The healthiest fruit juice?

Last updated: Monday, March 19, 2007 Print

The benefits of specific types of fruit juice to fight against disease have been documented in a number of medical studies. Now, BBC News reports that a team of scientists from Glasgow University have identified purple grape, cranberry and apple juice as those that contain the most antioxidants to fight disease such as Alzheimer's, cancer and heart disease.

The specific chemicals are called polyphenols, and they have the strongest antioxidant properties that fight the substances called free radicals, which are believed to damage cells and precipitate a number of harmful conditions in the body.

According to BBC News, the Glasgow researchers showed purple grape juice made with Concord grapes to have the best range of polyphenols with the highest antioxidant capacity. These were equal to those found in Beaujolais red wine, shown by previous studies that, when used in moderation, it was an effective deterrent to free radical build-up in the body.

The BBC quotes Alan Crozier, Professor of Plant Biochemistry and Human Nutrition at Glasgow University, as saying, "Supplementing a healthy diet with a regular intake of a variety of fruit juices such as purple grape juice, grapefruit juice, cloudy apple juice and cranberry juice, will, without major dietary changes, increase the consumer's intake of phenolic antioxidants. "

The study will appear in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry. - (HealthDayNews)

March 2007