As you may know, I never recommend the typical Western diet. It has too much fat, too many refined carbohydrates, and too much sugar. But I know most people are not going to eat the way I do. So I am constantly looking for ways to protect your health even when you do splurge. And this month, Ive found a great way to do just that.
Ive discovered an extract that will not only protect you from many of the problems a Western diet causes, but it may also help you lose weight, lower your cholesterol, and build muscle.
In a recent study, researchers fed lab rats, some obese, a Western diet. Then they divided the rats into two groups. They gave one group whole tart cherry powder as 1% of their diet, and the other group served as a control.
The obese rats fed the cherry-enriched supplement had significant decreases in body weight and fat. They were able to preserve lean muscle mass. After just 12 weeks, they had 14% less body fat than the control group. The supplemented group also had reduced total cholesterol levels. Total cholesterol was down by 11%. And the supplement also reduced two known markers of inflammation. Abdominal fat produces both of these markers — and they are both linked to heart disease.
Now get this. The American Chemical Society is a highly respected organization, the worlds largest scientific society. In 1999, their journal published a report that tart cherries may relieve pain better than aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs. Just eating 20 tart cherries daily reduces inflammation in a manner similar to that of NSAID drugs, including aspirin and the notorious cox-2 inhibiting drugs like Vioxx. Cherries contain anthocyanins which are 10 times more powerful gram-for-gram at reducing inflammation than aspirin.
When cherry growers began to cite the scientific research, the FDA moved in. It sent a warning letter to 29 companies in the cherry marketing business. It threatened regulatory action if they did not remove the (truthful) scientific information regarding the anti-inflammatory effects of cherries from the company websites. Once health claims were made, the FDA decided that cherries were now a drug.
Bob Underwood markets capsules containing concentrated tart cherry paste. The AP quoted him in 2006 saying, We have the government telling people to eat more fruits and vegetables, and we have the U.S. Department of Agriculture funding some of these fruit studies, and now we have another arm of the federal
government that says you cant use the research.
Now pay close attention. The FDA then threatened the cherry growers. Simultaneously, that agency granted approval for Vioxx on the claim that it was safer than other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen. The manufacturer advertised the new cox-2 drug on television and in print. But there was no long-term safety data!
As time passed, the world learned that the drug was not safer than aspirin. No action was taken against the drug maker that submitted misleading preliminary safety data in its application for FDA approval. Vioxx killed tens of thousands and maimed many more fold, mostly due to heart attacks.
Dr. David Graham of the FDA was a whistleblower, alerting the public to these disturbing facts.
I am as excited about tart cherry extract as I am about resveratrol. As you may know, resveratrol comes from colorful red grapes. Ive repeatedly stressed the benefits of going heavy on such colorful live foods. Plant color compounds are the most neglected medicine in modern science. Resveratrol is waking up the pundits. But its not just resveratrol. Ive also told you about Seanol (Alginol). But its not just the bioflavonoids in seaweed either.
All food-based color compounds have extraordinarily healthful properties that can mitigate much of the damage you might otherwise do to yourself with the typical Western diet. Cherries contain colorful, powerful bioflavonoids called anthocyanins that give them incredible healing abilities.
Unfortunately, you wont hear this news from food suppliers. They cant tell you honest non-biased peer reviewed information about the benefits of their natural products if they compete with Pharma.
The FDA, better termed Fraud and Deception Administration, permitted the death of tens of thousands of Americans for profiteering Pharma. But when a food is found to do the same thing, only with 100% safety, to tell you those facts makes the food a drug. I wonder when the thugs will move on dark chocolate for its incredible vascular sparing bioflavonoids which, like cherries, has made international news as well.
Do not listen to the FDA. Add cherries to the list of wonder foods! You can easily find extracts of cherry juice at health food stores and online. Tart (sour) cherries have more anthocyanins than sweet (Bing) cherries.