| Mangosteen Health Benefits |
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| Written by Administrator | |||
| Monday, 11 August 2008 09:19 | |||
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and settlers. Consequently it is no wonder that so much recent modern scientific research has been conducted on the Mangosteen and the beneficial properties of the pericarp (rind). An enormous amount of modern study and research has been channelled toward unlocking the secrets of this remarkable fruit. Scientists have actually identified the major compounds found in the Mangosteen that are responsible for its healthful characteristics. These days, just about everybody knows about free radicals and the damage they wreak on the body and most would know, to counteract the effects of free radicals, we need a diet high in antioxidants. Free radicals attack the cells in our bodies every second of every day, whilst antioxidants work actively with the immune system to repair the damage before cellular degeneration occurs. If the balance between free radical attack and the body's ability to overcome free radical activity is weighted on the side of the free radicals... well... you are destined for early onset of metabolic disease and a premature death! Much has been made of the extensive antioxidant properties of vitamins, especially Vitamin C and Vitamin E. But did you know the beneficial effects of synthetic vitamins are extremely questionable? Recent scientific research clearly indicates that anyone relying on synthetic vitamins to maintain their health, experience little or no benefit. Conversely, synthetic vitamins taken in larger doses in the mistaken belief that more is better, may in fact make you feel much worse and result in a deterioration of health and even premature death. But did you know there exists many whole food antioxidants
that are much more powerful than any
combination of synthetic vitamins? The key to good health is not to take
synthetic vitamin supplements but to supplement with proven whole food antioxidants. One of these life-enhancing antioxidants is found in Mangosteen pericarp and is called Xanthone. In fact, there's a whole family of Xanthones, with
some of the most dynamic found in the whole fruit Mangosteen
which includes the pericarp. While most people know about the
antioxidant benefits of Vitamins C and E from whole foods, far fewer are aware of the
incredibly potent antioxidant power of Xanthones and many other
phyto-chemicals. Xanthones are natural plant chemical substances that
have recently won high praise from numerous scientists and researchers.
Xanthones have been studied for their medicinal potential, since they
demonstrate a number of health giving properties and are proving to be
significant substances for good
health. The Research on Xanthones: The two most beneficial Xanthones found in the Mangosteen have been named Alpha Mangostin and Gamma Mangostin. When isolated and thoroughly tested by researchers, these two Xanthones have been found to carry a host of benefits. According to professional journals such as Free Radical Research, Journal of Pharmacology, and the Indian Journal of Experimental Biology, these Xanthones have a significant effect on cardiovascular health; are naturally antibiotic, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory; and are amongst the most powerful antioxidants found in nature. Research laboratories around the world have now been helping us understand how the Mangosteen fruit imparts such wonderful benefits. Modern science is just catching up with what herbal doctors have already known for centuries about Mangosteen. For more information go to www.pubmed.com and search for “Xanthones" or "Garcinia Mangostana" in the database and read the scientific research. Reference http://www.health-report.co.uk PROVEN BENEFITS OF XANTHONES - YOU CAN FEEL THE DIFFERENCE MORE BENEFITS … WHETHER YOU “FEEL” THEM, OR NOT 1.) Anti-oxidant (can be measured) Mangosteen Health Benefits Mangosteen is a fruit found in tropical countries throughout Asia, for example Vietnam - Fresh Mangosteen (queen fruit), Thailand, India, Malaysia and the Philippines. It also grows reasonably well in areas such as Hawaii and tropical Northern Australia from Innisfail north to Cooktown. The Mangosteen fruit consist of 3 major parts.
The pulp - which is the fruit and is known for being one of the tastiest fruits in the world. The seeds - Found within the white pulp. Properties: Mangosteen fruit contains compounds that have antioxidant - anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. Scientific research indicates activity against several cancer cell lines, including breast cancer, liver cancer and leukemia. In addition, Mangosteen also exhibits anti-histamine and anti-inflammatory properties. Traditionally, Mangosteen has been used for many years as a medicinal treatment for diarrhea, skin infection and wounds in throughout South Asia. The latest in scientific research shows Mangosteen contains a class of naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds known as xanthones. Xanthones may provide beneficial effects on cardiovascular diseases, including ischemic heart disease, atherosclerosis, hypertension, and thrombosis. Mangosteen also shows vasorelaxant properties. Mangosteen has demonstrated an inhibitory action against the bacterial organisms Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Staphylococcus aureus. Mangosteen is also proving to be highly effective in supporting and strengthening a weak immune system. There are several important compounds found in the Mangosteen that would appear to make this fruit an active and important nutritional supplement for the human body. Mangosteen Xanthones are broken down even further into mangostin, mangostenol, mangostenone A, Mangostenone B, trapezifolixanthone, tovophyllin B, alpha- and beta-mangostins, garcinone B, mangostinone, mangostanol and the flavonoid epicatechin. A study of the antiproliferation, antioxidation and induction of apoptosis by Garcinia mangostana on SKBR3 human breast cancer cell line, showed SKBR3 cells were cultured in the presence of mangosteen extract at various concentrations. Mangosteen showed a dose dependent inhibition of cell proliferation. "We found that an antiproliferative effect of mangosteen was associated with apoptosis on breast cancer cell line by determinations of morphological changes and oligonucleosomal DNA fragments." Mangosteen also was found to inhibit ROS production. These investigations suggest that Mangosteen has strong anti-proliferation, potent anti-oxidation and induction of apoptosis properties. Mangosteen has potential for cancer chemoprevention, which is dose dependent as well as exposure time dependent. The ethanol extract of Mangosteen showed potent inhibitory activity against HIV-1 protease. The activity-guided purification of the extract resulted in the isolation of two active known compounds. The chemical structures of the isolated compounds were established by spectroscopic analysis as mangostin and gamma-mangostin. Potential Benefits of Mangosteen Anti-viral Anti-bacterial Free radical fighter Cardio support Immune system Enhancer Powerful antioxidant Skin rashes, infections and wounds Diarrhea Anti-inflammatory Vasorelaxant Dubious Marketing Practices: Over the last few years a massive new Mangosteen health drink demand in the USA and in several other countries such as Canada the UK and Australia, has resulted from extremely well oiled marketing campaigns surrounding a number of new Mangosteen product launches. It seems the U.S. is in the grip of a "Mangosteen craze" due to a number of intensive and expensive marketing programs, touting Mangosteen as the new cure all for every disease going. Some of the claims being made for liquid Mangosteen health drinks are quite extraordinary ... including the curing of cancer. Although scientific studies indicate Mangosteen does play a role in the reversal of metabolic disease due to the very high concentrations of xanthones, phyto-chemicals and subsequently high antioxidant properties, no real scientific evidence is available to back up some of the more spurious claims regarding cancer that are being made by companies/individuals promoting a popular liquid Mangosteen juice. The level of active ingredients in many liquid Mangosteen juices simply is not great enough, (unless one was to drink a pint per day) to supply sufficient xanthones and antioxidants to make any noticeable difference to the health of someone suffering metabolic disease such as cancer.
WARNING - Benzene Danger Compounding the problem further, hot bottled liquid health drinks are pasteurized which destroys many of the excellent natural properties of the Mangosteen pericarp, and almost invariably have sodium benzoate or benzoic acid added, to prevent the liquid deteriorating and spoiling before the bottle of product is consumed after being opened. Scientific research has shown the addition of sodium benzoate to any hot bottled liquid which also contains vitamin C, may cause a chemical reaction to take place resulting in the production of toxic levels of benzene within the product. Benzene is a powerful carcinogen! There is NO safe level of benzene in food or drinks! The dubious claims surrounding Mangosteen juice, has resulted in Mangosteen joining those other common plant products that have produced the most millionaires in the United States MLM fraternity, Aloe Vera, and Noni. Thanks to Mangosteen and xanthones increasing name recognition and to the lack of standardised testing methods to determine its quality and amount of active ingredient, many greedy suppliers, brokers and manufacturers frequently stretch small amounts of genuine Mangosteen extract or powder to literally make tens or even hundreds of liters of finished Mangosteen liquid drink, whilst reaping substantial and often obscene profits. The taste of the Mangosteen juice or drink you experience could well be mainly due to citric acid, sodium benzoate and artificial flavours added during the manufacturing process of the Mangosteen drink. This marketing strategy isn't new however. It's a direct result of other "exotic" fruit products such as Acai Goji, and Noni netting billions in U.S. sales through direct marketing and retail sales, playing on the exotic flair of some reasonably common tropical fruit that wasn't previously well known in the U.S. Since Noni's profitable appearance in the U.S. market several years ago, many enterprising companies have been searching for the next and newest (highly profitable) noni-replacement from an "exotic" tropical fruit such as the Mangosteen. Reconstituted Juice To further compound the situation, most of the drinks made from Mangosteen for commercial exploitation, are reconstituted from Mangosteen concentrate back into a liquid, thereby destroying much of the inherent beneficial nature of the Mangosteen due to pasteurization and the manufacturing processes the ingredients go through. Often flavors and preservatives (as mentioned above) are added to allow the product to keep for indefinite periods once opened. Actual mgs of active ingredient, the xanthones found in the pericarp in a whole bottle of Mangosteen "health" juice may be far less than what the average person would consume by eating 20 blueberries or blackberries per day over the period of a month. The Health-Report team have looked thoroughly into many of the so-called wonder Mangosteen products out there and have come to the conclusion that most are not worth paying anything for. You may as well eat a few red grapes, black currants, blackberries or blueberries each day as pay for an exorbitantly priced bottle of Mangosteen "health" juice drink which will have little or no effect on your overall health. In fact, if the product is hot bottled and contains sodium benzoate as the preservative, it may have a long term detrimental effect on your health and may even causeleukemia. Having said that, some manufacturers that supply freeze dried powder concentrate and also manufacturers that have quality cold bottling processes, have been able to maintain the integrity of the original Mangosteen fruit. Freeze drying ensures the manufacturing process does not interfere with the good properties nor does it involve the destructive pasteurization needed for liquids to ensure they keep for long periods. An added benefit, often not taken into consideration is the debt placed on the environment when shipping glass bottles containing liquid around the world. It makes sense to use a product which is freeze dried, light and easy to ship, yet retains the integrity of the fruit without destructive pasteurization. In this day and age, reducing our carbon footprint by NOT shipping liquids around the world makes good sustainable sense. The Health-Report team can recommend only one antioxidant juice product, which although it doesn't contain Mangosteen it does contain very high levels of xanthones and other unique properties of the Mangosteen. The recommended freeze dried Certified Organic Formula is a blend of 10 recognised SuperFoods. It's easily the most economical product on the market when you compare actual ORAC units with other antioxidant health products. Each single serve delivers over 7000 ORAC units which is more than treble what nutritional scientists say we need every day. This would be equivalent to a customer buying up to 12 bottles (or even more) of common over the counter liquid Mangosteen/Noni/Acai/Goji products to obtain the same amount of active ingredient. Compare the difference Cancer, heart disease, diabetes are all known to be "aging" diseases. Supplying yourself with quality "anti-aging" whole food antioxidants along with a healthy diet, is your first and best line of prevention against metabolic diseases such as cancer and heart disease as well as preventing the onset of premature aging and wrinkled skin. Contact VietFruiT.Vn for advice References and Studies: Tapiero, H., et. al. “Polyphenols: do they play a role in the prevention of human pathologies?” Biomedicine & Pharmacotheraphy; 2002, 56 (4):200-207 Huang, D., et. al. “High-throughout assay of oxygen radical absorbency capacity using multichannel liquid handling system coupled with a microplate florescence reader in 96 we format.” Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry: 2002 50 (16): 4437-4444 Mangosteen in the Columbia Encyclopedia - 6th edition, Columbia University Press 2003 Parkinson. R. “Mangoes, Lychees and Mangosteen": Chinese Cuisine 2004 Nakatani, K. , et. al. “gamma-Mangostin inhibits IkappaB Kinase Activity with and decreases Lipopolysaccaride-induced cyclooxgenanase-2 Gene Expression in C6 Rat glioma Cells.” Molecular Pharmacology; June 24, 2004 Jiang, D.J. e. al. “ Pharmacological effects of xanthones as cardiovascular protective agents.” Cardiovascular Drug Reviews , 2004, 22(2):91-102 Biochem Pharmacol - 2002 Jan 1;63(1):73-9 Evaluation of the antifungal activity of natural xanthones from Garcinia mangostana and their synthetic derivatives – J. Nat Prod 1997 May; 60 (5):519-24 Active constituents against HIV-1 protease from Mangosteen- Planta Med 1996 Aug;62(4):381-2 Mangostin inhibits the oxidative modification of human low density lipoprotein- Free radical Res. 1995 Aug.:23(2):175-84 Antiproliferation, antioxidation and induction of apoptosis by Garcinia mangostana on SKBR3 human breast cancer cell line J.Ethnopharmacol, 2004 Jan:90(1):161-6 Induction of apoptosis by xanthones from mangosteen in human leukemia cell lines J.Nat Prod. 2003 Aug;55(8):1124-7
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