Pomegranate Extract Benefits

One question I get asked from time to time is whether or not Pomegranate Extract has the same superpowers as pomegranate juice.  The latter, you may recall, has been shown to be a superfood powerhouse, lowering blood pressure, supporting testosterone, boosting nitric oxide and many other benefits. (For more details, see my link on Pomegranate Juice:  Your Best Bedroom Buddy and Pomegranate Juice and Testosterone.)

 Unfortunately, there is not a one-to-one comparison of pomegranate juice to Pomegranate extract that can be done from the research and the reason is simply that very different studies have been performed on each.  The good news it that the pomegranate fruit is clearly so healthful and so healing that it will clearly be studied for years to come in order to find it's healing properties.

So what's in it for you?  Well, if you're a male over the age of 25, a lot!  Pomegranate extract has some very nice properties that will protect and enhance your life as a man.  There isn't the proof that it will help your sex life as much as the juice, but I would characterize it as a nice male insurance policy.  You'll see what I mean below if you check out just what Pomegranate Extract has been found to protect against:

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1. Protection Against MRSA.  One of the big fears everyone should be concerned about is protection against antibiotic resistant bacteria.  One study looked at five different antibiotics and how they fared against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) when using pomegranate extract at the same time.  These are nasty and surprisingly common bacteria that can lead to very serious illness and even death. They conclused that in all case the Pomegranate Extract greatly enhance the effectiveness of the antibiotic. [1]  Yet another study found that, depending on the concentration, pomegranate extract could easily delay or kill off a standard Staff infection (that plagues so many hospitals and clinics) just by itself. [2] Apparently, pomegrante is widely used in Brazil for just this purpose.

2. Protection Against Dental Plaque.  One of the subtle dangers that can take a man out is actually gum disease.  It turns out that overgrowth of the bacteria in one's mouth can increase systemic inflammation and, as you know from my link on How to Lower Inflammation, this is a killer. Well, pomegranate's antibacterial superpowers have been found in a couple of studies to be potentially very effective in fighting plaque. Again, results are preliminary but look very promising. For more information, see this link on The Dangers of Toothpaste.

3. Prostate Cancer Prevention. Will the wonder of Pomegranate Extract never cease?  It turns out that pomegranate, about as natural of a solution as one could hope for, may be a big gun in the battle against prostate cancer, which is one of the biggest killers of men her in the states and can definitely take out one's sex life temporarily or permanently  One study found that it inhibited prostate cancer in a dose-dependent fashion, which is a very good sign of its effectiveness. [3] Other studies have confirmed similar results and much research will undoubtedly continue.

4. Rhematoid Arthritis.  We all probably know many men that have had their exercise and mobility severely hampered due to RA.  This autoimmune condition eats away at joints and can limit a man's ability to exercise, which only contributes to the downward spiral. It turns out that Pomegranate Extract may be a powerful tool in prevention and/or healing. [5]

5. Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Pomegranate Extract may help in the battle against colitis and other inflammatory bowel disease according to several animal studies. [6][7]

So the bottom line is that Pomegranate Extract is not as sexy as Pomegranate Juice, but it is a fantastic insurance policy.  After years of a toxic Western lifestyle and with all the nasty superbugs out there, it may be time to make it a part of your daily routine.

CAUTION:  Always talk to your doctor before making any changes.

REFERENCES:

1)  Canadian Journal of Microbiology, July 2005, 51(7):541-547(7), "Synergic interaction between pomegranate extract and antibiotics against Staphylococcus aureus"

2) Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Jan 2005, 96(1-2):335-229, "Pomegranate extract inhibits Staphylococcus aureus growth and subsequent enterotoxin production"

3) Mol Cancer Ther, September 2008, 7:2662, "Pomegranate extract inhibits androgen-independent prostate cancer growth through a nuclear factor-κB-dependent mechanism"

4) INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ONCOLOGY, 2008, 32:475-480,"Ellagitannin-rich pomegranate extract inhibits angiogenesis in prostate cancer in vitro and in vivo"

5) Nutrition, July–August 2008,24(7-8):733–743, "Consumption of hydrolyzable tannins-rich pomegranate extract suppresses inflammation and joint damage in rheumatoid arthritis"

6) The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, Aug 2010, 21(8):717–725, "Anti-inflammatory properties of a pomegranate extract and its metabolite urolithin-A in a colitis rat model and the effect of colon inflammation on phenolic metabolism"

7) Pharmacological Research, Available online 4 June 2012, "Dietary supplementation of an ellagic acid-enriched pomegranate extract attenuates chronic colonic inflammation in rats"