Grape Seed Extract Benefits Heart Health

by | Jan 13, 2009 | 2008, Cardiovascular Health, Grape Seed Extract

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Research demonstrates that grape seed extract, a powerful antioxidant, decreased oxidized LDL cholesterol, helped regulate heart rhythm,and decreased plaque buildup in blood vessels.

Cardiovascular Disease affects almost 81 million Americans who have one or more of the following conditions: high blood pressure (1) (73 million), heart disease (16 million), stroke (6 million), heart failure (5 million).   Cardiovascular Disease claimed 869,724 lives in 2004, accounting for 36.3% of all deaths or one of every 2.8 deaths (2) and costs our healthcare system over $448 billion each year (3).

Now a new study (8) has found that grape seed extract may reduce Cardiovascular Disease. In the study, researchers reviewed the scientific literature looking at many of the characteristics of Cardiovascular Disease and how grape seed supplementation has affected those factors. For patients with high cholesterol, 200 mg Grape Seed Extract per day for 8 weeks decreased oxidized LDL cholesterol as well as helped regulate irregular heartbeats (12). For blood vessel plaque, a mouse study using 100 mg of Grape Seed Extract per kg of bodyweight per day for 10 weeks decreased “foam cells”, known to contribute to blood vessel plaques (13), by as much as 63% and decreased total cholesterol by 25% (14). Finally, another mouse study supplementing 18.4 mg per kg of bodyweight for 12 weeks decreased total cholesterol by 25% and decreased plaque buildup in the blood vessels by 68% (15).

Researchers attribute the heart health benefits of grape seed extract to its antioxidant activity (16) that has been shown to slow the development of blood vessel plaques as well as help maintain healthy cholesterol (17). They concluded that “supplementation with grape seed, grape skin, or red wine products may be a useful adjunct to consider for a dietary approach in the prevention of Cardiovascular Disease.”

Source: Leifert W, Abeywardena M et al. Cardioprotective actions of grape polyphenols. Nutrition Research Volume 28, Issue 11, November 2008, Pages 729–737

© 2008 Published by Elsevier Inc.

Posted January 13, 2009

References:

  1. David Conen D.  Blood pressure progression: prospective cohort study with high normal blood pressure or blood Risk of cardiovascular events among women.  BMJ published online 19 Aug 2007.
  2. “Cardiovascular Disease Statistics” posted on the American Heart Association website.
  3. “Cardiovascular Disease Cost” posted on the American Heart Association website.
  4. Lairon D.  Dietary fiber intake and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in French adults.  Am J Clin Nutr 2005;82 1185-1194.
  5. Tsuji I, Nishino Y, Ohkubo T, et al. A prospective cohort study on National Health Insurance beneficiaries in Ohsaki, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan: study design, profiles of the subjects and medical cost during the first year. J Epidemiol. 1998;8:258-263.
  6. Wang X.  Efficacy of folic acid supplementation in stroke prevention: a meta-analysis.  The Lancet 2007; 369(9576):1876-1882.
  7. Behall KM.  Whole-Grain Diets Reduce Blood Pressure in Mildly Hypercholesterolemic Men and Women.  Jou Am Diet Assoc 2006; 106 (9): 1445-1449.
  8. Leifert WR.  Cardioprotective actions of grape polyphenols.  Nutr Res 2008; 28(11): 729-737.
  9. American Chemical Society Website
  10. Kaur M.  Grape Seed Extract Inhibits In vitro and In vivo Growth of Human Colorectal Carcinoma Cells.  Clin Cancer Res 2006 12: 6194-6202.
  11. Wang J.  Grape-Derived Polyphenolics Prevent Aâ Oligomerization and Attenuate Cognitive Deterioration in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease.  Journal of Neurosci 2008; 28(25):6388-6392; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0364-08.2008.
  12. Bagchi D, Sen CK, Ray SD, Das DK, Bagchi M, Preuss HG, et al. Molecular mechanisms of cardioprotection by a novel grape seed proanthocyanidin extract. Mutat Res 2003;523-524:87-97.
  13. Harvard Medical Dictionary posted on the Harvard Medical School website.
  14. Vinson JA, Mandarano MA, Shuta DL, Bagchi M, Bagchi D. Beneficial effects of a novel IH636 grape seed proanthocyanidin extract and a niacin-bound chromium in a hamster atherosclerosis model. Mol Cell Biochem 2002;240:99-103.
  15. Auger C, Gerain P, Laurent-Bichon F, Portet K, Bornet A, Caporiccio B, et al. Phenolics from commercialized grape extracts prevent early atherosclerotic lesions in hamsters by mechanisms other than antioxidant effect. J Agric Food Chem 2004;52:5297-302.
  16. Cui J, Juhasz B, Tosaki A, Maulik N, Das DK. Cardioprotection with grapes. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 2002;40:762-9. [15] Frei B. Cardiovascular disease and nutrient antioxidants: role of low density lipoprotein oxidation. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 1995;35:83-98.