HOW CAN RESVERATROL IMPROVE OUR HEALTH? - JANUARY 2017 - VOLUME 8, ISSUE 10

Happy New Year! I hope you had an enjoyable, safe and healthy holiday, and that you're making great progress with your new year's resolutions! February is just around the corner and, of course, Valentine's Day, which is very much related to heart health. In recent years, there has been a lot of publicity concerning the heart health effects of resveratrol, a compound found mainly in grapes and red wine, as well as in raspberries, plums, grape tomatoes, acai berries, pomegranates, cocoa and peanuts. I thought it would be interesting to look at the available evidence that resveratrol is heart-healthy.   These newsletters will help you make better choices for better health. The choices that you make today can either have a positive or negative impact on your overall health. Begin by choosing better. It is a step toward longevity. Volume 8, Issue 10 How Can Resveratrol Improve Our Health? Ramila Padiachy Doctorate of Natural Medicine (DNM)® Ramilas Healing Arts Clinic 1437 Woodroffe Avenue Ottawa ON (map) 613.829.0427 info@ramilas.com How Can Resveratrol Improve Our Health? What is resveratrol? It is a polyphenol, which is a type of antioxidant, found in grape skins (but not in grape seeds), and particularly in red grape skins (as well as other foods listed above in the introduction). Can resveratrol benefit your cardiovascular health? There has been interest in resveratrol's role in heart health ever since a meta-analysis found a significant risk reduction associated with drinking 1-2 glasses of wine daily. Researchers believe that chronic inflammation may be at the root of heart disease. Inflammation can cause blood clotting; the clots can then block the blood flow to your heart leading to heart disease and possibly a heart attack. Resveratrol is believed to reduce inflammation, leading to increased heart health. Resveratrol may also help to lower LDL ("bad" cholesterol). Note that it might interact with blood thinners like Coumadin, as well as medications like aspirin and ibuprofen, and increase the chance of bleeding. It is believed that resveratrol enables the walls of blood vessels to relax; this tends to be impaired in people with chronic heart disease, and resveratrol may reverse or reduce this impairment. Since type 2 diabetes is closely related to cardiovascular health, it's worth mentioning that resveratrol appears to help reduce insulin resistance, a precursor to type 2 diabetes. Thus it appears that resveratrol is effective at protecting the heart and blood flow, and may be an insulin sensitizer. There is interest in the effect of resveratrol on exercise, and, of course, fitness is related to heart health. A comprehensive review of the literature concluded it is clear resveratrol has positive effects on muscle function and antioxidant activity, as well as carbohydrate metabolism and bone metabolism. Therefore, it is definitely correlated with exercise; it will be interesting to follow further research on this topic. Resveratrol appears to increase the activity of mitochondria, which produce energy within cells; this could potentially extend the cells' lives. This may explain resveratrol's popularity as an anti-aging compound. It also appears to stimulate cellular proteins known as sirtuins; this is believed to promote longer cell life. One Powerful Juice: ZAMBROZA Nature’s Sunshine's Zambroza is a combination of 14 of the most healthful fruits and extracts gathered from around the world. Zambroza’s ingredients are rich in bioflavonoids, polyphenols and antioxidants. Zambroza has been independently tested by New Brunswick Laboratories to deliver a high ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) value. Among Zambroza’s key ingredients is mangosteen, which contains the greatest known supply of highly-researched, polyphenolic compounds called xanthones. Other ingredients of note are acai berry, pomegranate, wolfberry (goji berry), raspberry, grape skin and seed extract, sea buckthorn and many more. You can purchase Zambroza at our online store. Research shows these ingredients may support: Anti-aging Heart health Memory and motor skills Diabetes Colds, flu and sore throat Normalization of menstruation Normal blood pressure Eyesight Improved immune system Fatigue Skin problems Urinary tract concerns Pain relief What's the relevance of resveratrol to Valentine's Day? We all know that chocolate is an important feature of Valentine's Day. You've probably also heard that chocolate contains beneficial flavonols. However, you might not know that resveratrol is one of them, and that chocolate (cocoa) contains significant levels of resveratrol (although not quite as much as red wine). So, chocolate, particularly dark chocolate, is a tasty alternative (or addition) to red wine as a source of resveratrol. Enjoy! Supplements There are some Nature's Sunshine supplements that are relevant to this newsletter. You can find information about these products and purchase them in our online store: Zambroza Arginine Plus with Mixed Berry CHOLESTER REG II SUPER TRIO For additional information, email info@ramilas.com or call Ramilas Healing Arts Clinic at 613.829.0427 for an appointment. Please continue letting friends and family know about this newsletter. Visit our website where you can see back issues of this newsletter, information about services and our clinic, and order products. References: Resveratrol. Examine.com. examine.com/supplements/Resveratrol/ Accessed January 10, 2017. Oz M. 4 supplements for a longer life. doctoroz.com/article/4-supplements-longer-life June 6, 2012. Resveratrol supplements. WebMD. webmd.com/heart-disease/resveratrol-supplements Accessed January 9, 2017. Baltaci SB, Mogulkoc R, Baltaci AK. Resveratrol and exercise (review). Biomedical Reports 2015;5:525-530. King Collier A, Drevitch G. Is resveratrol the magic bullet against aging? Huffington Post huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/02/anti-aging-is-resveratrol-the-magic-bullet_n_3534925.html Accessed January 16, 2017. Mangosteen. webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-1081-mangosteen.aspx?activeingredientid=1081&activeingredientname=mangosteen Accessed January 18, 2017. Health benefits of goji berry or wolfberry. organicfacts.net/health-benefits/fruit/health-benefits-of-goji-berry-or-wolfberry.html Accessed January 18, 2017. Red raspberry research abounds at 2016 Experimental Biology conference. eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-04/wh-rrr040116.php Accessed January 18, 2017. Mercola J. Resveratrol also found in dark chocolate and cocoa. articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/10/28/resveratrol-also-found-in-dark-chocolate-and-cocoa.aspx October 28, 2008. Disclaimer: The suggestions and recommendations in this newsletter are not intended to be prescriptive or diagnostic. The information is accurate and up to date to our knowledge, but we are not responsible for any errors in our sources of information. “Ramila’s promise that I would be well has proven true. With all my heart, I thank her and Megs for their dedication to their healing arts and to their clients, and for their knowledge and loving service." - Jennifer B. [facebooklike]        [twittertweet]        [lnkdinshare]        [googleplusone]