – one of the same palms used to harvest edible hearts of palm.

The fruit is about the size of a large blueberry yet only the outermost layers of the fruit, the pulp surrounding a large internal seed, are edible, Talcott noted.

Talcott and her co-researcher and husband Dr. Steve Talcott began studying the palm- berry in 2001. His first scientific report on acai, apparently the first such study in English, was published in 2004.

Initially, their studies on the berry examined antioxidant and nutritional components in pulp and juice. Later studies showed the berry’s activity against cancer cells, Talcott noted.

With that background, the researchers then decided to find out whether those elements were actually being absorbed into the human body or being eliminated unused as waste.

“Like vitamin C, the body can only absorb so much at a time,” Steve Talcott explained.

He said the researchers now “need to determine potential disease-fighting health benefits, so we can make intelligent recommendations on how much acai should be consumed.

For the clinical trial, people were given acai pulp and acai juice containing half the concentration of anthocyanins as the pulp and each compared to the control foods: applesauce and a non-antioxidant beverage.

Blood and urine samples at 12 and 24 hours after consumption showed significant increases in antioxidant activity in the blood after both the acai pulp and applesauce consumption, she said. Both acai pulp and acai juice showed significant absorption of antioxidant anthocyanins into the blood and antioxidant effects. The research couple said future studies hopefully will help determine whether the consumption of acai will result in any disease-preventing health benefit and the proper serving sizes for a beneficial dose for people.

“Our concern has been that it is sold as a super food – and it definitely has some good attributes – but it is not a solution to all diseases,” she said. “There are a great number of foods on the market, and this could just be part of a well-balanced diet.”

Brazilian acai berry antioxidants absorbed by human body when consumed both as juice and pulp is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Thomas B. Shea, PhD, of the Center for Cellular Neurobiology; Neurodegeneration Research University of Massachusetts, Lowell and his research team have carried out a number of laboratory studies demonstrating that drinking apple juice helped mice perform better than normal in maze trials, and prevented the decline in performance that was otherwise observed as these mice aged.

In the most recent study Shea and his team demonstrated that mice receiving the human equivalent of 2 glasses of apple juice per day for 1 month produced less of a small protein fragment, called “beta-amyloid” that is responsible for forming the “senile plaques” that are commonly found in brains of individuals suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

Dr. Shea commented that “These findings provide further evidence linking nutritional and genetic risk factors for age-related neurodegeneration and suggest that regular consumption of apple juice can not only help to keep one’s mind functioning at its best, but may also be able to delay key aspects of Alzheimer’s disease and augment therapeutic approaches.”

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The article is “Dietary Supplementation with Apple Juice Decreases Endogenous Amyloid-β Levels in Murine Brain” by Amy Chan and Thomas B. Shea. It is published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 16:1 (January 2009).

Apple juice can delay onset of Alzheimer’s disease is a post from: Shakes and Juices

For two decades, pharmacists have pasted DO-NOT-TAKE-WITH-GRAPEFRUIT-JUICE stickers on various pill bottles because it can interfere with the enzymes that break down and eliminate certain drugs. This interference makes the drugs more potent. In data presented at the AACR 100th Annual Meeting 2009, the Chicago researchers examine ways to exploit this fruit’s medication-altering properties.

“Grapefruit juice can increase blood levels of certain drugs three to five times,” said study director Ezra Cohen, MD, a cancer specialist at the University of Chicago Medical Center. “This has always been considered a hazard. We wanted to see if, and how much, it could amplify the availability, and perhaps the efficacy of rapamycin, a drug with promise for cancer treatment.”

This trial was designed to test “whether we could use this to boost rapamycin’s bioavailability to the patient’s advantage, to determine how much the juice altered drug levels, and to assess its impact on anti-cancer activity and side effects,” he said.

The study followed 28 patients with advanced solid tumors, for which there is no effective treatment. The dose of the drug increased with each group of five patients, from 15 milligrams up to 35. Patients took the drug by mouth, as a liquid, once a week.

Beginning in week two, they washed it down with a glass of grapefruit juice (Citius paradisi), taken immediately after the rapamycin and then once a day for the rest of the week.

Twenty-five participants remained in the study long enough to be evaluated. Seven of those 25 (28%) had stable disease, with little or no tumor growth. One patient (4%) had a partial response, with the tumor shrinking by about 30 percent. That patient is still doing well more than a year after beginning the trial.

“My first cancer doctor gave me five years to live,” said that patient, Albina Duggan of Bourbonnais, IL. “That time runs out next July.”

Duggan, mother of four, has a rare cancer, an epitheliod hemangioendothelioma that originated in the liver and subsequently spread to two vertebrae in the neck and to the lymph nodes. She had surgery and radiation therapy and was evaluated for a liver transplant, but evidence of cancer beyond the liver made her ineligible for a transplant. She “shopped around” for other therapies and was able to keep the disease in check for a year with sorafenib, a drug approved for kidney and liver cancers.

After a year of stable disease, however, her tumor began growing again and she had to look for an alternative therapy. Her doctors at the University of Chicago offered three clinical trials. The most appealing to her was the rapamycin plus grapefruit juice study. She took her first dose March 11, 2008, and is still on the drug-juice combination.

“My tumor is smaller and it’s no longer growing. I feel fine. I can do whatever I like and I have no real side effects,” she said. “What’s not to like?”

Trial subjects do not like the taste of rapamycin. “It’s not pleasant,” Duggan admitted. She has also tired of grapefruit juice.

Many patients in the study did report side effects. More than half experienced elevated blood sugar levels, diarrhea, low white blood cell counts or fatigue.

Duggan, more fortunate than most, has had milder side effects, including fragile toe and finger nails and curly hair. “I now have very curly hair,” she said, “seriously curly. I have to adjust to it.”

Rapamycin, also known as sirolimus, was originally developed to suppress the immune system, preventing rejection in patients receiving a transplanted kidney. Cancer specialists became interested in the drug when they learned that it disrupted a biochemical pathway involved in the development of the new blood vessels that tumors need to grow. But the drug is expensive and poorly absorbed. Less than 15 percent of rapamycin is absorbed when taken by mouth.

This study showed that substances known a furanocoumarins, plentiful in some forms of grapefruit juice, can decrease the breakdown of rapamycin. This makes the drug reach higher levels in the bloodstream, two to four times the levels seen without a juice boost, and thus increases the amount of the drug that reaches its targets.

“That means more of the drug hits the target, so we need less of the drug,” said Cohen.

Many of the newer cancer medications, precisely focused on specific targets, are now taken as pills rather than intravenously. Some of these drugs, including rapamycin, can cost thousands of dollars a month. Hence, “this is an opportunity for real savings,” Cohen said. “A daily glass of juice could lower the cost by 50 percent.”

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The study will be presented at the AACR’s 100th Annual Meeting in Denver in a session on “Late-Breaking Research: Clinical Research 1: Phase I-III Clinical Trials,” Poster Section 27, from 1 to 5 p.m. on Monday, April 20, 2009.

Grapefruit juice boosts drug’s anti-cancer effects is a post from: Shakes and Juices

New Orleans (April 22, 2009) – If you enjoy a glass of 100% juice as part of your daily routine, chances are you also have fewer risk factors for several chronic diseases when compared to your non juice-drinking peers. New research presented today at the Experimental Biology (EB) 2009 meeting highlights this association among adult men and women, with evidence showing that 100% juice drinkers were leaner, had better insulin sensitivity and had lower risk for obesity and metabolic syndrome – a cluster of conditions that increases risk for stroke, heart disease and diabetes.

Looking at data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2004 – an ongoing data collection initiative through the Centers for Disease Control and Promotion – University of Minnesota’s Dr. Mark Pereira and co-author Dr. Victor Fulgoni found that, compared to non-consumers, 100% juice consumers had lower mean Body Mass Index (BMI), smaller waist circumference and lower insulin resistance (as estimated by homeostasis model assessment, HOMA). The researchers noted an inverse association between level of juice intake (oz/day) and these parameters.

Based on the analysis, risk for obesity was 22% lower among 100% juice drinkers, while risk for metabolic syndrome (defined as the presence of three or more of the following: central obesity, elevated blood glucose, elevated fasting triglycerides, low HDL-cholesterol, elevated blood pressure) was 15% lower compared to non-consumers.

“We know that maintaining a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables is linked to decreased risk of some chronic diseases,” notes Dr. Pereira, who is an associate professor in the University of Minnesota’s Division of Epidemiology and Community Health. “One-half cup of 100% fruit juice counts as a serving of fruit and, based on our analysis, 100% juice consumption is associated with some of these same benefits.”

According to the researchers, intake of 100% juice was generally associated with other healthful behaviors. Among more than 14,000 participants in the survey – a multiethnic sample of U.S. adults ages 19 and older – juice consumers had higher physical activity levels and more favorable dietary intake patterns (including: lower fat intakes, higher fiber intakes, lower added sugar intakes). After taking these lifestyle factors into account, the inverse relationship between 100% fruit juice consumption and metabolic syndrome was no longer statistically significant. However, risk for obesity remained 14% lower among juice consumers even after the adjustment.

Few studies have looked at the role of foods that naturally contain sugar, like 100% juice, in relation to obesity and related metabolic outcomes. . Many previously published analyses have failed to separate 100% fruit juice from juice drinks that contain less than 100% juice and those containing added sugar. Recent studies in children and adolescents that have isolated 100% juice intake, report a similar positive association between juice consumption and an overall healthier diet, and no significant differences in weight status among young juice drinkers and non-drinkers.

Drinking 100 percent fruit juice is associated with lower risk of obesity and metabolic syndrome is a post from: Shakes and Juices

The two-stage clinical trial followed a total of 48 participants over six years. Eligible participants had a rising PSA after surgery or radiotherapy, a PSA greater than 0.2 ng/ml and less than 5 ng/ml and a Gleason score of 7 or less. These patients were treated by drinking eight ounces of pomegranate juice daily. Currently, in the sixth year of treatment, active patients who remain on the study have a median total follow-up of 56 months. These participants continue to experience a significant increase in PSA doubling time following treatment, from a mean of 15.4 months at baseline to 60 months post-treatment, with a median PSA slope decrease of 60 percent, 0.06 to 0.024.

Researchers compared active patients, who remain on the study, with non-active patients, who no longer remain on the study. Though these two groups demonstrated similar mean PSA doubling times at baseline, both the PSA doubling time prolongation and the decline in median PSA slope were greater in active patients when compared to non-active patients.

“This study suggests that pomegranate juice may effectively slow the progression of prostate cancer after unsuccessful treatment,” said Christopher Amling, MD, an AUA spokesman. “This finding and other ongoing research might one day reveal that pomegranate juice is an effective prostate cancer preventative agent as well.”

Parts of this ongoing study suggest that some patients may be more sensitive to the effects of pomegranate juice on PSA doubling time. Phase three of this study is currently underway to further evaluate the benefits of pomegranate juice in a placebo-controlled manner.

Men treated for localized prostate cancer could benefit from pomegranate juice consumption is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Seattle, Wash., May 28, 2009, – Drinking cherry juice could help ease the pain for people who run, according to new research from Oregon Health & Science University presented at the American College of Sports Medicine Conference in Seattle, Wash. The study showed people who drank tart cherry juice while training for a long distance run reported significantly less pain after exercise than those who didn’t. Post-exercise pain can often indicate muscle damage or debilitating injuries.

In the study of sixty healthy adults aged 18-50 years, those who drank 10.5 ounces cherry juice (CHERRish 100% Montmorency cherry juice) twice a day for seven days prior to and on the day of a long-distance relay had significantly less muscle pain following the race than those who drank another fruit juice beverage. On a scale from 0 to 10, the runners who drank cherry juice as their “sports drink” had a 2 point lower self-reported pain level at the completion of the race, a clinically significant difference.

While more research is needed to fully understand the effects of tart cherry juice, researchers say the early finding indicate cherries may work like common medications used by runners to alleviate post-exercise inflammation.

“For most runners, post-race treatment consists of RICE (rest, ice, compression and elevation) and traditional NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs),” said Kerry Kuehl, M.D., a sports medicine physician and principal study investigator. “But NSAIDS can have adverse effects – negative effects you may be able to avoid by using a natural, whole food alternative, like cherry juice, to reduce muscle inflammation before exercise.”

The researchers suggest cherries’ post-exercise benefits are likely because of the fruit’s natural anti-inflammation power – attributed to antioxidant compounds called anthocyanins, which also give cherries their bright red color.

Whether elite athletes or weekend warriors, this natural anti-inflammation power of cherry juice could have far-reaching benefits for the millions of active Americans currently taking over-the-counter pain medications to reduce muscle pain and beyond. A growing body of research suggests cherries could affect inflammation related to heart disease, arthritis and may even help maintain muscle strength for those suffering from fibromyalgia (a common, chronic widespread pain disorder), according to a second study presented by the same researchers at the ACSM conference.

It’s Easy to Enjoy “America’s Super Fruit”

Cherries are not only good for you, but they’re also a homegrown “Super Fruit.” According to recent data, more than 9 out of 10 Americans want to know where their food comes from, nearly 80 percent say they’re purchasing “locally produced” products, and the majority are defining “local” as made in America.

This homegrown advantage, coupled with potential health benefits for athletes, make cherries “America’s Super Fruit.” Tart cherries come in dried, frozen and juice forms so they’re readily available to enjoy all year long.

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Kuehl KS, Chestnutt J, Elliot DL, Lilley C. Efficacy of tart cherry juice in reducing muscle pain after strenuous exercise. American College of Sports Medicine. 851. May, 2009.

Jones KD, Elliot DL, Kuehl KS, Dulacki K. Tart cherry juice for fibromyalgia: new testing paradigm and subgroup benefits. American College of Sports Medicine. 852. May, 2009.

Surveys conducted IRI Data and The Hartman Group, 2008

Is cherry juice a new ‘sports drink?’ is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Metabolic syndrome is defined by a cluster of risk factors including excess body fat in the midsection, high blood pressure, high blood sugar and abnormal blood lipids. If left uncontrolled, metabolic syndrome increases risk for chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke or diabetes. An estimated 47 million Americans have some combination of these risk factors and are often overweight or obese as well.

Participants in the study were primarily African-American and Hispanic adults, populations that typically have a higher incidence of metabolic syndrome. Each group followed a DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet that emphasized eating lean meat, lower fat dairy, whole grains, vegetables and fruit daily and keeping saturated fat, total fat, cholesterol and sodium in check. Two of the groups were given Low Sodium V8® 100% vegetable juice and instructed to drink 1 or 2 cups every day for 12 weeks, while the third group was not given any vegetable juice.

The key study findings include:

• On average, the vegetable juice drinkers lost four pounds over 12 weeks, while those who did not drink juice lost one pound
• Vegetable juice drinkers were more likely to meet the daily government recommendations of 3-5 servings of vegetables (1 ½ to 2 ½ cups)
  • Seven out of 10 American adults fall short of recommendations
• Vegetable juice drinkers significantly increased their intake of vitamin C and potassium, while decreasing their overall carbohydrate intake

“Diet and body weight are key modifiable factors in changing the course of metabolic syndrome,” said John Foreyt, PhD, study author and Director, Behavioral Medicine Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine. “What this study shows is that by taking simple, proactive steps such as drinking low sodium vegetable juice while watching calorie intake, people can begin to control their weight, which helps reduce the risk of long-term health implications.”

Research suggests vegetable juice may help people with metabolic syndrome lose weight is a post from: Shakes and Juices

The study provides a new reason to avoid drinking grapefruit juice and these other juices when taking certain drugs, including some that are prescribed for fighting life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, cancer, organ-transplant rejection, and infection, the researcher says. These findings — representing the first controlled human studies of this type of drug-lowering interaction — were described today at the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

“Recently, we discovered that grapefruit and these other fruit juices substantially decrease the oral absorption of certain drugs undergoing intestinal uptake transport,” says study leader David G. Bailey, Ph.D., a professor of clinical pharmacology with the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario. “The concern is loss of benefit of medications essential for the treatment of serious medical conditions.”

Bailey and colleagues announced almost 20 years ago the unexpected finding that grapefruit juice can dramatically boost the body’s levels of the high-blood-pressure drug felodipine, causing potentially dangerous effects from excessive drug concentrations in the blood. Since then, other researchers have identified nearly 50 medications that carry the risk of grapefruit-induced drug-overdose interactions. As a result of the so-called “Grapefruit Juice Effect,” some prescription drugs now carry warning labels against taking grapefruit juice or fresh grapefruit during drug consumption.

In the most recent research, Bailey’s group had healthy volunteers take fexofenadine, an antihistamine used to fight allergies. The volunteers consumed the drug with either a single glass of grapefruit juice, water containing only naringin (substance in grapefruit juice that gives the juice its bitter taste), or water. When fexofenadine was taken with grapefruit juice, only half of the drug was absorbed compared to taking the drug with water alone, Bailey says. Loosing half of the amount of drugs taken into the body can be critical for the performance certain drugs, he points out.

They also showed that the active ingredient of grapefruit juice, naringin, appears to block a key drug uptake transporter, called OATP1A2, involved in shuttling drugs from the small intestine to the bloodstream. Blocking this transporter reduces drug absorption and neutralizes their potential benefits, the researchers say. By contrast, drugs whose levels are boosted in the presence of grapefruit juice appear to block an important drug metabolizing enzyme, called CYP3A4, that normally breaks down drugs.

“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” Bailey says. “I’m sure we’ll find more and more drugs that are affected this way.”

To date, grapefruit, orange and apple juices have been shown to lower the absorption of etoposide, an anticancer agent; certain beta blockers (atenolol, celiprolol, talinolol) used to treat high blood pressure and prevent heart attacks; cyclosporine, a drug taken to prevent rejection of transplanted organs; and certain antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, itraconazole). But additional drugs are likely to be added to the list as physicians become more aware of this drug-lowering interaction, Bailey says.

Orange and apple juices also appear to contain naringin-like substances that inhibit OATP1A2, Bailey says. The chemical in oranges appears to be hesperidin, but the chemical in apples has not yet been identified, the researchers notes.

Bailey advises patients to consult with their doctor or pharmacist before taking any medications with grapefruit juice or other fruits and juices. Unless it is known to be a problem, he recommends taking most medications only with water. This research was funded by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the United States Public Health Service.

###

The American Chemical Society — the world’s largest scientific society — is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

— Mark T. Sampson

New reasons to avoid grapefruit and other juices when taking certain drugs is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Inconsistent research findings have led to continued debate over the potential associations between drinking 100 percent fruit juice, nutrient intake, and overweight in children.

In the their study, researchers analyzed the juice consumption of 3,618 children ages 2 to 11 using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

“The bottom line is that 100 percent juice consumption is a valuable contributor of nutrients in children’s diet and it does not have an association with being overweight,” study chief Dr. Theresa Nicklas, a child nutrition specialist at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, told Reuters Health. She presented the new data at the Pediatric Academic Societies’ annual convention in Toronto this week.

“If you look at the weight of the evidence there are at least 7 studies plus the one I presented (this week) that show no association between 100 percent juice and overweight among children,” Nicklas added. Even among the children who consumed the most juice, there was no association with the children being overweight or at risk for overweight, she said.

The results also indicate that juice consumption “is not excessive among 2- to 11-year-olds,” Nicklas said. In fact, 57 percent of the children did not consume 100 percent juice at all, “which is much higher than I expected,” she said.

The average daily consumption of pure fruit juice in the study population was 4.1 ounces (about half a cup) — an amount in line with recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

And while there were a few children (13 percent) who consumed larger amounts of juice (12 ounces or more), their increased intake was not associated with overweight or at risk for being overweight. In fact, children in the 2 to 3-year-old category who drank the most juice were nearly three times less likely to be overweight or at risk for overweight than children who drank no juice at all.

Nicklas and her colleagues also found that children who drank any amount of 100 percent juice ate less total fat, saturated fat, sodium, added sugars and added fats. Pure juice drinkers also had higher intakes of a number of key nutrients including vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, folate, vitamin B6 and iron. They also ate more whole fruits, like apples.

Nicklas encourages parents who are concerned about their child being overweight to look beyond their juice consumption. “My advice would be to look at the total number of calories that child is taking in and look at where the bulk of those calories are coming from and equally important look at the activity level of the child.”

Drinking Pure Fruit Juice does not make Young Children Overweight is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Inconsistent research findings have led to continued debate over the potential associations between drinking 100 percent fruit juice, nutrient intake, and overweight in children.

In the their study, researchers analyzed the juice consumption of 3,618 children ages 2 to 11 using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

“The bottom line is that 100 percent juice consumption is a valuable contributor of nutrients in children’s diet and it does not have an association with being overweight,” study chief Dr. Theresa Nicklas, a child nutrition specialist at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, told Reuters. She presented the new data at the Pediatric Academic Societies’ annual convention in Toronto, Canada, this week.

“If you look at the weight of the evidence there are at least 7 studies plus the one I presented (this week) that show no association between 100 percent juice and overweight among children,” Nicklas added. Even among the children who consumed the most juice, there was no association with the children being overweight or at risk for overweight, she said.

The results also indicate that juice consumption “is not excessive among 2- to 11-year-olds,” Nicklas said. In fact, 57 percent of the children did not consume 100 percent juice at all, “which is much higher than I expected,” she said.

The average daily consumption of pure fruit juice in the study population was 4.1 ounces (about half a cup) — an amount in line with recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

And while there were a few children (13 percent) who consumed larger amounts of juice (12 ounces or more), their increased intake was not associated with overweight or at risk for being overweight. In fact, children in the 2 to 3-year-old category who drank the most juice were nearly three times less likely to be overweight or at risk for overweight than children who drank no juice at all.

Nicklas and her colleagues also found that children who drank any amount of 100 percent juice ate less total fat, saturated fat, sodium, added sugars and added fats. Pure juice drinkers also had higher intakes of a number of key nutrients including vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, folate, vitamin B6 and iron. They also ate more whole fruits, like apples.

Nicklas encourages parents who are concerned about their child being overweight to look beyond their juice consumption. “My advice would be to look at the total number of calories that child is taking in and look at where the bulk of those calories are coming from and equally important look at the activity level of the child.”

Juice does not make Young Children Overweight or at Risk for Becoming Overweight is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Smokers reported that consuming milk, water, fruits and vegetables worsened the taste of cigarettes, while consuming alcohol, coffee and meat enhanced their taste, according to the scientists.

The findings could lead to a “Quit Smoking Diet” or to development of a gum or lozenge that makes cigarettes less palatable, said lead study investigator Joseph McClernon, Ph.D., an assistant research professor of medical psychiatry at the Duke Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research.

“With a few modifications to their diet — consuming items that make cigarettes taste bad, such as a cold glass of milk, and avoiding items that make cigarettes taste good, like a pint of beer — smokers can make quitting a bit easier,” McClernon said.

The findings appear in the April 2007 issue of the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research. The research was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.…

Continue Reading… 

Fruits And Veggies May Help Smokers Quit is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Top of the league is purple grape juice followed by apple juice and cranberry juice, according to the study by researchers at the University of Glasgow.

Orange juice, the most popular fruit juice, comes way down the league.

It contains fewer polyphenols than the other juices tested, which are strong anti-oxidants.

Alan Crozier, professor of Plant Biochemistry and Human Nutrition who led the study, said: “Not all fruit juices are the same. The findings reveal that the variety of phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity of the individual juices varied markedly.”

“Purple grape juice made with Concord grapes contains the highest and broadest range of polyphenols as well as having the highest antioxidant capacity. Other high-ranking products include cloudy apple juice and cranberry juice drink.”

The research was funded by the National Grape Co-operative, a consortium of farmers in the US owned by Welch’s, makers of Concord purple grape juice.

It is published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry.

The finding comes in the wake of research by US scientists which showed an association between long term fruit juice consumption and a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Researchers who followed almost 2,000 volunteers for up to ten years found the risk of Alzheimer’s was 76 per cent lower for those who drank juices more than three times a week compared with those who drank them less than once a week.

The Glasgow study suggests these protective effects may be strengthened by consumption of a combination of juices with a high concentration and broad range of polyphenolic antioxidants.

Anti-oxidants are compounds such as vitamin C found in fruits and vegetables which are believed to play a key role by protecting the body from the damaging effects of free radicals, the products of metabolism.

By quenching free radicals they help to maintain oxidative balance and prevent the development of diseases including cancer and heart disease.

Professor Crozier said: “Supplementing a healthy diet with a regular intake of a variety of fruit juices such as purple grape juice, grapefruit juice, cloudy apple juice and cranberry juice, will increase the consumer’s intake of phenolic antioxidants.”

He added: “The message is to mix these juices during the week. That way you will get all the compounds with anti-oxidant activity. If you drink only one juice you risk missing out on the compounds in the others.”

He said Welch’s had asked his research team to measure the anti-oxidant activity in 13 of the most popular fruit juices in Britain.

“The paper we have published is as we wrote it. If Welch’s had written it they would have said drink only Concord grape juice.”

As well as purple grape juice, the fruit juices examined in the study included cloudy apple, pomegranate, cranberry, grapefruit, clear apple, pineapple, orange, tomato, red grape and white grape.

The findings also revealed the number and level of antioxidant phenolic compounds in purple grape juice equates with those found in a Beaujolais red wine.

Grape juice could be more beneficial than Orange Juice is a post from: Shakes and Juices

“Pomegranate fruit continues to show great promise,” says Mukhtar, professor of dermatology at the School of Medicine and Public Health and a member of the Carbone Cancer Center. “We have earlier shown that pomegranate fruit contains very powerful skin and prostate cancer-fighting agents. These recent findings expand the possible health benefits of the fruit to the leading cause of cancer death in the country and worldwide: lung cancer.”

In the study, the research team examined the effect of oral consumption of a dose of pomegranate fruit extract on the growth, progression, blood-vessel development and signaling pathways in two mouse lung tumor protocols. The dosages tested were comparable to what humans could reasonably consume in a day. Chemicals were used to induce lung tumors, and the mice received pomegranate extract in drinking water. Lung tumor yield was then examined at different times during several months. Mice who were exposed to cancer-inducing chemicals and who were treated with pomegranate had significantly lower lung tumor growth than mice treated with carcinogens only. Tumor reduction was 53.9 percent at 84 days and 61.6 percent at 140 days.

The key to the cancer-fighting capabilities of pomegranate lies in its abundance of antioxidants that have an anti-inflammatory effect. In fact, researchers say pomegranate juice has higher levels of antioxidants than do red wine and green tea, which have also been investigated for their potential cancer prevention effects.

The pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) fruit has been used for centuries in ancient cultures for medicinal purposes. For a long time, the fruit has been widely consumed fresh and, more recently, in beverage form as juice. In other studies, the fruit has been shown to suppress inflammatory cell signaling proteins in colon and prostate cancer. The fruit also possesses other remarkable anti-tumor-promoting effects.

Lung cancer has increased at alarming rates in the last decade, particularly because of trends in smoking. Lung cancer is now the most common cause of cancer death in the world, representing 28 percent of all cancer deaths. Physicians have found this cancer difficult to control with conventional therapeutic and surgical approaches, and the prognosis is poor with an overall five-year survival rate of 10-14 percent in the United States.

Researchers believe delaying the process of lung cancer development could be an important strategy to control this disease. Mukhtar says that the use of fruits and vegetables endowed with cancer-fighting properties is the best way to achieve this goal.

Source: http://www.news.wisc.edu/13633.html 

Study shows Pomegranate Juice may help fight Lung Cancer is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Ingredients

Directions
1. Peel the banana.
2. Bend it with all the other ingredients.
3. Once it is perfectly mix, pour into a large glass.
4. Drink it immediately.

Properties
This milkshake is an excellent source of proteins and carbohydrates. It is an energy drink ideal for sports people because it helps recover from exercising. It is also rich in calcium, and fibre, combats weariness, prevents cramps, tones up tissues and reduces appetite.

Energy Milkshake for Sports People is a post from: Shakes and Juices

Ingredients

Directions
1. Cut the top part of the tomatoes.
2. Cut then into pieces and take them through the juice extractor and drink it immediately.

Properties
Tomato is one of the most complex vegetables in vitamin, mineral, like potassium, phosphor, calcium and iron. Tomato is a great nutrient for anemic and weak person, tomato is excellent at relieving pain caused by burn, it also prevents blisters, prevents obesity, cancer, it is germicide, revitalizes the liver and provides minerals to mothers who are feeding their babies.

Tomato Juice its a Great Nutrient for Anemic and Weak Person is a post from: Shakes and Juices