Anti-inflammatory plants could disrupt immunity says ANSES; industry responds

23 Apr 2020 --- Plants with anti-inflammatory properties contained in food supplements can disrupt the body’s immunity by interfering with the inflammatory defence mechanisms that tackle infections such as COVID-19. This is according to the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES), which published an opinion piece on the matter. Industry is reacting as turmeric, echinacea and other anti-inflammatory herbs have long been promoted for a range of science-backed health benefits. Meanwhile, this week, a new supplement coined Upgraid is pegged as the first product on the market focused on “supporting a healthy level of inflammation” in the body.

NutritionInsight has reached out to multiple players in the turmeric and anti-inflammation space, and the majority declined to respond as the news is still “unsupported” and the matter “requires careful examination.” 

According to ANSES, plants that are potentially disruptive to immunity include harpagophytum, echinacea, turmeric, cat’s claw and plants of the genera Boswellia and Commiphora. Turmeric and curcumin in particular are ingredients widely used in supplementation, as well as echinacea, and the claims have elicited strong industry response.

“Any such contention that turmeric, because of its anti-inflammatory property, could negatively impact the immune system and make those who consume it susceptible to diseases such as COVID-19 is a speculation that must be backed by evidence. However, I haven’t seen such a scientific paper and the warning statements by ANSES do not hold any scientific credibility,” Dr. Benny Antony, Joint Managing Director of Arjuna, tells NutritionInsight.

Any such contention that turmeric could negatively impact the immune system and make those who consume it susceptible to diseases such as COVID-19 is a speculation that must be backed by evidence, says Arjuna. The safe use of turmeric is backed by numerous studies, Dr. Antony says. Phytochemicals which work through multiple pathways are known to be safe and have a long history of use as food. These should not be compared with drugs that are designed to target one particular receptor, enzyme or pathway.

“All the cultures worldwide advocated the use of plants with anti-inflammatory properties either as part of the diet or for its medicinal use. If anti-inflammatory plants lowered immunity, then many civilizations would have perished long back owing to immunosuppression,” he states.

The majority of the plants mentioned in the ANSES list such as turmeric are used extensively for centuries for their medicinal properties and many are known to have both anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties, according to Dr. Antony. 

 “Turmeric is a spice used in every household in India and people in India start consuming it as early as their weaning period. Still the death rate in India is significantly lower than many of the developed nations. If turmeric was indeed lowering the body’s ability to fight against COVID-19, we should have seen a catastrophic rise in the death rate and rampant spread of infection in India. This truth holds more value against ANSES statements considering the fact that none of the ingredients like echinacea, willow and cats claw in the list are used daily as food or part of tradition, except turmeric. The generalization across ingredients by ANSES without considering the long safety profile of turmeric as an ingredient of daily food is most unfortunate,” he stresses.

 Turmeric exerts antiviral activity through different mechanisms in different viruses; these mechanisms involve a direct inhibition of viral replication machinery or suppression of a cellular signalling pathway essential for viral replication, Dr. Antony explains. “A recent study done by Ting et. al. in 2018 showed that curcumin can change the structure of surface proteins in virus inhibiting viral entry. It can also suppress synthesis of the viral RNA strand, suppress the viral replication by stimulating production of interferon genes and pro-inflammatory cytokines,” he concludes.

Upgraid regulates inflammation levels
With inflammation being a point of concern of overall health, and at the heels of the ANSES opinion, US-based Upgraid has launched its first product sold online, focused on supporting a healthy level of inflammation in the body and touted as an “anti-Advil.” Upgraid was co-founded by Helene Rutledge, the former Pfizer Global Director of Clinical Supplies; former Chief Innovation Officer at New Avon and Global Head of Open Innovation at GlaxoSmithKline. 

The product is NSF Certified for Sport, which enables professional athletes to take it daily to enhance recovery. 

“Health is about being proactive, preventative, and knowing that you’re putting the best ingredients into your body. Too often in the dietary supplement world, products are not formulated with the efficacious dosages or ingredients that are actually scientifically proven to be effective. Upgraid’s ingredients have gone through multiple peer-reviewed clinical studies, published in respected journals, to confirm safe, efficacious, and healthy products,” says Rutledge.

The company says it has an expansive vision to launch future products focused on additional health concerns with alternative prevention-based solutions. It believes that with scientific clinical research, Upgraid may be able to systematically change human healthcare by providing consumers with holistic health choices including organic products that are safe and effective without synthetic chemicals.

By Kristiana Lalou

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