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Pterostilbene: The other powerful antioxidant for better blood pressure
If you’ve been reading here for some time, you surely know all about the health benefits of resveratrol.
Found in the skin of red grapes, resveratrol is a powerful, natural antioxidant that supports your heart, improves your skin and may help fight diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
In regions of France where they drink a lot of red wine, heart disease seems to be less frequent, even with all the rich, fatty cheese in their diet.
Well, if you’re not a red wine fan, fear not. You can get even more of these health perks by grabbing a handful of blueberries.
That’s right… blueberries have their own super-antioxidant that leaves resveratrol in the dust.
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Pterostilbene: resveratrol’s powerful first cousin
In a clinical trial at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, 80 people took either 100mg of pterostilbene,100mg of pterostilbene plus grape seed extract or a placebo.
After eight weeks, those who took 100 mg of pterostilbene, as well as those taking pterostilbene and grape seed extract, showed measurable improvements in blood pressure and circulation.
So, what exactly is pterostilbene (pronounced terro-still-bean)?
It’s an antioxidant produced by plants to protect themselves against viruses, bacteria and fungi. It’s found in abundance in blueberries.
What makes pterostilbene even more powerful than resveratrol is the makeup of its molecules.
The molecular structures of resveratrol and pterostilbene are, not surprisingly, very similar. They’re like first cousins.
But the pterostilbene molecule has two more connecting points. In practical terms, this means that it is more easily absorbed through the stomach lining and cell membranes, so it’s more bioavailable. And that means it’s more accessible to your body — and it stays in your system longer.
The chameleon of antioxidants
Conditions like high cholesterol involve some sort of change in the normal behavior of our metabolism.
Pterostilbene acts like a chameleon. What it does varies, depending on how our cells have deviated from their normal, healthy metabolic actions.
The metabolic regulation accomplished by pterostilbene has been compared to the effects of drugs like metformin and tamoxifen.
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Other benefits of pterostilbene
Pterostilbene’s health benefits are numerous and affect many systems in your body…
- It strengthens Natural Killer (NK) cells, the immune system’s “seek and destroy” cells that go after abnormal cells in the body.
- It helps control inflammation.
- It helps control the accumulation of fat in the liver.
- It causes apoptosis (cell death) in unwanted cells.
- It supports mitochondria, the tiny power plants inside every cell in the human body.
The action of pterostilbene also helps prevent Alzheimer’s disease. That’s because pterostilbene increases levels of Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) and dopamine in the brain. IGF-1 promotes the growth of blood vessels and neurons in the hippocampus, while dopamine is vital to learning and memory).
How to get more pterostilbene
Clearly, if you eat blueberries every day, you will be reaping all of the above benefits of pterostilbene.
But pterostilbene is also found in other healthy foods, including almonds and peanuts.
And, red wine drinkers are in luck, because those resveratrol-rich red grapes also have plenty of pterostilbene!
Pterostilbene is also available in supplement form. Be sure to follow manufacturer guidelines on dosing or talk to a healthcare practitioner if you have questions.
Pterostilbene doesn’t seem to have any negative side effects, other than upset stomach or headache if you happen to be allergic to it. An analysis of safety from a human clinical trial with pterostilbene found no adverse drug reactions, but if you’re on medications and want to be sure, your pharmacist may be able to answer any questions.
Editor’s note: Have you heard of EDTA chelation therapy? It was developed originally to remove lead and other contaminants, including heavy metals, from the body. Its uses now run the gamut from varicose veins to circulation. Click here to discover Chelation: Natural Miracle for Protecting Your Heart and Enhancing Your Health!
Sources:
Pterostilbene on Metabolic Parameters: A Randomized, Double-Blind, and Placebo-Controlled Trial — Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Pterostilbene in Combination With Mitochondrial Cofactors Improve Mitochondrial Function in Cellular Models of Mitochondrial Diseases — Frontiers in Pharmocology
What is Pterostilbene? — pterostilbene.com
10 Natural Pterostilbene Foods Sources — superfoodly.com
By Joyce Hollman
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