Can Pomegranates Reduce Heart Disease Risk?

16 Dec 2015 --- A new study assessing the antioxidant effects of pomegranate extract on cardiovascular risk factors and muscle function showed reductions in blood pressure and some atheroprotective benefits.

The limited gains with pomegranate supplementation are detailed in an article published in Journal of Medicinal Food, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available to download for free on the Journal of Medicinal Food website until Jan. 14, 2016.

Kenneth Wilund, University of Illinois at Chicago, and coauthors from University of California-Los Angeles, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Technion Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Rambam Medical Center, Haifa, Israel, compared the effects of 1,000 mg of pomegranate extract versus placebo taken daily for 6 months.

The study population comprised hemodialysis patients, who have an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease and poorer physical functioning due to muscle wasting. High levels of oxidative stress are largely blamed for this hemodialysis-related morbidity.

The authors theorized that antioxidant therapy may be a low-cost and effective way to prevent muscular and cardio decline in these patients and pomegranates are a rich source of polyphenolic antioxidants and has also been shown to reduce cardiovascular risk factors in mice.

6 months of pomegranate supplementation significantly decreased some markers of inflammation and oxidative stress, particularly in patients with high blood pressure. There was no effect on other cardiovascular markers however. The authors note that;

“These data suggest that pomegranate extract supplementation may provide limited benefits in terms of reducing the development or progression of comorbidities in patients with chronic renal failure.”

The authors used pomegranate extract rather than juice due to juices high potassium content and the detrimental effects of this mineral in dialysis patients. They also note that the different absorption characteristics between pomegranate juice and extracts may contribute to the inconsistent findings from previous work published on this and that further studies are warranted in this area.