Pomegranate-date combo could improve cardiac health: study
Afour-ounce glass of pomegranate juice with three dates could protect against the build-up of lipids on the arterial walls by as much as 33 per cent, reducing chances of heart attack, according to researchers in Israel.
Pomegranate juice and dates make a dynamic duo in the war on heart disease because their respective phenolic antioxidants work differently, according to lead author professor Michael Aviram. The key ingredients in pomegranate juice, he says, are plant-derived polyphenolic antioxidants that slow the body’s oxidation process, thereby reducing oxidative stress.
Dates contain phenolic radical scavenger antioxidants, which hinder the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LCL) cholesterol, also known as ‘bad-cholesterol’.
These scavenger antioxidants found in dates also stimulate the removal of cholesterol from arterial cells that come into contact with lipids, according to Aviram.
Working with arterial cells in laboratory cultures, and with mice whose cholesterol levels were high, Aviram’s team tested the combination of pomegranate juice and dates — using a mixture that included their pits, which had been ground up.
The cocktail reduced oxidative stress in the arterial wall by 33 per cent and decreased arterial cholesterol content by 28 per cent, according to the study. Even without the pits, says Aviram, the combination of dates and pomegranate is powerful. Iideally, the pits should be ground into a paste and consumed.