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The Amazing Benefits of Ellagic
Acid!
Due to the way we have ignored nature and consigned our health
to technology, we have created a health care crisis in America.
Every 45 seconds an American dies from cancer. Cancer now
kills more children between the ages of 3 and 14 than any
other illness. Lung cancer has become a leading killer of
both men and women.
Whenever research shows that a natural nutritional product
or ingredient could have a major influence on the health of
the human body, I feel compelled, as a Nutritional Biophysiologist,
to pass that information along to as many interested parties
as possible. I try to do this in an educational manner so
that people will have the information to make intelligent
decisions about their own health.
With this in mind, I would like to talk to you about an amazing
new nutraceutical compound extracted from red raspberries.
In research and in vitro studies, extracts from red raspberry
fruit and especially the seeds, have been shown to reduce
or eliminate chronic diseases and to provide a preventative
influence on cancerous conditions. This nutraceutical compound
is called Ellagic Acid.
Before I delve into the health giving, restorative properties
of Ellagic Acid, I would like to give your attention to the
FACTS information to the right.
What is causing these pandemic illnesses? Why are people
developing cancer at such an accelerated rate and often at
an early age? Natural and technologically produced toxins
surround us. These environmental poisons are present in the
air we breathe, the foods we eat, and the water we drink.
In today's industrial world, we cannot escape them. We are
exposed to more toxins in 15 minutes than our great-grandparents
were exposed to during their entire lives. The majority of
these toxins are considered to be cancer-causing carcinogens,
and, as unbelievable as it sounds, the most toxic environment
to which we are exposed daily is the environment in our own
homes.
Each of us has contributed to the demise of our own health.
In our headlong rush to make our lives easier, safer, faster,
more fun, and more convenient, we have changed our lifestyles,
and, both accidentally and on purpose, we have also changed
our environment. We have created the toxic environment necessary
for a variety of old and new disease microbes and degenerative
disease conditions, such as cancer, to proliferate and devastate
our society.
Paradoxically, we spend more than any other country on health
care. The one trillion dollars we spend on medicine, research,
and health technology each year is more than the gross national
product of all but six countries in the world. Still, disease
continues to accelerate, and our health continues to deteriorate.
Why is our health deteriorating? It's because our body is
rusting. When a piece of iron turns rusty, it is undergoing
a degenerative process called oxidation. During the process
of living, our bodies also undergo this natural oxidation,
which promotes the aging process. However, environmental toxins
and chemically induced elements that are being introduced
or absorbed into our bodies everyday are accelerating this
oxidation condition by a process referred to as biological
free radical damage.
Free radicals are unstable atoms or molecules with at least
one unpaired electron. These unpaired electrons want and need
a partner. Consequently, the unstable free radicals, which
have the ability to attract electrons from other atoms or
molecules, go about swiping electrons from other stable atoms.
This taking of an electron from another atom means that the
free radical is now balanced and is no longer a free radical.
But the atom or molecule from which the electron was taken
is now damaged, and it additionally becomes a free radical.
This sets off a chain reaction of damage within the body.
In their reckless search for electrons, free radicals do
a lot of structural damage to healthy cells. Cumulative free
radical damage contributes to many forms of organ and tissue-specific
diseases. In fact, researchers and the medical community generally
agree that most common ailments, including virtually all chronic
degenerative diseases and pathological conditions such as
aging, stroke, Lou Gehrig's disease, and cancer are either
caused directly by, or are closely associated with free radical
damage and acid accumulation in the fluids and tissues of
the body.
The plasma membrane, which surrounds each cell, is the structure
that is the most vulnerable to free radical attack. This membrane
is a sophisticated highly selective barrier whose all-important
job is to guard access to the cell. It decides what gets in,
what stays in, and what is removed.
Inside each cell are many sub cellular structures called
organelles. Each organelle is wrapped in its own protective
outer membrane and performs a highly specialized function.
Mitochondria, for example, transform oxygen and food into
energy that the cell uses for metabolism. The cell's nucleus
is also an organelle. It houses DNA, the cell's genetic blueprint.
When the cell's plasma membrane or the membrane of an organelle
is damaged by free radicals, it loses its protective properties.
This puts the health of the entire cell in great danger.
Because cell membranes are mostly made of oxygen rich fatty
acids, they are extremely vulnerable to free radical attack.
Like tiny but very powerful bullets, highly charged free radical
particles rip into the cell's plasma membrane, literally punching
holes in it. When this happens, transportation of nutrients,
oxygen, and water into the cell and removal of waste products
and toxins from the cell become compromised. This causes the
cell to either starve to death or die in a sea of accumulated
toxic waste.
In much the same way, free radical damage to a cell's organelle
membrane sabotages that organelle's function. For instance,
when mitochondria organelles are injured, these power plants
of the cell can't produce the energy necessary to drive the
cell's machinery. If damage to the mitochondrial membrane
is extensive the cell dies because of lack of energy production.
Each cell contains a blueprint, which enables it to create
a new cell. This blueprint is located inside the nucleus in
a complex mass of molecules called deoxyribonucleic acid or
DNA. The molecules that make up DNA contain a huge number
of electrons.
Free radicals can blast their way through the protective
membrane surrounding the nucleus, thereby gaining access to
the chromosome DNA molecules housed inside. If free radicals
happen to break up the DNA molecules in order to steal electrons,
the cell dies or loses its ability to reproduce. Even worse,
it may undergo an unnatural reproduction process known as
mutation. Mutation can cause the abnormal cells we know as
cancer.
How can we combat these cell-destroying free radicals? To
put it simply, oxidation by free radicals can be stopped by
antioxidants. In other words, if oxidation is biologically
damaging to the body, then anti-oxidation is the prevention
of free radical damage. Antioxidants are agents that combat
the biological damage caused by free radicals. Research has
demonstrated that antioxidants neutralize the mutation and
carcinogenic action of free radicals as well as stop them
from creating the chain reaction that contributes to various
diseases including premature aging and cancer. The key to
neutralizing free radical damage is to alkalize, cleanse,
nourish, and balance the body, thereby giving it the ability
to heal itself naturally.
Now, let's go back to Ellagic Acid. Ellagic Acid is a nutraceutical,
naturally occurring phenolic compound that has very strong
anti-oxidant properties. It is also a potent anti-carcinogen.
Ellagic Acid has the ability to inhibit mutations within a
cell's DNA. It is also considered an anti-cancer inhibitor,
which has the ability to cause apoptosis or normal death in
cancer cells. In addition, research has found that it has
anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties.
I could tell you about the studies conducted on raspberries
and Ellagic Acid. These studies refer to its physicochemical
properties, saponification number, diene and peroxide value,
carotenoid content, and its UV protectant potential. I could
also go into tocopherol content, oxidation resistance, fatty
acid ratio, polymorphic changes and its thermal properties.
But all most people want to know is, "What is Ellagic
Acid?" "What does it do?" and "Where can
I get it?" Now... here is a paragraph for the scientific
minded...
What is Ellagic Acid? Well, scientifically speaking,
Ellagic Acid is formed in raspberries when polymers of gallic
acid and hexahydroxydipenoyl (HHDP) are linked to glucose
molecules to form compounds of ellagitannins. When two gallic
acid groups become linked side by side within a tannin molecule,
a HHDP group is formed. When the HHDP group is then bioactively
separated from the tannin molecule, it spontaneously rearranges
itself into subunits we call Ellagic Acid.
Ellagic Acid is found in red raspberries, strawberries, blackberries,
walnuts, pecans, pomegranates, and cranberries. However, red
raspberries have been found to have up to six times the therapeutic
amount of Ellagic Acid available compared to what is contained
in other fruits and foods tested. Ellagic Acid is present
in all parts of the raspberry, but it is most highly concentrated
in the seed. It was also found that Ellagic Acid is not changed,
nor its potency weakened, by freezing, drying, or processing
into a powder.
Although some of the early published research on Ellagic
Acid appeared in the 1970's and 1980's, we owe most of our
current knowledge about Ellagic Acid and it's use in cancer
prevention to studies done at the University of Minnesota
School of Nutrition Sciences and more recently to research
conducted by Dr. Daniel Nixon. Dr. Nixon is the President
of the American Health Foundation, a professor of Folk Medicine,
and a Professor of Hematology and Oncology at the Medical
University of South Carolina. He is currently using Ellagic
Acid in his cancer research at the Medical University of South
Carolina's Hollings Cancer Institute.
Some of the data published by Dr. Nixon and his team at the
Medical University of South Carolina show that by consuming
the equivalent of 40 milligrams of Ellagic Acid from red raspberries
the following takes place: Human cervical cancer cells, which
are infected with the human papilloma virus (HPV) will die
a normal cell death within several days. This is called apoptosis
(cells living their normal life span and then dying); it prevents
the destruction of the P53 cell regulatory gene present in
cervical cells. This gene is responsible for making sure the
cells of the cervix divide normally and guards them against
the intrusion of cancer producing cells; The (G1) growth cycle
of cancer cells is arrested. This means that it inhibits mitosis
cell division and the rapid abnormal growth and tissue intrusion
that is common to most cancer cells.
Dr. Nixon and other investigators and researchers, both in
the United States and in Europe, found that daily consumption
of Ellagic Acid from red raspberries: Activate powerful detoxifying
enzymes in the liver; This promotes the cleansing of the liver
and the protection and regeneration of injured liver cells;
Prevents the binding of carcinogens to the DNA of cells; Serves
as a powerful antioxidant, which inhibits or destroys oxygen
free radicals; May cause already established cancer cells
to undergo programmed normal cell death (apoptosis); Stimulates
the immune system to destroy cancerous cells; May be useful
in reducing the incidence of birth defects; May slow the spread
of the HIV virus in the body; May prevent periodontal disease
and diabetic retinopathy; Can slow the aging process; Promotes
wound healing; May help prevent heart disease because of the
presence of a natural form of aspirin called salicylate.
This data and research are backed up with a prolifery of
publications, tests, clinical evidence, and double blind studies,
both completed and ongoing in the United States, Canada, and
Europe. In Dr. Nixon's words, "It's fair to say that
raspberries contain a chemical that fights cancer cells."
There are also numerous clinical reports and personal testimonies
by people who have participated in the studies or taken Ellagic
Acid on their own which back up Dr. Nixon's statement. There
are testimonies that tell of the reversal or elimination of
colon, prostate, breast, cervical, skin, and pancreatic cancer
conditions. Some testimonies talk about the way Ellagic Acid
has saved or changed lives and also about how time has been
added to lives because of the inhibiting or elimination of
chronic or degenerative disease.
Technology cannot prevent degenerative diseases, restore
health, or rejuvenate the human body. However, there is a
proven approach to treat or prevent disease conditions, which
is based on sound science and common sense. This approach
is through nutrition. Poor diet, smoking, sun exposure, and
excessive alcohol consumption, combined with lack of exercise,
is a deadly cancer and disease-inducing combination. If the
body is given the correct nutrients, such as Ellagic Acid,
those nutrients will nourish, balance, protect, and provide
the body with the building blocks necessary for growth, repair,
vitality, and longevity.
HTN Science Council
In Summary:
Healthy cells have a normal life cycle. This process concludes
with what is called apoptosis (normal cell death). The body
replaces these dying cells with healthy ones; conversely,
cancer cells do not die. They rapidly multiply by cell division
(mitosis), making 2 cancer cells, then 4, 8, 16, 32 and so
on. In laboratory and recent clinical studies, Ellagic Acid
caused the cancer cells to go through a nontoxic, normal apoptosis
process without damaging the healthy cells. Chemotherapy,
radiation and most conventional treatments are known to cause
the death of cancer cells, but they also cause the death of
healthy cells indiscriminately, possibly destroying the immune
system in the treatment process.
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