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Cherry consumption lowers plasma urate

Fruits contain phytochemicals that may lower the risk of cancer, heart disease, and other chronic diseases. Both sweet and tart cherries are rich in antioxidants, including anthocyanins, catechins, chlorogenic acid, flavonal glycosides, and melatonin. Anthocyanins extracted from cherries have shown to contain anti-inflammatory properties, through inhibition of cyclooxygenase (COX) activities and scavenging of the reactive nitric oxide (NO) radical.

Consumption of cherries and cherry products has been reported to be health promoting, particularly to alleviate arthritic pain and gout. Clinical case reports of three patients with gout showed that consumption of 227 g of cherry products daily for three days to three months reduced plasma urate to normal levels and alleviated attacks of gouty arthritis. However, the purative anti-gout and anti-inflammatory properties of cherries have not been assessed in controlled experimental studies. A recent study in the Journal of Nutrition determined the extent of the anti-gout and anti-inflammatory effects in healthy women consuming an acute dose of Bing sweet cherries.

Ten healthy women were asked to refrain from consuming fruits and vegetables or their juices, tea, or wine for two days before the experimental cherry dose to partially standardize and limit intake of antioxidants. The subjects then consumed 280 g of depitted cherries (approximately 45 cherries) after an overnight fast. Plasma urate, antioxidant, and inflammatory markers were measured before the cherries, and at 1.5, 3, and 5 hours after the cherries were consumed.

Plasma urate decreased significantly at five hours post-dose, compared with the baseline measure, while urinary urate increased over the five hours post-dose and at each post-dose, sampling time compared with baseline. Among inflammatory biomarkers, plasma tumor necrosis factor (TNF-a) did not change after cherry consumption. However, plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) and nitric oxide (NO) concentrations marginally decreased three hours post-dose. The vitamin C content of the cherries was solely as dehydroascorbic acid, but post-dose increase in plasma ascorbic acid indicated that dehydroascorbic acid in fruits is bioavailable as vitamin C.

The decrease in plasma urate after cherry consumption supports the anti-gout properties of cherries. The data cannot establish the mechanism whereby cherry consumption lowers plasma urate. However, the trend toward decreased plasma concentrations of the inflammatory markers CRP and NO adds to the in vitro evidence that compounds in cherries may inhibit inflammatory pathways. Further research is required to determine the potential of cherry and polyphenol consumption for inhibiting the inflammatory cascade and for improving the condition of individuals who are at risk or who suffer from gout and arthritis.

Robert A. Jacob, Giovanna M. Spinozzi, and Vicky A. Simon. Consumption of Cherries Lowers Plasma Urate in Healthy Women, J. Nutr. (133: 1826-1829, 2003). Address correspondence to: Robert A. Jacob, US Department of Agriculture/ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Center, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95616. E-mail: rjacob@whnrc.usda.gov

COPYRIGHT 2003 Frost & Sullivan
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group

Add comment July 13th, 2005

The Food Groups Myth

MYTH: “Your body gets all the nutrients it needs from the four food groups.”

The above statement is a quote. From who? Sadly, from many doctors.

It’s little wonder when you consider that Nutrition is a course “elective” for most medical students. That also might account for the fact that the average lifespan of a doctor is over fifteen years shorter than the rest of us!

The fact is, the nutritional value in today’s processed foods has been compromised substantially. Filling your body with nutrient-poor calories is like filling your car with watered down gasoline.

Today’s foods are woefully lacking for three primary reasons:

Farm soils are depleted of nutrients.

Most farmlands are fertilized with only 3 minerals.

Crops are contaminated with pollutants and poisons.

These and other factors contribute to a diet for most Americans that is virtually absent of many of the trace elements that our bodies need to fight disease and infection, rebuild and repair, and generally function as the marvel of biology that it is.

According to the best of modern scientific research, the human body requires around 90 nutrients each day for optimal health and longevity.

They are broken down as follows:

60 Minerals

16 Vitamins

12 Amino Acids

3 Fatty Acids

Of the above nutrients, minerals are by far the most important. In his book “Rare earths, forbidden cures,” chapter two, Dr. Joel Wallach drives the point home:

“The basic functions of life itself cannot be performed without minerals, either as a major part of the function or as a catalytic cofactor (i.e. - RNA, DNA, sub cellular and digestive enzymes and the utilization of vitamins) - yet despite more than 10,000 years of human experience the allopathic medical profession would have us believe that all we modern humans need for optimal health and longevity is their stewardship, the four food groups, pharmaceuticals, radiation, surgery and organ transplants!! Simply said, minerals are the currency of life.”

Even the United States government is not blind to the scandal of how badly we lack basic nutrients. Published in 1936 by the 74th Congress 2nd Session, senate document #264 confirms:

“The alarming fact is that foods (fruits, vegetables and grains) now being raised on millions of acres of land, that no longer contain enough of certain minerals, are starving us - no matter how much of them we eat. No man of today can eat enough fruits and vegetables to supply his system with the minerals he requires for perfect health because his stomach isn’t big enough to hold them.” (For more quotes from U.S. Senate document 264, click here.)

We cannot get the nutrients we need for optimal health and longevity from the foods we eat. We must supplement, or suffer.

Add comment July 13th, 2005