Grapeseed (95% Proanthocyanidins)

History:

Seeds of the fruit of the vine - once discarded as waste after the juice was pressed out for wine - have become the source of an exceptional dietary supplement. Red Grapes appear to have originated in the Mediterannean regions of southern Europe and Middle East, thriving in deep, moist, humus-rich, neutral-to-alkaline soil in sun and warm climates; and the Grape's hardiness varies according to the cultivar. Grapes were first cultivated near the Caspian Sea, and their use as food and drink had spread throughout the Mediterranean world before The Bible was written. They were cultivated in Egypt over four thousand years ago, and even the ancient Greeks believed that wine bestowed wonderful health benefits. Wine was also used by early Minoan and Etruscan civilizations, and we can thank the mighty Roman army for introducing the rootstocks and winemaking throughout Europe as they created an expanding Roman Empire. Centuries later the role of Red Wine for sacramental use in Christian Churches helped to maintain the industry after the Fall of the Roman Empire. Today, Grapeseeds (along with the skins and fruits) are known as an important source of one of nature's most potent antioxidants, tannin compounds also called proanthocyanidins (also knowns as OPCs for oligomeric procyanidins or PCOs for procyanidolic oligomers. They are classified as flavonols; and the way in which these versatile healing compounds are distinct from flavonoids is their simple chemical structure, which allows them to be readily absorbed into the bloodstream. They work actively against fat-soluble and water-soluble oxidants, thus protecting the cells from damage. OPCs may also be derived from Pine Bark and are present in Red Wine Extract, Hops, various flowers, fruits, berries, nuts and beans, but Grapeseed is believed to be the richest source of these important nutrients. Grapeseed is also rich in phenolic and polyphenolic compounds (including catechin and the all-important Resveratrol, etc.), that combat platelet aggregation (clotting) in the blood.  Proanthocyanidins are the principal vasoactive polyphenols in Red Wine Grapes and Grapeseed.  Other constituents include proteins (leucine, arginine, cystine, phenylalanine, valine), tannins, lipids (palmitic, stearic, oleic, linoleic acids), sitosterol, phosphatidylserine, lecithin, beta-carotene, vitamin E compounds and bioflavonoids (apigenin, quercetin) that exert vitamin-C-like effects. These constituents are said to strengthen the cell membranes and are free-radical scavengers that reputedly protect the cells from oxidative damage and serious disease.

With regard to good coronary health, Grapeseed from Red Wine Grapes has become a popular supplement for supporting reduced risk of heart disease and arteriosclerosis. Numerous studies now say that the level of antioxidants may be a more significant factor than cholesterol levels in determining the risk of developing heart disease. The powerful antioxidants in Grapeseed, including Resveratrol, are said to help inhibit  oxidation of cholesterol that ultimately can lead to the process of arteriosclerosis, and the high flavonoid content in Grapeseed appears capable of significantly supporting a reduced risk of heart attack or stroke. Grapeseed is said to assist the body's own restorative properties to reduce platelet aggregation (clotting) in the blood, thereby also potentially lowering the risk of arteriosclerosis, stroke and heart attacks. Moreover, it appears to support raised levels of high-density lipoproteins (increase HDLs or "good" cholesterol) in the blood, while lowering the low-density lipoproteins (decrease LDLs or "bad" cholesterol) and thereby support inhibition of heart attacks and strokes. HDL reportedly helps clear the "bad" cholesterol from arterial walls and eliminate it from the body. This action is also believed to promote better circulation of blood throughout the body, especially to the heart. Resveratrol reputedly supports increased nitric oxide levels, which may help to relax and dilate artery walls, thus helping to maintain good blood flow and improved circulation.

For good vascular health, Grapeseed is considered by herbalists to be the best traditional herbal supplement to support and maintain the health of capillaries, through which the blood delivers nutrients to individual cells and carries away waste products. Proanthocyanidins contained in red wine grapes are considered vasoactive polyphenols .

The resveratrol in Grapeseed is also said to support improved peripheral blood circulation, thus potentially resulting in less pain and swelling in arms, ankles and legs and fewer nighttime cramps. Use of Grapeseed is thought to complement the body's own natural healing mechanisms to relieve numbness and tingling, as well as varicose veins. When the walls of small blood vessels weaken, the fluids they transport leak out, causing swelling, and OPCs reputedly strengthen capillary walls by blocking the degradation of the two proteins that give them strength and elasticity, collagen and elastin. This action may thus inhibit edema and swelling.

Grapeseed is believed to significantly support improved circulation, which, consequently, may benefit both cardiac and cerebral function. Because resveratrol reportedly increases nitric oxide levels, it may thus support relaxation of artery walls, which would then allow blood to flow more freely to the heart and the brain. The body naturally produces nitric oxide from a common dietary amino acid, L-arginine, but if levels are insufficient, resveratrol may support the body's efforts to boost nitric oxide levels and thus dilate artery walls to promote better blood circulation and blood flow to the brain. Furthermore, because OPCs are believed to be able to cross the blood-brain barrier, they may support the body in its natural efforts to protect the brain and spinal nerves against free radical damage. Recent studies indicate that Grapeseed's compounds (OPCs) may also be helpful in inhibiting Alzheimer's disease and dementia and possibly supporting improved cognitive and brain function (particularly in women). Research (2008) from UCLA and Mt. Sinai Schools of Medicine have indicated that Resveratrol can be protective in cases of Alzheimer's disease. In animal models, the neurology team studied beta amyloid, the proteins that build up in Alzheimer's affected brains, and found that the polyphenols (resveratrol) from Red Wine-Grapeseed extract blocked precursor proteins from sticking together to form the toxic beta amyloid protein, as well decreased the ability of the beta amyloid protein to damage neurons. This worked when treating the neurons prior to toxic damage and suggested that administration of the compound to Alzheimer's patients might block the development of these toxic aggregates, prevent disease development and also ameliorate existing Alzheimer's disease. Pursuant to this, researchers at the University of Missouri have shown that resveratrol reduces oxidative stress in nerve cells and may protect against age-related nerve changes.

Considered one of the finest antioxidants found in nature, Grapeseed supports the immune system and works with the body to combat free radical damage to cells and tissue and defend the body against serious malignant disease and infection. This herbal supplement contains the all-important Resveratrol and is an important source of nature's most potent antioxidants, tannin compounds called proanthocyanidins (also called OPCs for oligomeric procyanidins or PCOs for procyanidolic oligomers), which provide a high degree of antioxidant capacity to combat and support reduced free radical damage in the body. These compounds allow the body's cells to absorb antioxidant vitamin C, which may be very helpful helpful in protecting cells from the free radicals that can bind to and destroy cellular compounds. Such qualities are believed to be helpful in supporting and building the immune system and fighting invasive material and other infections. They are classified as flavonols, and the way in which these versatile healing compounds are distinct from flavonoids is their simple chemical structure, which allows them to be readily absorbed into the bloodstream. They work actively against fat-soluble and water-soluble oxidants, thus protecting cells from damage. OPCs may also be derived from Pine Bark (the original source) and are present in Red Wine extract, Pomegranate, Hops, various flowers, fruits, berries, nuts and beans. Clinical tests suggest that OPCs may be as much as fifty times more potent than vitamin E and twenty times more potent than vitamin C in terms of bioavailabile antioxidant activity. Studies have shown that Grapeseed extract not only supports enhanced development of normal cells, but may also inhibit abnormal cell growth. Furthermore, Grapeseed tannins may even assist the body to stimulate cell renewal by interfering with mucosal proteins.

In a study from the University of Kentucky Graduate Center for Toxicology and published in the January, 2009, issue of Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, scientists found that Grapeseed extract stimulated leukemia cells to commit suicide, a process called cell apoptosis. A number of studies have already revealed that eating fruit and vegetables helps to inhibit malignant disease, and previous research has shown Grapeseed extract has an effect on malignant cells involving skin, breast, bowel, lung, stomach and prostate, which is llikely due to the presence of proanthocyanidins, a family of antioxidant compounds. Grapeseed contains a number of antioxidants, including resveratrol, which reputedly encompasses properties that combat malignant diseases, as well as having a positive effect on the heart. In lab experiments, within twenty-four hours, 76% of leukemia cells exposed to the extract were killed off, while healthy cells were unharmed. The University of Kentucky study is the first to test Grapeseed's impact on a blood cancer, and these results could have potential implications for the incorporation of agents such as Grapeseed Extract into inhibition or treatment of hematological (blood) malignancies and possibly other cancers.

In 2009, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School showed that increased intake of the flavonoid, apigenin, found in Red Wine (and Parsley, Celery and cooked or processed Tomato), may reduce the risk of malignant ovarian disease by twenty percent in a large, population-based study. The mechanism included an inhibitory effect on endogenous estrogen activity or a reduction on circulating estrogen levels via competition for estrogen receptors or suppression of estrogen biosynthesis.

According to researchers at Harvard Medical School, the resveratrol content and a class of enzymes known as sirtuins in Red Wine Grapes have been shown to enhance cell survival during times of stress, delay cell death and extend life, and it may be a way to boost the principal "anti-ageing" enzyme in living cells. The researchers claim that resveratrol, which has already been credited with Red Wine Grape and Grapeseed Extract's ability to support lower risk of heart disease and malignant diseases, may be the most potent anti-ageing booster ever discovered. In addition, echoing the above research, researchers have demonstrated that resveratrol supports reduced oxidative stress in nerve cells, which may also potentially protect against age-related nerve changes.

There are reports that  use of Grapeseed may support slowing of macular degeneration, and it may also support the body's own natural healing devices to reduce myopia and improve vision that is stressed by computer screens or glare.

Grapeseed's OPCs are said to support and promote tissue regeneration, strengthen and repair connective tissue, enhance collagen production, revitalize ageing skin and promote tissue elasticity, all of which also helps to reduce the tendency to bruise easily and assist the body's own abilities to increase healing of injuries.

Test tube research has demonstrated that the polyphenols in Grapeseed may work with the body to inhibit growth of the Streptococcus mutans bacteria that causes tooth decay. There have been other reports claiming the Resveratrol content in Grapeseed Extract may be more effective in combatting three strains of bacteria that cause diarrhea than several over-the-counter antidiarrheal medicines.

Grapeseed is said to support the body's efforts to reduce histamine production, thus potentially moderating allergic and inflammatory responses; and this action may potentially help many allergy sufferers.

Recent research at Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus by professor Sidhartha D. Ray of the University’s Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Science indicates that Grapeseed may protect the liver from damage caused by toxic doses of acetaminophen (a non-prescription pain reliever).

A 2011 study from France's University of Montpellier indicated that antioxidant extracts in Red Grapes may prevent the buildup of fat in muscle tissue and favorably affect the body’s response to insulin, the hormone responsible for sugar and fat metabolism. The effects of fat on insulin sensitivity is said to occur via changes in composition of cell membranes, and particularly the phospholipids in the membrane. The study sought to identify if consumption of a polyphenol-rich extract from Red Grapes could change the composition of fat in muscle cell membranes, with a particular focus on phospholipids and triglycerides. Using animal model groups that were fed a high-fat and high-sugar diet – with one group also fed powdered Red Grape extract, containing 95% polyphenols – the researchers found that the rats receiving the Red Grape extract displayed a lower accumulation of fat in muscle tissues. The scientists noted that the results also showed that animals receiving the polyphenol-rich Grape extract powder had lower triglyceride levels in the cell membranes of their muscles, compared to the high-fat, high-sugar-fed animals with no Grape extract.   Reporting in the British Journal of Nutrition, the scientists explained that diets high in saturated fats reportedly worsen insulin resistance, as cells do not respond adequately to the normal levels of insulin – a marker of the onset of diabetes. The researchers concluded the high-fat, high-sugar diet was found to alter gene expression in muscle cells, but these changes were reversed with Grape extract; thus, the effects of the Grape polyphenol extract favor better insulin sensibility.

Recommended Dosage:
Take one (1) capsule, one (1) time each day with water at mealtimes.

Contraindications:
Do not take Grapeseed Herbal Supplement if you have anemia or if you are taking blood-thinning medication (aspirin, Coumadin, etc.). Since the tannin content of Grapeseed is high, it may counter the effects of iron supplements and should be taken at a different time.

Capsule Information:
Our Grapeseed (95% Proanthocyanidins) supplements are encapsulated in 100% Gluten-free, Vegetable Cellulose, Certified Kosher, size "00" Capsules.(click here for size comparison) Each capsule contains approximately 600 mgs."

Special Note:
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Disclaimer:
The information presented herein by Herbal Extracts Plus is intended for educational purposes only. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent disease. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.