Purple Passion Fruit Peel Extract Appears to Reduce Asthma Symptoms

by | Jul 2, 2008 | 2008, Asthma, Lung Health

Written by Susan Sweeny Johnson, PhD, Biochem. Various asthma symptoms were reduced by 60%, 29%, and 33% more than a control group.

Asthma is an increasingly common respiratory disease affecting about 17 million people in the US alone (1). It is characterized by inflammation of the airways, proliferation of mucus, and bronchial spasms induced by environmental and emotional stimuli. This leads to wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath (2). Management of asthma symptoms often involves inhaled corticosteroids which have long term ill effects on the patient.

Purple passion fruit peel extract (PFP) has been used in South American folk medicines to treat anxiety, insomnia, bronchitis, and asthma (3). Also in previous studies PFP has been shown to reduce blood pressure in hypertensive rats and humans (4). In addition, PFP contains the antioxidants, cyanidin, quercetin and edulilic acid. Some antioxidants, specifically pycnogenol, have been shown to have beneficial effects on hypertension and asthma (5,6). Also quercetin has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties and is associated with the reduction of asthmatic symptoms (7-9).

In this new study, the effect of oral administration of an extract of purple passion fruit peel (PFP) on asthmatic symptoms was examined. Forty-two asthmatic patients without other medical problems were given 150 mg/day of PFP or a placebo.

The results showed that PFP administration significantly improved wheezing ( ~ 80%, p < 0.001), coughing ( ~76%, p < 0.001), and shortness of breath (~88%, p < 0.05) as compared to baseline and placebo. Placebo treated patients did have a marked but not statistically significant improvement in symptoms: wheezing (~20%), coughing (~47%), and shortness of breath (~55%). (The method of assessment of asthma symptoms was not clear and may have been self-reported resulting in a higher than usual placebo effect. Placebo effects can occur when patients expect to improve, underscoring the importance of accounting for them.) Although the total lung capacity of the PFP group improved ~15%, the one-second exhaled volume did not and the placebo group showed some slight improvement in both of these tests. Thus PFP did not measurably improve lung capacity.

Although these results should be confirmed by larger, longer term studies, they suggest that PFP may be a viable nutraceutical in the effort to control asthma.

From the World Health Organization (10):
• According to World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, 300 million people suffer from asthma and 255 000 people died of asthma in 2005.
• Asthma is the most common chronic disease among children.
• Asthma is not just a public health problem for high income countries: it occurs in all countries regardless of level of development. Over 80% of asthma deaths occur in low and lower-middle income countries.
• Asthma deaths will increase by almost 20% in the next 10 years if urgent action is not taken.
• Asthma is under-diagnosed and under-treated, creating a substantial burden to individuals and families and possibly restricting individuals’ activities for a lifetime.

In the US, asthma sufferers must spend about $4900 per year to adequately treat their disease. Typically they must take at least three different medications on a regular basis. According to a 2005 survey, about 44% of asthma sufferers do not have enough money to pay for treatment and consequently ration their medicine using it only in emergencies. When this kind of protocol is followed, symptoms worsen rather than improve leading to higher long term costs (11).

Source: Watson, Ronald Ross, et al. “Oral administration of the purple passion fruit peel extract reduces wheeze and cough and improves shortness of breath in adults with asthma.” Nutrition Research 28.3 (2008): 166-171.

© 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Posted July 2, 2008.

References:

  1. Mannino DM, Homa DM, Akinbami LJ, Moorman JE, Gwynn C, Redd SC. Surveillance for asthma–United States, 1980-1999. MMWR Surveill Summ 2002;51:1-13.
  2. Frieri M. Asthma concepts in the new millennium: update in asthma pathophysiology. Allergy Asthma Proc 2005;26:83-8.
  3. Zibadi S, Watson RR. Passion fruit (Passiflora edulis): composition, efficacy and safety (Review). Evid Based Integrative Med 2004;3: 183-7.
  4. Zibadi S, Farid R, Moriguchi S, Lu Y, Foo LY, Moslemzadeh Tehrani P, et al. Oral administration of purple passion fruit peel extract attenuates blood pressure in female spontaneously hypertensive rats and humans. Nutr Res 2007;27:408-16.
  5. Hosseini S, Lee J, Sepulveda RT, Watson RR. A randomized, doubleblind, placebo-controlled, prospective, 16 week crossover study to determine the role of Pycnogenol in modifying blood pressure in mildly hypertensive patients. Nutr Res 2001;21:1251-60.
  6. Hosseini S, Pishnamazi S, Sadrzadeh SM, Farid F, Farid R, Watson RR. Pycnogenol in the management of asthma. J Med Food 2001;4:201-9.
  7. Kimata M, Shichijo M, Miura T, Serizawa I, Inagaki N, Nagai H. Effects of luteolin, quercetin and baicalein on immunoglobulin E– mediated mediator release from human cultured mast cells. Clin Exp Allergy 2000;30:501-8.
  8. Mu MM, Chakravortty D, Sugiyama T, Koide N, Takahashi K, Mori I, et al. The inhibitory action of quercetin on lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. J Endotoxin Res 2001;7:431-8.
  9. Shen SC, Lee WR, Lin HY, Huang HC, Ko CH, Yang LL, et al. In vitro and in vivo inhibitory activities of rutin, wogonin, and quercetin on lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide and prostaglandin E(2) production. Eur J Pharmacol 2002;446:187-94.
  10. See the World Health Organization website.
  11. See the WebMD website.