New vitamin to counteract killer diseases
Taka
The March 12, 2007 issue of Chemistry & Industry, published an article
by Marina Murphy that unveils glowing expectations for epicatechin, a
compound found in cocoa, tea and wine. In fact, Harvard Medical School
professor of medicine Norman Hollenberg believes that the compound is
so important that it should be considered a vitamin.
Dr Hollenberg's observations of the Kuna people of Panama, who drink
up to 40 cups of cocoa per week, are the source of his enthusiasm. The
risk of the some of the most common western diseases: stroke, heart
failure, cancer and diabetes, is reduced to less than 10 percent in
this population. Additionally, no dementia has been observed among
their many long-lived individuals. "If these observations predict the
future, then we can say without blushing that they are among the most
important observations in the history of medicine," Dr Hollenberg
stated. "We all agree that penicillin and anesthesia are enormously
important. But epicatechin could potentially get rid of 4 of the 5
most common diseases in the western world, how important does that
make epicatechin?... I would say very important."
Natural Products Association vice president of scientific affairs
Daniel Fabricant shares Dr Hollenberg's views. "Vitamins are defined
as being essential to the normal functioning, metabolism, regulation
and growth of cells," he explained. "At the moment, the science does
not support epicatechin having an essential role." However, he noted
that "the link between high epicatechin consumption and a decreased
risk of killer disease is so striking, it should be investigated
further. It may be that these diseases are the result of epicatechin
deficiency."
For now, Fabricant suggests that phytonutrient is a more appropriate
term since it is not yet known whether the compound is essential.
While many individuals might look forward to a guilt-free mug of hot
chocolate, "no doubt some people would prefer to get their epicatechin
in capsule form," Dr Hollenberg noted.
SOURCE: http://www.lef.org/whatshot/2007_03.htm
----------------------
This could be also called the vitamin wars - epicatechin fighting the
VitF overload ....
Taka
pi...@popper.com
hardily call it a vitamin. A vitamin is a substance which the body
needs for basic function and survival. These are determined by removing
any source of them and watching for serious dangers of function and even
death. This substance does not live up to that measure.
Tea and cocoa have not been until recently broadly used in the human
diet and can hardly have played a role in the evolution of vitamin usage
in humans.
The person mentioning it as a "vitamin" did so in the same way some call
aspirin a "miricle drug",ie. hyperboly.
Zrupfter
> Dr Hollenberg's observations of the Kuna people of Panama, who drink
>
> ----------------------
>
> This could be also called the vitamin wars - epicatechin fighting the
> VitF overload ....
>
> Taka
I'd be more interested how THEY avoid, or manage the copper
overload that would result from that high cocoa intake.
In the Western world, such a lifestyle certainly causes more high
copper-related medical problems than it solves. -Z
--- news://freenews.netfront.net/ - complaints: ne...@netfront.net ---
Taka
> >"Taka" <taka0...@gmail.com> wrote
With adequate protein and the endogenous antioxidant defenses not
broken by junk food/EFAs the copper overload should not be of a much
problem. Look at them - they thrive on coconuts and I doubt they use
any of the common PUFA-rich seed oils for cooking:
http://www.galenfrysinger.com/san_blas_kuna.htm
You can always chelate the copper by resveratrol but this may backfire
by weakening the connective tissues.
Taka