The Benefits Of Resveratrol For Blood Pressure

According to statistics from the CDC, around 70 million people–1 in 3 Americans–suffer from high blood pressure. Half of these individuals have their blood pressure under control, probably under some form of blood pressure medication. ^[1]Hypertension, or high blood pressure, can be a silent yet deadly disease, one that doesn’t necessarily need to be managed by medication. While there are some rare hereditary conditions that make it impossible to control blood sugar with just exercise and diet, most people have the ability to use dietary strategies as their first line of defense.

How Resveratrol Supports a Healthy Blood Pressure

Resveratrol is a natural plant compound typically found in grapes, chocolate, and almonds. Its antioxidant capabilities have been studied for years, with each study revealing some type of benefit for health. Whether it’s protecting cells and DNA, regulating a healthy blood sugar, or protecting skin from UV damage, there seems to be a wide range of benefits associated with the compound. ^[2][3] A recent meta analysis shows that resveratrol may play an important role in supporting blood pressure health by regulating systolic blood pressure. ^[4] While the research is far from conclusive, it does lead many to wonder how powerful plant compounds really are.

One of the emerging areas of research in relation to resveratrol is in the field of healthy aging. Resveratrol may provide similar effects of calorie restriction in terms of cellular protection. ^[5] Its effects on blood pressure are not surprising, if you consider the fact that resveratrol may reduce irritation and improve blood flow through vessels. Resveratrol may even support hormones that play a role in blood pressure. Foods high in resveratrol may also contain a number of other beneficial compounds and nutrients, like antioxidants and fiber, that are responsible for supporting blood pressure.

How to Support Blood Pressure Naturally

One of the key ways you can support a healthy blood pressure is by eating right and exercising. I know, pretty boring advice. But eating right doesn’t mean just eating vegetables; in fact, it means avoiding sugars–including high-sugar fruits–in order to avoid the blood sugar spike that inadvertently leads to a rise in blood pressure. Also, just by walking every day, doing yoga, sprinting, or any other physical activity you enjoy, you’re one step closer to a balanced blood pressure ratio. In the past, a healthy blood pressure reading would’ve been 120/80; yet, recent evidence is suggesting that less than 120/80 is ideal. While you certainly don’t want low blood pressure (hypotension), at or above 120/80 may be signs of prehypertension. In this case, consult with your doctor to know for sure.

How do you support blood pressure health? Please let us know in the comments!

References:

1. Centers for Disease Control. High Blood Pressure Facts. Centers for Disease Control.


2. Szkudelski T, Szkudelska K. Anti-diabetic effects of resveratrol. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2011 Jan;1215:34-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2010.05844.x.


3. Aziz MH, Afaq F, Ahmad N. Prevention of ultraviolet-B radiation damage by resveratrol in mouse skin is mediated via modulation in survivin. Photochem Photobiol. 2005 Jan-Feb;81(1):25-31.


4. Liu Y, Ma W, Zhang P, He S, Huang D. Effect of resveratrol on blood pressure: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Clin Nutr. 2015 Feb;34(1):27-34. doi: 10.1016/j.cinu.2014.03.009.


5. Lam YY, Peterson CM, Revussin E. Resveratrol vs. calorie restriction: data from rodents to humans. Exp Gerontol. 2013 Oct;48(10):1018-24. doi: 10.1016/j.exger.2013.04.005.

The post The Benefits Of Resveratrol For Blood Pressure appeared first on The Sleuth Journal.

Grape Seed Extract Superior To Blockbuster Diabetes Drug, Preclinical Study Finds

A new study published in the Journal of Cell Communication and Signaling compared the effects of a grape seed extract (GSP) to the diabetes drug metformin (MET) in rats fed a high fat, high fructose diet (HFFD) designed to provoke insulin resistance.

Titled, “Grape seed proanthocyanidins and metformin act by different mechanisms to promote insulin signaling in rats fed high calorie diet,” Indian researchers discovered that both substances reduced elevated blood glucose (hyperglycemia) and elevated blood insulin (hyperinsulinemia), while improving the following diet-altered parameters: glycolysis, tyrosine phosphorylation of IR-β and IRS-1, IRS-1-PI3K association and Akt activation.[1]

Furthermore, adverse changes induced by the HFFD, such as the activation of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6, leptin and suppression of cytokine signaling-3 and reduction in adiponectin, were reversed by GSP more effectively than by MET.

Proanthocyanidins are a type of secondary plant metabolites known as flavonoids found in many plants, but are particularly concentrated in cocoa beans, cinnamon, grape seeds and skin, and maritime pine bark (pycnogenol). Proanthrocyanidins are known primarily through their antioxidant properties, but the GreenMedInfo.com research project has identified at least 20 beneficial physiological actions to this phytochemical class relevant to at least 50 disease states.[2]

Metformin, on the other hand, is an oral antidiabetic drug in the biguanide class, and is used as the first-line drug for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. The original inspiration for the biguanide class was the discovery, in the 1920s, of guanidine compounds within the herb French lilac (Galega officinalis), long used to treat diabetes in traditional medicine. Metformin, however, is an entirely synthetic compound, whose exact mechanisms of action are unknown. What is known is that like other antidiabetic drugs (e.g. Avandia) metformin is cardiotoxic and has been linked to increased cardiac mortality in a number of studies.[3] Proanthrocyanidins, and grape seed extract in particular, have been extensively researched to have protective and therapeutic properties on the cardiovascular system.[4]

Clearly, the weight of evidence suggests that grape seed proanthrocyanins hold great promise as a metformin alternative and/or anti-diabetic agent. Unfortunately, the law forbids the medicinal use of natural substances, and lacking the $800 million plus required on average to fund the clinical trials necessary to file for FDA drug approval, health consumers are left almost entirely without guidance from conventional medical practitioners who lose their FDA-underwritten liability shield when they deviate from the drug-based standard of care.

Of course, the deeper level of self-care focuses on identifying the environmental, dietary and lifestyle-based causes of blood sugar and insulin disorders, and altering them so that a magical “pharmaceutical” or “nutraceutical” bullet isn’t necessary. For more research on the many problem substances, natural substances, therapeutic actions and lifestyle interventions that may prevent and/or reverse blood sugar disorders, visit our health guide on the topic: Health Guide: Blood Sugar Problems.

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[3] GreenMedInfo.com: Research > Problem Substances > Metformin

[4] GreenMedInfo.com: Research > Substances > Grape Seed Extract

© April 12, 2017 GreenMedInfo LLC. This work is reproduced and distributed with the permission of GreenMedInfo LLC. Want to learn more from GreenMedInfo? Sign up for the newsletter here http://www.greenmedinfo.com/greenmed/newsletter.

Don’t Forget About the 2017 Dirty Dozen List: Most Pesticide-Tainted Produce

Every year the Environmental Working Group (EWG) puts out a list of the 12 types of produce that contain the most pesticides. The group analyzes tests by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the list. The list was released in the beginning of the year, but it’s important to browse the list multiple times so the information is at your fingertips. [1]

This year, the EWG found that close to 70% of samples of 48 types of conventional produce contained residues of 1 or more pesticides. In all, USDA researchers found 178 different pesticides and pesticide breakdown products in the samples of produce, which numbered in the thousands. These chemicals remained on the produce even after they were washed and, in some cases, peeled.

In a news release, Sonya Lunder, an EWG senior analyst, says:

“If you don’t want to feed your family food contaminated with pesticides, the EWG Shopper’s Guide helps you make smart choices, whether you’re buying conventional or organic produce.

Eating of fruits and vegetables is essential no matter how they’re grown, but for the items with the heaviest pesticide loads, we urge shoppers to buy organic. If you can’t buy organic, the Shopper’s Guide will steer you to conventionally grown produce that is the lowest in pesticides.” [1]

Choosing produce with the least amount of pesticides is vital to the health of children, Lunder says.

“Even low levels of pesticide exposure can be harmful to infants, babies and young children, so when possible, parents and caregivers should take steps to lower children’s exposures to pesticides while still feeding them diets rich in healthy fruits and vegetables.” [1]

The “Dirty Dozen” List

Strawberries are at the top of the list because the USDA found that the most contaminated sample of the fruit had 20 different pesticides. [1]

New to the list this year is pears and potatoes, displacing cherry tomatoes and cucumbers from last year’s list.

At least one pesticide residue was found on nearly all of the strawberries, spinach, peaches, nectarines, cherries, and apples.

On average, the spinach samples contained twice as much pesticide residue by weight than any other crop. In fact, EWG says 3/4 of spinach samples were contaminated with residues of a neurotoxic pesticide banned in Europe for use on food crops. It is part of a group of pesticides that have been linked to behavioral disorders in young children in recent studies.

Read: Pesticides as Dangerous as Secondhand Smoke to Kids

You can find the full list of 51 types of produce on EWG’s website.

The “Clean 15”

Not every fruit and vegetable is coated in chemicals, fortunately, and the EWG also made a list of the types of produce that are least likely to contain pesticide residues.

Sources:

[1] Environmental Working Group

[2] Environmental Working Group

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About Julie Fidler:
	Julie Fidler is a freelance writer, legal blogger, and the author of Adventures in Holy Matrimony: For Better or the Absolute Worst. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and two ridiculously spoiled cats. She occasionally pontificates on her blog.