Pomegranate has become well known in the preventative health community for its antioxidant, anti-atherogenic, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, and glutathione-enhancing capabilities. Lately however, pomegranate research has also begun to establish inroads into some surprising areas of health prevention and maintenance. These include such unexpected fields as obesity and more recently, joint health.
The latter is rooted in pomegranate’s inherent anti-inflammatory capabilities, and achieved a certain level of confirmation in the form of a laboratory mouse study recently completed at Case Western Reserve University and the University Hospitals of Cleveland, Ohio, USA. The aforementioned study examined the effects of pomegranate supplementation on the onset of arthritis in these animals, and the results were impressive enough for the scientists to issue the following statement: "The results of these translational studies and studies reported previously together provide strong and compelling evidence to support further clinical testing of pomegranate extract for the prevention of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis".
This optimistic outlook is supported by the data revealed in the study. It was found that laboratory mice that were predisposed to develop arthritis were 40% less likely to do so if their diets were supplemented with pomegranate. Furthermore, the severity of the arthritis developed by the mice in the study group was up to 76% lower than in the control group that received no supplementation at all. Parameters used to study the degree of the arthritis included nitric oxide (NO) production, as well as the generation of Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and Interleukin-1 beta. These are cytokines that act as intracellular messengers in the inflammatory response network and are associated with bone and joint degradation and damage. Pomegranate was found to inhibit these molecules, just as previous studies had confirmed that it also inhibits certain enzymes that contribute to cartilage degradation, also in conditions of osteoarthritis.
Obtained from: Shukla M, et al. Consumption of hydrolyzable tannins-rich pomegranate extract suppresses inflammation and joint damage in rheumatoid arthritis. Nutrition. 2008 May 17. [Published ahead of print]
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