Insights & Discussion
Different varieties of dates pose impressive nutritional profiles and exhibit multiple health benefits, including anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and cholesterol lowering potential.
The study embarked on a systematic literature review, utilizing the Scopus, Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International, Google Scholar and Web of Science databases to assess works published from 1971 to 2017, resulting in 270 relevant articles. The focus was to evaluate the nutritional profile and nutraceutical attributes of different date varieties worldwide, particularly from their cultivation hotspots in West Asia and North Africa.
The findings indicate that date fruit is a rich, affordable source of numerous nutrients, including carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids, dietary minerals, vitamins, and various health-promoting compounds such as polyphenols, anthocyanins, tannins and flavones. The fruit's constituents, particularly beta-glucan, show a vast array of beneficial effects on health, functioning as antioxidant, anti-tumor, immune-modulating, anti-diabetic, and cholesterol-lowering agents, as well as promoting beneficial gut microflora growth. Preclinical studies also underline the beneficial effects of date fruit in protecting against a range of health conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and various forms of cancer. The positive health impacts were observed in different parts of the fruit, namely the flesh, peel, and pits.
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Goji berry leaves have stronger anti-colitis effects than mulberry leaves, ameliorating tissue damage and better regulating inflammatory responses and gut microbiota.
2023 Food & Function Goji berry leaf exerts a comparable effect against colitis and microbiota dysbiosis to its fruit in dextran-sulfate-sodium-treated mice Yu C, Chen Y, Ahmadi S, Wu D, Wu J, Ding T, et al.
Experimental Study Anti-Colitis Anti-Inflammatory Colitis
The research entailed a comparative study conducted on goji berry and mulberry leaves versus their respective fruits. To determine their anti-colitis effects, the experiment was administered to C57BL/6N mice that had been induced with colitis through dextran-sulfate-sodium. Through the utilization of measures such as ELISA and western blotting analysis, researchers were able to observe how each leaf versus its corresponding fruit ameliorated colitic symptoms, tissue damage, and was able to influence the overproduction of certain pro-inflammatory cytokines.
The results showed that both the goji berry leaf and fruit significantly reduced symptoms of colitis and improved tissue damage while the mulberry leaf did not show similar improvements. The goji berry leaf exhibited the strongest performance in restraining the overproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines and further repairing the damaged colonic barrier. It also effectively adjusted gut microbiota equilibrium by increasing beneficial bacteria and decreasing harmful ones. The berries and leaves similarly restored certain dietary fibers to alleviate inflammation, but the mulberry leaf did not achieve this for butyrate. This is the first report to provide a comprehensive contrast of anti-colitis effects between the leaves and fruits of goji and mulberry.
Cooked adzuki beans contribute notably to preventing obesity and regulating gut microbiota composition, while also alleviating systemic inflammation and metabolic disorders.
2022 Frontiers in Nutrition Cooked Adzuki Bean Reduces High-Fat Diet-Induced Body Weight Gain, Ameliorates Inflammation, and Modulates Intestinal Homeostasis in Mice Zhao Q, Liu Z, Zhu Y, Wang H, Dai Z, Yang X, et al.
Animal Study Adzuki Bean Anti-Inflammatory Fatty Liver Disease
The methodology involved a controlled experiment where mice were fed diets of varying lipid content: a low-fat diet or a high-fat diet. The specific twist in this experiment was the inclusion or exclusion of cooked adzuki beans to their diet, ensuring 15% of the diet comprised of this. The duration of this dietary regimen was 12 weeks.
In the discussion of results, it was discovered that cooked adzuki beans provided key beneficial effects. This included a significant inhibition of weight gain and hepatic steatosis, a reduction in high levels of specific markers such as serum triacylglycerol, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase, providing a counter to systemic inflammation and metabolism-related endotoxemia commonly found in those consuming a high-fat diet. Moreover, the inclusion of adzuki beans positively affected the gut microbiota composition, reducing fat-inducing bacteria and enriching the gut with beneficial bacteria to help alleviate inflammation and metabolic disorders associated with high-fat diets.
The underutilized pomegranate peel, full of abundant bioactive substances, could be repurposed for its potential health benefits like anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, cardiovascular protection, and antibacterial activities.
2022 Frontiers in Nutrition Pomegranate Peel as a Source of Bioactive Compounds: A Mini Review on Their Physiological Functions Mo Y, Ma J, Gao W, Zhang L, Li J, Li J, et al.
Review Article Anti-Inflammatory Antibacterial Anticancer
This paper conducts a miniature review of the characterization and physiological functions of the key bioactive compounds present in pomegranate peel. The exploration underscores the main phenolic compounds in the peel, illustrating substances such as tannins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, dietary fibers, alkaloids, minerals, and vitamins. A deep understanding of these components and their potential benefits is vital to the study and future applications.
The research finds that these core components essentially function as antioxidants, either enhancing oxidative biomarkers or proactively neutralizing reactive oxygen species. By establishing these key functions, it essentially links these activities to a broader context of benefits, including but not limited to anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, cardiovascular protection, and antibacterial attributes, thereby indicating a potential for substantial health benefits. With comprehensive understanding and appropriate application of these substances, the pomegranate peels, often classified as waste, could find a new life as robust health-enhancing elements.
Chrysanthemums, popular floricultural crops, not only hold significant ornamental value but also exhibit various therapeutic potentials including antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anticancer activities.
2022 South African Journal of Botany Chrysanthemum, an ornamental genus with considerable medicinal value: A comprehensive review Hadizadeh H, Samiei L, Shakeri A
Review Article Anti-Inflammatory Anticancer Antimicrobial
The method involved in this research aimed at studying the genus Chrysanthemum through a decade-long review (2010-2020) of scientific evidence, focusing on its therapeutic potential, phytochemistry, and pharmacological activities. Various phytochemical compounds including flavonoids, terpenoids, polysaccharides, and unsaturated fatty acids, which are present in the genus Chrysanthemum, were identified. In addition, the taxonomy, distribution, horticultural, and traditional uses of the genus were also studied.
The results demonstrated that Chrysanthemum species show numerous potential medicinal benefits, ranging from antioxidant to antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, anti-allergic, anti-obesity, immune regulation, hepatoprotective and nephroprotective activities. The research also underlined the opportunity of medicinal exploitation of the genus Chrysanthemum, given the extreme popularity of these plants and the wide range of phytochemical compounds they contain. The ornamental, medicinal, environmental, and industrial values of these plants further establish them as leading floricultural crops.
Consuming oats significantly lessens total and LDL cholesterol levels and mediates a prebiotic effect on the gut microbiome, contributing to its cholesterol-lowering ability.
2021 Frontiers in Immunology The Prebiotic Effects of Oats on Blood Lipids, Gut Microbiota, and Short-Chain Fatty Acids in Mildly Hypercholesterolemic Subjects Compared With Rice: A Randomized, Controlled Trial Xu D, Feng M, Chu YF, Wang S, Shete V, Tuohy KM, et al.
Experimental Study Cholesterol Gut Microbiota
In a randomized controlled study, 210 mildly hypercholesterolemic subjects from three various study centers across China were assigned to consume either 80 g of oats or rice daily for 45 days. To ascertain the effects of these diets, measurements were taken of the participants' plasma lipid profiles, short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and fecal microbiota.
Following 30 and 45 days of adherence to these diets, there was a pronounced reduction in total cholesterol (TC) and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) in both the oat-consuming and rice-consuming participants. This decrease was more articulated amongst the oat consumers by the 45th day. The consumption of oats led to a significant increase in the abundance of certain beneficial gut microbiota and a corresponding decrease in unclassified harmful types. These microbiota demonstrated associations with changes in plasma lipid levels and SCFAs. The comprehensive findings strongly suggest that the cholesterol-reducing effect of oats may be largely down to its prebiotic activity, which modulates the gut microbiome.
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