Michelle, it's time to tell the world about "meat & dairy."

Dear Michelle,

I love what you're trying to do regarding the health of the children. I am just wondering when you think you might be ready to tell the world the truth about the "low-fat dairy" and "healthier meats" that you mention in your Forward Motion article in the Amtrak magazine? If you want to achieve your "one big goal to end the epidemic of childhood obesity in a generation," you're going to need to tell their parents exactly what they should feed those children -- and exactly what they should not be feeding them.

I also like what you say about the "salad bars and more fruits & vegetables," but when are you going to tell the citizens of America what they deserve to know about our food supply? For example, when are you going to tell the world that the casein in cow's milk is a carcinogen?

Michelle tossing an apple on the cover of the "Arrive" magazine on Amtrak this month

From your article, it appears that you may not have read The China Study, and may not yet be aware of our harmful, wasteful and unsustainable diet-style of meat and dairy three meals a day. It is admirable that you are promoting better school lunches and healthier foods in WalMart; yet at the same time, you say nothing at all in your article about the harmful meat and dairy products that are promoting cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes and driving our outrageously high cost of health care.

Thrive In 30 Program - Brendan Brazier

Ever wish you could find yourself waking up every morning feeling like a world class athlete?  Where every part of your body just oozes with an abundance of energy, health, and vitality.  A lifestyle where you jump out of bed ready to take on the world.  Sounds like everyone's perfect way of living right?

Well, if this is your goal then you're in luck because anyone can achieve this lifestyle no matter who you are.  Brendan Brazier, a world class athlete, has launched an amazing program called Thrive In 30 that is bound to send you down this very path.

So what is Thrive In 30 all about?  Let's take a look...

Understanding The Ups And Downs Of Erectile Dysfunction

Erectile dysfunction (ED) or impotence is a growing problem for many men in today's world and has inevitably found its way into the punch line of many jokes as we've found ways to make light of what those little blue pills can do for you.  But joking aside, this condition can cause of lot of anxiety and psychological stress for men as fear of failure and inadequacy with their sexual health takes hold.  Not only does this cause problems for a man's sexual health and the ensuing intimate relationships with their respective partners but it also leads to a decline in their overall health as well.

As it turns out, ED can be just as much of a predictor of developing chronic diseases as high cholesterol or smoking or family history can be.  As a matter of fact, ED has been linked to coronary artery disease, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, hyperlipidemia, peripheral arterial disease, diabetic retinopathy, and chronic kidney disease [1-5,8].   One shocking statistic is that two thirds of all men with clinically evident coronary artery disease also have ED [1].  What's more, the signs and symptoms of ED frequently show up in these men approximately 2-3 years before the consequences of coronary atherosclerosis.  Atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease, as you may know, increase your risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Forks Over Knives - Movie Review

There are several documentaries produced that will capture your curiosity and attention for an hour or two on a lazy, summer day but their message is usually long forgotten by the time you hit your pillow that night.  Forks Over Knives defies this status quo as it leaves you thinking twice about everything you've ever grown up on and makes you question your future choices regarding the foods that you eat as it brings to light the outspoken lessons of how nutritional excellence is the key to a healthier nation and a better quality of life for all.

Forks Over Knives is the brilliant work of two legendary pioneers in our modern day healthcare system.  One American biochemist, Dr. T. Colin Campbell, has over 50 years of distinguished work in the field of nutrition and health and one American surgeon, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, has worked tirelessly for decades at the world famous Cleveland Clinic to rid his patients of heart disease.  These two men have teamed up to share their life long experiences in the fields of health and nutrition to educate the world on how to prevent and reverse chronic diseases with a plant-based diet.

Big Money, Special Interests, & The American Healthcare Crisis

Is there such a thing as having people's best interest in mind when it comes to their overall health anymore?  Last week you learned how your tax dollars are making America sick, literally, as the USDA provides 97%-98% of its subsidies to promote the production of foods that are linked to the gluttony of chronic diseases that people are suffering from in this country.  Then the USDA turns around and publishes dietary guidelines telling us to eat these same foods in our everyday diets.  This week you'll learn how money changes hands between special interest groups and the world of politics and industry when it comes to our health, our food, and our attempts to "fix" the American healthcare crisis.

Picture yourself in charge of finding a solution to our current healthcare crisis.  What would you do?  Heart disease, cancer, diabetes, strokes, osteoporosis, obesity, and the list goes on and on and on.  That's a big task to say the least!  And I'm sure you would agree that the most logical and successful way to approach these issues would be to allocate as much of our nation's financial resources as possible towards the methods proven to be the most effective, safest, and least costly when it comes to treating these diseases.  To do this, you first need to know which methods of treatments are the most effective, safest, and least costly.  Second, you need to know where the money goes and how this money influences what treatments end up being talked about when you're sitting in the exam room of your doctor's office.

Our Taxes - Are They Making Us Sick?

When it comes to spending money, you're making a conscious decision on whether or not the goods and services you're purchasing are worth your hard earned dollars.  You want to feel like you've made a smart decision that contains some sort of value.

I'm sure you would find this same concept true when it comes to your overall health.  In essence, you want to make good decisions and investments which help you feel better, live longer, and avoid the chronic diseases that plague most of our society.  And the most important investment you can make, when it comes to determining how healthy you are, is in the form of the foods that you purchase and consume on a regular basis.  So how are the prices of various foods determined?

You may or may not realize that this is largely determined by how our tax dollars are spent with respect to the different subsidies paid to the food and agriculture industries.  Common sense would tell us that we would want our government to subsidize the foods that increase and promote overall health the most.  However, in reality the exact opposite is true.  In fact, the rise in obesity and decline in public health is directly correlated to the increasing availability of low-nutrient, inexpensive food that is high in fat, sugar, and refined grains [1].  On the contrary, foods found to have the highest amount of nutrients per calorie (fruits and vegetables) cost much more per calorie than their lower nutrient counterparts [2] even though they play a vital role in promoting health and wellness.

So how exactly does this all fit together?  And what does the breakdown look like when it comes to our tax dollars being divvied up to their respective recipients in the food and ag industries?  Let's find out as we take a deeper look into these very issues.

EarthSave's "Meals For Health" Program - Changing The Lives Of Those In Need

America is living in a state of emergency when it comes to our overall health.  This heartbreaking picture can be seen in some of the startling statistics that reveal the rates of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer just to name a few of the chronic diseases we see here in the U.S.

As a matter of fact, cardiovascular disease takes the life of an individual every 38 seconds in our country [1].  Diabetes is no better as a little over 5,200 people are diagnosed with this disease every single day in America, and this only includes those over the age of 20 who are diagnosed with diabetes [2].  And lastly, according to estimates from the American Cancer Society roughly 65 people die every hour from a cancer related death in the U.S. [3]  These painful statistics are even worse for those individuals and families who live in poverty.  But there is hope.

Music To Soothe The Soul

You just reached the end to what has to have been one of the worst days of your life and the stress of it all has you at your wits end!  You need something to go from frantic and frazzled to calm and relaxed.  But what do you do?  Since a quick trip to your favorite tropical island isn't exactly in order why not try music.  That's right, if you're like the rest of the 6+ billion people on this earth then you know the pure happiness that can come from the perfect song.  It makes your troubles just float away like they never existed and that's exactly what you need to put all those struggles behind you.

Growing Old Wrinkle Free

Oh no!  What's that staring you back as you look into the mirror this morning?  It couldn't be yet another tiny crinkle in your forehead determined to push you into senility could it?!  Wrinkles... the one thing that nobody wants more of especially in our modern day culture.  But is there anything we can do about it?  Why don't we find out as we turn you into an expert on the topic of wrinkles and how to prevent them.

The Food Industry - Behind The Scenes With Robin O'Brien

It's funny how something so simple in life can lead to such a huge change for that person.  And it's even more incredible when that simple event ends up having a profound impact on hundreds, if not thousands, of other people.  That's exactly what an ordinary breakfast of Eggo waffles, scrambled eggs, and a tube of blue yogurt did for Robin O'Brien and her family.

That breakfast turned into an urgent trip to their pediatrician's office as Robin's youngest child had an allergic reaction to the food she ate that morning.  This event completely changed not only the lives of Robin and her family but also the lives of countless numbers of other parents and their children as the truth behind our food industry was about to be unveiled.

Type 2 Diabetes - The Cause and The Cure

It's the disease that's becoming more and more prevalent among westernized cultures.  Diabetes, along with the obesity epidemic that's fueling it, is growing rampant and the numbers behind the illness are almost too large to wrap your mind around.  According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA) 25.8 million people have diabetes in the United States.  That's approximately 8.3% of the population.  But that's not the disturbing part.  The real kicker is another 79 million people in the U.S. are at risk for developing diabetes and are classified as having prediabetes.

The ADA goes on to report that the total cost of treating both diabetes and prediabetes in the U.S. in 2007 was a whopping $218 billion dollars!  That's more than the $171 billion dollars that the Department of Defense reportedly spent on BOTH the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2010.  And it's almost double the $129.8 billion that the U.S. federal government budgeted for education in 2011.

But it's not the financial burden of diabetes that hurts the worst.  If you're one of the people who suffers from this chronic disease then you're probably all too familiar with the fact that diabetes can lead to further serious medical conditions including high blood pressure, heart disease, kidney failure, blindness, hearing loss, peripheral neuropathy, skin infections and skin ulcers, impotence, depression, peripheral arterial disease, strokes, limb amputations, and even death.  And with a list this long it goes without saying that we must do something to turn things around.  So what do we do?

First, we need to understand the disease better.  Second, we need to adopt the approaches that have been proven by science to be the most effective, safest, and least costly ways to beat this disease.  So what do you say... why don't we take an in depth look at both of these.

Going Veg - From A Pharmacist's Perspective

I was sitting in my podiatrist's office one day back in February 2009 waiting to see the doctor about my plantar fasciitis.  This was only my second or third trip to see Dr. Sal and little did I know that it would change the entire course of my life.  It just so happened that the health care debate in the U.S. was heating up right around this time and a copy of Time magazine was sitting in Dr. Sal's waiting room with an article on this very topic.

This was perfect to pass the time as I was always looking for information and different points of views on the subject.  As a pharmacist this topic really touches home to me because the health and wellness of others is my passion and its the reason I get up every morning and do what I do.  So I started reading away but before I could finish my name was called by the nurse.  It was my turn!  Isn't it funny how excited we get when our name is finally called in a doctor's office?  Anyway, I brought the article into the exam room and continued to finish it while waiting for the doctor to enter.

When Dr. Sal walked in he greeted me with an energetic smile and asked how I was doing.  He noticed I was reading and asked how the magazine was treating me.  I said "Great!  I was just reading up on all this health care stuff going on."  This in turn led into a very interesting and enlightening discussion as the two of us medical gurus went back and forth on the whole debate.  And then Dr. Sal hit me with it... "You know regardless of what legislation is put forth regarding health care it will never really get to the heart of the matter."  I was a little confused and not quite sure what he meant by that but very curious as to what was to come next.

Ketosis & The Low Carb Diet Calamity

We've all seen the hype surrounding the Atkins diet.  It's everywhere you look - in magazines, on supermarket shelves, in television ads, and possibly even in your healthcare provider's office.  It's so popular that maybe you've even tried it or at least been thinking of trying it.

So how exactly does a low-carb, high-fat, high-protein diet work?  And does eating all the bacon, steak, and eggs that you could possibly dream of really bode well for your overall health both in the short term and in the long run?  Let's find out as we take a peek inside these low-carb diets and really get to the bottom of the science behind the bacon grease.

The Mystery Behind The Seeds

"Don't eat the seeds!  They're poisonous and you could die!"  You've probably heard someone blurt this out as you chomped down on your apple when you were a kid.  But is it really true?  And do the seeds of different fruits actually have any nutritional value?

We'll take a look at some common fruits and see whether or not it's safe to eat their seeds or whether you might be throwing away the best part.  So let go of those childhood fears as we uncover the science behind the mystery of all those seeds.

Apples

You've probably heard that if you eat the seeds of an apple that it's dangerous and you'll get cyanide poisoning.  There is some truth to this but you would have to eat a lot of apples to make this happen.  Apple seeds contain amygdalin which can be broken down into hydrogen cyanide which can cause the following harmful effects as reported by the CDC - low blood pressure, convulsions, respiratory failure, coma, and even death.  However, apple seeds only contain 0.6mg/g of cyanide [1].  Lethal doses of cyanide range from 50-200 mg [2].  So you would have to ingest about 85 grams or roughly 1/2 cup of apple seeds to get a fatal dose.  Since there are only up to 10-15 seeds per apple it is highly unlikely that anyone would consume enough to cause any problems.  Not to mention the fact that the seeds have to be crushed or pulverized to release the cyanide.  If you happen to eat the apple seeds whole then they will most likely travel through your entire digestive tract unchanged and be excreted intact in your waste products.

Watermelon

Watermelon is a summertime favorite for many of you out there and it turns out that their seeds have some valuable health benefits too!  Watermelon seeds are an excellent source of B vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, folate, and niacin.  B vitamins are needed to keep a healthy immune and nervous system, prevent anemia, and to maintain healthy skin.

Watermelon seeds do tend to be high in fat with about 71% of their total calories derived from fats.  However, they contain some of the healthier fats known as mono and polyunsaturated fats in addition to the less popular saturated fats.  They're also a good source of protein and contain all the essential amino acids that are important to get from your diet.  One last thing worth mentioning about watermelon seeds is that they're an excellent source of iron, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, and manganese.

Almonds

Almonds are actually considered a seed and not a nut contrary to popular belief.  They are grown on trees and are considered part of the genus Prunus which also contains cherries, plums, and peaches.  But instead of having a soft, fleshy, and edible outer covering like these other fruits the almond is surrounded by a thick, leathery outer coat that is not edible.  There are two types of almonds known as the sweet almond and bitter almond.  Bitter almonds can contain anywhere from 4-9 mg of cyanide per almond [3] and have to be processed to remove the cyanide before eating them.  The almonds you get at the store are most likely grown in California and are sweet almonds which do not have the risk of cyanide poisoning.  Just as a side note the seeds of the Prunus genus (cherries, plums, peaches, apricots) all contain cyanide and should not be eaten.

Almonds are high in fat but a handful of them a day can have a number of positive effects on your overall health.  Almonds have been shown to increase good cholesterol "HDL" and lower bad cholesterol "LDL" reducing the risk of coronary artery disease [4,5].  They also lower the glycemic response to carbohydrate rich meals which can help lower the incidence of diabetes [6].  And they have also been shown to aid those in a weight loss reduction program [7].

Pomegranate

Pomegranate fruit is one of the most well known fruits for its superior health benefits.  This fruit contains hundreds of seeds inside of it.  It's the dark reddish-purplish pulp that surrounds each one of these seeds where pomegranate gets its wonderful health benefits.  Both the pulp and the seeds are consumed and are often made into a juice.

Pomegranate has a very high content of an antioxidant class called polyphenols which have been shown to reduce plaque formation in arteries, lower blood pressure, and have anti-inflammatory effects [8].  Pomegranate has also been shown to have an inhibitory effect on prostate cancer cells [9] and breast cancer cells [10].

A study done in 2008 actually showed that pomegranate juice had a higher overall antioxidant index than 11 other drinks tested.  And it contained 20% more total antioxidants than the next closest drink which was red wine [11].  So whether you buy the juice or the whole fruit pomegranate is definitely worth making a part of your regular diet.

Conclusion

You can see that different fruits and the seeds they contain can have dramatically different effects on the body.  While we purposely seek out and eat the seeds of pomegranate and almonds for their health benefits we tend to shy away from others such as apricots, cherries, and apples just to name a few because of the risk of cyanide poisoning.  For the most part mother nature has made it pretty easy to figure out which seeds to eat and which to avoid.  You'd have a pretty hard time chewing or swallowing a seed from peach whereas ingesting a few watermelon seeds is almost impossible to avoid unless you get the seedless watermelon.  What's important is to make sure you set aside those delectable yet devilish danishes, cookies, and cakes and opt for a variety of healthy fruits to satisfy that sweet tooth of yours.  You'll be glad you did and so will your doctor when you step on the scale at your next office visit.

If you like what you see here then you'll LOVE our daily Facebook and Twitter posts!  Also, don't forget to sign up for  Our Free Online Mailing List  to get all the latest updates from the Plant-Based Pharmacist!

by Dustin Rudolph, PharmD
Clinical Pharmacist

Check out Dustin Rudolph's book The Empty Medicine Cabinet to start your journey towards better health. This step-by-step guide leads you through many of today's common chronic diseases (heart disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, and more), giving you the facts on foods versus medications in treating these medical conditions. The book also contains an easy-to-follow guide on how to adopt a whole foods, plant-based diet as a part of an overall lifestyle change, producing the best possible health outcomes for you and your family. Hurry and get your copy today!

We'd love for you to join us in spreading the good word about plant-based nutrition and lifestyle medicine by telling your family and friends about our website at www.PlantBasedPharmacist.com. 

Share and rate this post below or tell us what you think by posting a comment. Thank you again for stopping by and until next time... be happy, be healthy, and live the life you've always dreamed of!

References:

1 Donald G. Barceloux. (2008). Medical Toxicology of Natural Substances: Foods, Fungi, Medicinal Herbs, Plants, and Venomous Animals. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. pp. 47. ISBN 9780471727613.

2 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Health effects criteria document for cyanide. Office of Drinking Water, Washington, DC (1985).

3 Shragg TA, Albertson TE, Fisher CJ. Cyanide Poisoning After Bitter Almond Ingestion. West. J. Med. 1982 Jan. 136 (1):65-69.

4 Spiller GA, Jenkins DA, Bosello O, et al. Nuts and plasma lipids: an almond-based diet lowers LDL-C while preserving HDL-C. J Am Coll Nutr. 1998 Jun;17(3):285-90.

5 Jenkins DJ, Kendall CW, Marchie A, et al. Dose response of almonds on coronary heart disease risk factors: blood lipids, oxidized low-density lipoproteins, lipoprotein(a), homocysteine, and pulmonary nitric oxide: a randomized, controlled, crossover trial. Circulation. 2002 Sep 10;106(11):1327-32.

6 Jenkins DJ, Kendall CW, Josse AR, et al. Almonds decrease postprandial glycemia, insulinemia, and oxidative damage in healthy individuals. J Nutr. 2006 Dec;136(12):2987-92.

7 Wien MA, Sabaté JM, Iklé DN, Cole SE, Kandeel FR. Almonds vs complex carbohydrates in a weight reduction program. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2003 Nov;27(11):1365-72.

8 Basu A, Penugonda K. Pomegranate juice: a heart-healthy fruit juice. Nutr Rev. 2009 Jan;67(1):49-56.

9 Gasmi J, Sanderson JT. Growth Inhibitory, Antiandrogenic, and Pro-apoptotic Effects of Punicic Acid in LNCaP Human Prostate Cancer Cells. J Agric Food Chem. 2010 Nov 10.

10 Dai Z, Nair V, Khan M, Ciolino HP. Pomegranate extract inhibits the proliferation and viability of MMTV-Wnt-1 mouse mammary cancer stem cells in vitro. Oncol Rep. 2010 Oct;24(4):1087-91.

11 Seeram NP, Aviram M, Zhang Y, et al. Comparison of antioxidant potency of commonly consumed polyphenol-rich beverages in the United States. J Agric Food Chem. 2008 Feb 27;56(4):1415-22.

Acai Berry - Packing A Powerful Punch

We all know that the berry family gets two thumbs up when it comes to your health.  You've probably heard that blueberries are great for your memory and cranberries are good for a urinary tract infection but what about this new berry taking center stage called the acai berry?  It seems that everywhere you look these days somebody or some company is raving about how amazing this little purple berry is.  So what's all the hype about anyway?

What Is The Acai Berry?

The acai berry actually originates out of Brazil.  The dark black-purple berry is a fruit that grows from the acai palm tree (Euterpe oleracea).  The palm trees are native to the Central and South American regions.  The acai berry has very little fruit or pulp to it.  Eighty percent of it is actually comprised of a seed [1] that is not consumed by humans.

Nutritional content of freeze dried acai was studied by researchers and showed just how beneficial this berry is [2].  A 100 gram sample was tested which is probably more than you'll ever consume at one sitting.  There was a total of 533.9 calories, 32.5 grams fat (73.9% from unsaturated fatty acids), 44.2 grams fiber, 8.1 grams protein, 1.3 grams sugar, and an abundant array of antioxidants.  You can see that acai is an excellent source of "good" fats with most of its fat content coming from unsaturated fatty acids.  It's also an excellent source of fiber which always seems to be lacking in the typical western diet.  Acai is also low in sugar and the protein contained within the fruit consists of an array of 19 different amino acids.  The most significant health benefit of acai, however, is due to its large amount of antioxidants which will be discussed in more detail below.

How Does Acai Provide Powerful Health Benefits?

Acai can pack a powerful punch when it comes to preventing disease.  It gets many of its health benefits from the high amounts of antioxidants found within it.  Antioxidants are extremely important in warding off the harmful effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS) otherwise known as free radicals.  Excessive ROS production has been implicated in the development of many different diseases such as atherosclerosis, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, and various auto-immune diseases [3].  One study from the University of California Berkeley actually showed that human DNA is bombarded by 10,000 oxidative hits per day [4].  That's a lot of damage being done and emphasizes how important it is to consume antioxidant rich foods.

The acai berry is rich in a particular kind of antioxidant class called polyphenols.  There are well over 4,000 different kinds of polyphenols that have currently been discovered and one of these polyphenol groups are known as flavonoids.  Acai contains around 10% of its overall antioxidant capacity from specific flavonoids known as anthocyanins [5].  Anthocyanins are highly absorbed from the fruit and have led to an increase in total antioxidant capacity in the blood up to 3 fold in one study in humans [6].  Anthocyanins are what give many different fruits and vegetables their deep red, blue, and purple colors.

Many different health benefits have been shown in vitro (in research labs) from the antioxidant effects of anthocyanins but more studies need to be done in vivo (involving humans) to confirm these benefits in real life scenarios.  The in vitro health benefits include inhibiting cancer cell growth and inducing apoptosis (programmed cell death) [7,8], reduction in cardiovascular disease [9], increased glucose tolerance and reduction in cholesterol levels [10], and the ability to protect against DNA damage due to advanced age-induced oxidative stress [11].  There was also one in vivo study that indicated that anthocyanins are beneficial to your eyes by protecting them against progressive myopia otherwise known as nearsightedness [12].

In addition to the above mentioned benefits of acai there was also an interesting study published in 2006 that showed a number of positive effects from freeze-dried acai [13].  In this study acai was shown to have one of the highest antioxidant activities ever reported by any food against the peroxyl radical as measured by the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay.  ORAC is one of the most common methods used to test antioxidant capacity of different foods.

Acai has also been shown to have beneficial anti-inflammatory effects by inhibiting  COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes.  You may know that this is also how many different popular anti-inflammatory medications such as Ibuprofen, Naproxen, and Celebrex work but these drugs can also cause very troublesome gastrointestinal (GI) side effects which can include upset stomach and even GI bleeds.  However, with acai you can skip the side effects and still obtain anti-inflammatory benefits as there are no known side effects to consuming this fruit.

Acai also contains proanthocyanidins which are another class of polyphenolic compounds.  It had a similar content to blueberries in regards to this group of antioxidants [2].  Another important and powerful antioxidant was found in acai called resveratrol but only in low quantities [2].  Resveratrol is more widely known as the main antioxidant found in red wine that provides protection from cardiovascular disease [15].

How Does Acai Stack Up Against Other Antioxidant Rich Foods?

Acai clearly has a lot of great things going for it.  But is it the best source of overall total antioxidant activity?  To help you understand this let's take a look at an excellent study published in 2008 from the Center For Human Nutrition out of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) [14].  It looked at the total antioxidant potency from several different beverages including pomegranate juice, acai juice, cranberry juice, various teas, and more.  This study is very practical in nature because many people consume these fruits in a juice form rather than the whole food form.

The researchers used four different tests to assess for total antioxidant potency of the various beverages.  These included the following - Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), total oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), free radical scavenging capacity (DPPH), and ferric inducing antioxidant power (FRAP).  They also tested the ability of the different beverages to inhibit oxidation of LDL (bad cholesterol) which is important when measuring for cardiovascular protection because oxidized LDL leads to stiffening of the arteries and atheroschlerosis which increases your risk of heart attacks and strokes.  The last thing the researchers looked at was the total polyphenol content for the different beverages.

The results of the study were very interesting and indicated that pomegranate juice (PJ) was by far and away the leader of the pack.  PJ's overall antioxidant index was 20% higher than any other beverage tested.  Acai performed well but was in the middle of the pack in terms of total antioxidant potency.  The chart below is courtesy of the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry and shows the different results in graphic form.

Acai And Weight Loss

Many companies are marketing acai as the next big hit in the big business of weight loss products.  However, their claims are unsubstantiated.  Since acai is not a drug it is not strictly regulated in terms of how it can be marketed so many companies are trying to make a quick buck by over hyping the health benefits of acai.  They make it sound like all you have to do is take their supplement or drink mix that contains acai and the pounds will just melt away.  A quick search on Pubmed for "acai" and "weight" produced ZERO studies to validate the weight loss claims that these companies put forth.

Is acai beneficial for your health which may include an overall weight loss plan?  Yes.  But a successful weight loss plan with long term health as its goal can only be obtained by a comprehensive understanding of how foods affect the human body.  And there's an enormous amount of scientific evidence out there that has shown time and time again that a nutrient dense, plant-based diet comprised mostly of whole foods is the best way to go.

Summary

Acai has a lot of benefits wrapped up in that tiny little berry it comes in.  It's high in fiber, contains healthy fats, and essential amino acids.  Most importantly though it has a very high antioxidant profile to help wipe out the onslaught of oxidative damage done to our body by free radicals which in turn leads to a lower risk of developing many different chronic diseases.  Acai is not a short cut to dramatic weight loss as some marketing campaigns make it out to be but when added to your diet can be beneficial especially if you already follow a plant-based diet that includes a wide variety of disease fighting foods such as fruits and vegetables.  So next time you find yourself wandering past the juice section at your supermarket treat yourself to some all natural acai juice.  Your DNA will secretly smile and thank you for it.

If you like what you see here then you'll LOVE our daily Facebook and Twitter posts!  Also, don't forget to sign up for  Our Free Online Mailing List  to get all the latest updates from the Plant-Based Pharmacist!

by Dustin Rudolph, PharmD
Clinical Pharmacist

Check out Dustin Rudolph's book The Empty Medicine Cabinet to start your journey towards better health. This step-by-step guide leads you through many of today's common chronic diseases (heart disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, and more), giving you the facts on foods versus medications in treating these medical conditions. The book also contains an easy-to-follow guide on how to adopt a whole foods, plant-based diet as a part of an overall lifestyle change, producing the best possible health outcomes for you and your family. Hurry and get your copy today!

We'd love for you to join us in spreading the good word about plant-based nutrition and lifestyle medicine by telling your family and friends about our website at www.PlantBasedPharmacist.com. 

Share and rate this post below or tell us what you think by posting a comment. Thank you again for stopping by and until next time... be happy, be healthy, and live the life you've always dreamed of!

References:

1 Schauss AG. Acai (Euterpe oleracea): An Extraordinary Antioxidant-Rich Palm Fruit, Second Edition. Biosocial Publications: Tacoma, 2006.

2 Schauss AG, Wu X, Prior RL, et al. Phytochemical and nutrient composition of the freeze-dried amazonian palmberry, Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (acai). J. Agric. Food Chem. 2006; 54 (22): 8598-8603.

3 Djordjević VB, Zvezdanović L, Cosić V. Oxidative stress in human diseases. Srp Arh Celok Lek. 2008 May;136 Suppl 2:158-65.

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