Mangosteen Juice Could Protect Health In The Obese

Main Category: Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness
Also Included In: Nutrition / Diet;  Heart Disease;  Diabetes
Article Date: 20 Oct 2009 - 5:00 PDT

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Mangosteen juice has anti-inflammatory properties which could prove to be valuable in preventing the development of heart disease and diabetes in obese patients. A study, published in BioMed Central's open access Nutrition Journal, describes how the juice of the exotic 'superfruit' lowered levels of C-reactive protein.

Dr. Jay Udani, M.D. from Medicus Research, California, worked with a team of researchers to carry out a randomized, double-blind placebo controlled trial. He said, "For people drinking over half a liter of mangosteen juice a day, the degree of reduction in CRP levels was statistically significant - a reduction of 1.33mg/L compared to an increase of 0.9mg/L in the placebo group".

Inflammation, as measured here by CRP, is a predictor of cardiovascular disease and a precursor of metabolic syndrome. Reducing inflammation in obese people is a treatment goal, and a natural treatment may be preferable to other treatments which may carry the risk of side effect. According to Udani, "Further studies with a larger population are required to confirm and further define the benefits of this juice, which was safe at all dosages tested".

Notes:
Evaluation of Mangosteen juice blend on biomarkers of inflammation in obese subjects: a pilot, dose finding study.
Jay K Udani, Betsy B Singh, Marilyn L Barrett and Vijay J Singh
Nutrition Journal (in press)
http://www.nutritionj.com/

Source:
Charlotte Webber
BioMed Central