What are the Health Benefits of Pomegranates?

Nutrition enthusiasts have begun an exploration of the health benefits of pomegranates. This fruit-bearing shrub produces a berry that packs a wallop of cancer fighting antioxidants. Though the fruit is rather cumbersome and tedious to eat whole due to the time consuming extraction of edible pieces, pomegranate juice can be found in most stores, and has been climbing quickly to the top of the favorite juices list. In fact, researchers have suggested pomegranate juice has a higher concentration of antioxidants than red wine or green tea.

Studies have shown that pomegranate juice can slow the time it takes for some cancers to progress, so experts are studying pomegranates to determine whether or not they contain other properties that increase the effects of the antioxidants found within the pomegranate berry. Polyphenolic flavonoids are the chemicals believed to control this positive effect. Flavonoids are also linked to studies conducted on slowing the aging process. With two to three times the amount of flavonoids as wine and tea, pomegranates are becoming the forerunner in healthy beverage selection.

The health benefits of pomegranates also include improvement of cardiovascular health. Studies show pomegranate juice drinkers have less oxygen deficiency to the heart during rigorous activity than non-drinkers. This indicates pomegranate juice increases blood flow to the heart, so it would behoove heart disease patients to drink a few glasses of pomegranate juice each week. Arterial plaque was reduced by as much as 30 percent in another study.

Patients who have cholesterol issues also seek out the health benefits of pomegranates. Pomegranate juice inhibits the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which is the bad cholesterol. LDLs only become an issue when oxidized, so pomegranates have a major impact in the fight to lower cholesterol. Other antioxidant filled beverages also have the ability to lower cholesterol, but none to the degree researches have seen in pomegranate juice.

Improving erectile dysfunction is yet another recently discovered benefit on the list of the health benefits of pomegranates, though perhaps the discovery is not as recent as it seems. The pomegranate was known as the "love" fruit thousands of years ago. Tied to procreation and fertility, the goddess of love, Aphrodite, is said to have planted the pomegranate shrub on Cyprus island. Studies suggest free radicals are a factor in erectile dysfunction, and the high concentration of antioxidant in pomegranates seems to alleviate the condition when added to the long term diet.