Anyone have any experience with Chokeberries?

[Guest guest]

I read the article below a few days ago. It looked interesting, so I

have ordered some chokeberry extract capsules from

http://www.swansonvitamins.com/SWH193/ItemDetail?SourceCode=INTL405 & CAWELAID=410\

184147.

I have not tried it yet, but am curious is anyone else has

experimented with chokeberry.

 

Alobar

 

Chokeberry extract found to regulate weight gain, blood glucose and

inflammation in rats

 

Chokeberry bushes have for centuries been residents of eastern

deciduous forests where their bright red and dark purple fruits

continue to be favorite snacks of local bird species. Native Americans

have also traditionally eaten dried chokeberries and prepared teas

from parts of the plant, and several domesticated varieties now grace

contemporary lawns and gardens from coast to coast. However, the

chokeberry (Aronia) is enjoying a new claim-to-fame as a potentially

powerful antioxidant, and can now be found for sale in the dietary

supplement and " health food " aisles of your local pharmacies and

grocery stores.

 

What makes the humble chokeberry so healthful? Scientists think the

answer lies in their unusually high levels of substances called

anthocyanins (from the Greek anthos + kyanos meaning dark blue). There

are many different anthocyanins in these colorful berries, but they

all function as antioxidants – originally protecting the chokeberry

seed from sunshine-induced oxidative stress. And when we eat them,

they also appear to protect our bodies from a variety of damaging

situations, including exposure to pollution and metabolically-derived

free radicals. Indeed, a growing body of scientific literature has

shown promising effects of chokeberry consumption on diseases ranging

from cancer to obesity. These health-promoting effects may be due to

the potent anti-inflammatory properties of anthocyanins, as

uncontrolled inflammation is now universally recognized as a common

thread in many of our most prevalent and deadly diseases. In addition,

certain anthocyanins – including those found in chokeberry – have also

been shown to improve blood sugar and the function of insulin.

 

To better understand how chokeberries influence health, Drs. Bolin Qin

and Richard Anderson from the US Department of Agriculture in

Beltsville, MD studied what happens when prediabetic rats are fed

chokeberry extracts for an extended period of time. The results of

their research will be presented on April 25 at the Experimental

Biology 2010 meeting in Anaheim, CA. This presentation is part of the

scientific program of the American Society for Nutrition, home of the

world's leading nutrition researchers.

 

The researchers first made 18 male rats " prediabetic " or insulin

insensitive by feeding them a fructose-rich diet for 6 weeks. Then

they randomized the animals to continue drinking either pure water or

water spiked with low or high levels of chokeberry extract

(CellBerry®, Integrity Nutraceuticals International). After drinking

this water for 6 weeks, the groups were compared in terms of body

weight, body fat, blood glucose regulation, and molecular markers for

inflammation.

 

Qin and Anderson found that at the end of the study the rats consuming

the chokeberry-spiked water weighed less than the controls; both

levels of chokeberry had the same effect in this regard. Similar

beneficial effects of chokeberry consumption were found for body fat

(specifically, that of the lower abdominal region). They also

discovered that animals that had been drinking chokeberry extract had

lower blood glucose and reduced levels of plasma triglycerides,

cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol when

compared to the control animals. These alterations would theoretically

lead to lower risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease in humans.

And to add even more evidence for a healthful impact of this

super-berry, the researchers documented numerous alterations in

expression of genes that would likely lead to reduced chronic

inflammation and perhaps even lower cancer risk. For instance,

drinking chokeberry extract lowered expression of the gene coding for

interleukin-6 (IL-6), a protein that normally triggers inflammation

following trauma or infection. Chronic overproduction of IL-6 has been

documented in many diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, and

atherosclerosis and is thought to be a partial cause of these

conditions.

 

Of course, human studies will be needed before scientists can declare

whether we derive the same health benefits from the chokeberry, but

Qin and Anderson believe that their study " provides evidence that the

chokeberry extract inhibits weight gain in insulin-resistant animals

and that it modulates multiple genes associated with adipose tissue

growth, blood glucose regulation, and inflammatory pathways. " A final

word to the wise: raw chokeberries are exceptionally bitter, so don't

be tempted to harvest the shrubs in your backyard. Instead, look for

this unassuming berry in fruit juice blends, jellies, and sweetened

syrups.

 

###

 

Drs. Qin and Anderson are federal researchers in the Diet, Genomics,

and Immunology Laboratory at the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research

Center, a component of the US Department of Agriculture. This study

was supported, in part, by Integrity Nutraceuticals International

(South Spring Hill, TN).

 

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-04/foas-cef042210.php

[Guest guest]

There is a wikipedia article on the chokeberry ~

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chokeberry

 

 

 

 

, Alobar <Alobar wrote:

>

> I read the article below a few days ago. It looked interesting, so I

> have ordered some chokeberry extract capsules from

>

http://www.swansonvitamins.com/SWH193/ItemDetail?SourceCode=INTL405 & CAWELAID=410\

184147.

> I have not tried it yet, but am curious is anyone else has

> experimented with chokeberry.

>

> Alobar

>