Polyphenol Anti-Cancer

Polyphenol can assist in a holistic cancer treatment. Polyphenol will not cure cancer alone but in combination with other herbs, juices and therapies, polyphenol will boost cancer treatment effectiveness.

A polyphenol antioxidant is a type of antioxidant containing a polyphenolic substructure. Numbering over 4,000 distinct species, these compounds have antioxidant activity in vitro but are unlikely to have antioxidant roles in vivo. Rather, they may affect cell-to-cell signaling, receptor sensitivity, inflammatory enzyme activity or gene regulation.

Polyphenols are the most abundant antioxidants in the diet. Their total dietary intake could be as high as 1 g/d, which is much higher than that of all other classes of phytochemicals and known dietary antioxidants.

The discovery of polyphenols, also known as polyhydroxy phenols, in the foods we eat is perhaps one of the biggest breakthroughs in nutrition science.

Polyphenols are our largest external source of antioxidants and are found in the plant foods that we eat. Polyphenols are naturally occurring chemicals and are responsible for the brightly colored pigments of many fruits and vegetables.

Polyphenols can be classified into the following groups.

Acetophenones, Benzofurans, chromones, coumarins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, phenols, phenylacetic acids, phenylpropanoids, quinones, stilbenes, xanthones.

Polyphenols have a significant antioxidant quality, by helping to protect tissues against oxidative stress (free radicals), certain polyphenols work as preventative medicines for problems such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, arthritis, and auto immune disorders. Some have also exhibited anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective effects.

Among botanical medicines, hawthorn, ginkgo, bilberry, elderberry, and green tea are examples of rich sources of antioxidant polyphenols. Polyphenols can also be found in high concentrations in wine, tea, grapes and a wide variety of other plants.

In the study, French scientists describe how high and low doses of polyphenols have different effects. Most notably, they found that very high doses of antioxidant polyphenols shut down and prevent cancerous tumors by cutting off the formation of new blood vessels needed for tumor growth. Polyphenols are commonly found in red wine, fruits, vegetables, and green tea.

At relatively low doses, the French researchers found that the same polyphenols play a beneficial role for those with diseased hearts and circulatory systems by facilitating blood vessel growth. The amount of polyphenols necessary for this effect was found to be the equivalent of only one glass of red wine per day or simply sticking to a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables containing polyphenols. This diet is known as the “Mediterranean Diet.” This study also adds to a growing body of research showing dose-dependent relationships for many types of commonly used compounds. For instance, research published in the October 2006 issue of The FASEB Journal shows that aspirin, through different mechanisms, also has a dose-dependent relationship for heart disease and cancer.

“When it comes to finding treatments for complex diseases, the answers are sometimes right there waiting to be discovered in unexpected places like the produce aisles and wine racks of the nearest store,” said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal. “But it takes modern science to isolate the pure compound, test it in the lab, and to go on from there to find new agents to fight disease.”

According to the authors, the amount of polyphenols necessary to obtain an anti-cancer effect is the equivalent of drinking about a bottle of red wine each day. This amount of daily alcohol consumption obviously is unhealthy, but the research suggests that polyphenols extracted from plants or red wine could be converted into a pill that is highly likely to be safe. Such a pill also would be relatively easy and inexpensive to create and deliver.

“The use of plant polyphenols as therapeutic tools presents important advantages,” said Daniel Henrion, senior author of the study, “because they have a good safety profile, a low cost and they can be obtained everywhere on the planet.”

Polyphenol Antioxidants Sources

The main source of polyphenols is dietary, since they are found in a wide array of phytochemical-bearing foods. For example, most legumes; fruits such as apples, blackberries, blueberries, cantaloupe, cherries, cranberries, grapes, pears, plums, raspberries, and strawberries; and vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage, celery, onion and parsley and honey are rich in polyphenols. Red wine, chocolate, green tea, olive oil, argan oil, bee pollen and many grains are sources.

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Polyphenols Research Links

Polyphenols: antioxidants and beyond1,2,3
http://www.ajcn.org/content/81/1/215S.full

Polyphenols and Cancer
http://www.scitopics.com/Polyphenols_and_cancer.html

Plant polyphenols as dietary antioxidants in human health and disease.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20716914