The Wonders of the Pomegranate

The pomegranate offers a healthy outlook for both you and food companies making juices and other products from the ancient fruit. The pomegranate grows wild from Iran to India, but is getting plenty of attention from California growers who have cultivated the plant.

Research on the “pom” first appeared from Israel, which is well regarded for its nutrition academics. Scientists from other countries have followed suit to offer encouraging study results about the deep red, seed-heavy fruit. Here are some of the most recent results to date about pure pomegranate juice and pomegranate extract:

Compounds in pomegranate extract have stopped or delayed formation of prostate cancer tumors in mice.
At least one study says pomegranate consumption can reduce risk for breast cancer.
Prevents LDL cholesterol (the bad stuff) from oxidization, which is believed to be the first step of heart disease.
Other research indicates pomegranate juice can thin the blood and prevent clots, similar to aspirin.
Another study connected eight daily ounces of pomegranate juice with increasing the amount of oxygen available to the heart muscle.
At least one study shows long-term consumption of pomegranate juice can help protect against erectile dysfunction.
Recent research, including a study published in the professional Journal of Inflammation last fall, provides more evidence that pomegranate extract can significantly reduce chronic inflammation. Scientists agree inflammation is an unfortunate mainstay of auto-immune disorders and osteoarthritis among others, but also is increasingly linked with heart disease. Researchers at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, who first reported on the pomegranate fruit’s deterrent effect on inflammation and enzymes that otherwise break down cartilage in 2005, say new findings make an even stronger case.
The 2005 study was conducted on human tissue samples in the lab. The new study involved feeding the fruit extract orally to rabbits who were experiencing inflammatory conditions. When the Case Western scientists reported in 2005, they made it clear they did not yet know if the pomegranate’s compound would make it past the gut and into the bloodstream. The 2008 study proves ingestion produces the anti-inflammatory action, and that’s no small thing. Case Western scientists recorded that antioxidant levels were way up in blood samples taken after the rabbits drank pomegranate extract as compared to before the pomegranate extract. What’s more, the proteins associated with inflammation were substantially less in the “after” than the “before.”

One caveat: Some studies suggest that pomegranate juice might disrupt the action of certain medications, especially blood pressure drugs, similar to the widely reported blocking effect of grapefruit juice.

Nutritionists who advise clients to seek more whole and natural foods are always concerned about whether clients are adequately absorbing all the healthful substances in, say, fruits and veggies and grains. This study is another point in the plus column for the pomegranate but perhaps even more so for showing the fresh plant foods we consume are on a direct freeway to our bloodstreams and cells.