Free radical damage is decreased
after one serving a day and overcomes the oxidant stress of fructose.
Investigators at the
University of Scranton, Pennsylvania, are reporting that cranberry juice
contains more phenol antioxidants than 20 commonly consumed fruit juices and
that consumption can significantly raise HDL cholesterol levels in
hypercholesterolemic patients.
At the 225th annual
meeting of the American Chemical Society, underway this week in New Orleans, Dr.
Joe A. Vinson told attendees that he and his colleagues measured the effects of
cranberry juice consumption in 20 subjects with untreated hypercholesterolemia.
Following a fasting
period, half the subjects worked their way up to 3 servings of cranberry juice
with an artificial sweetener added daily, while the other half consumed
cranberry juice plus sugar for 1 month. Each serving consisted of 8 oz. of
cranberry juice containing about 27% pure juice, comparable to what is commonly
sold in most supermarkets.
There was no effect on
total cholesterol after the study period, but LDL levels dropped somewhat with 2
servings of cranberry juice per day and HDL cholesterol levels increased
significantly with 3 servings per day, Dr. Vinson told Reuters Health.
Triglyceride levels increased significantly in the group that consumed 3
servings of cranberry juice plus sugar daily, but did not change in the group
that consumed cranberry juice with the artificial sweetener.
"The increase of about
10% in HDL levels that we found translates into a 40% decrease in heart disease
risk according to Framingham data," he asserts.
Dr. Vinson notes that
subjects lost about 2 pounds during the study period, which approached
statistical significance. "It didn't matter if [the drink] contained sugar or
not," he commented. "We think the weight loss is because of the polyphenols...that
affect metabolism," he explains.
"Free radical damage
is decreased after one serving a day," Dr. Vinson said. "Cranberry juice
overcomes the oxidant stress of fructose."
Source: Diabetes In Control Dot Com.
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