Already proven to help prevent heart disease and improve libido, a new study finds that the pomegranate may actually be an elixir of youth, reports the Daily Mail.
A selection of 60 volunteers were given daily doses of the fruit – including pith, peel and seeds – in capsule form for 30 days, while the rest were given a placebo. In those who received the ‘pomegranate pill,’ significant decreases in cell marker 8-Oxo-DG, associated with cell damage, impaired brain, muscle, liver and kidney function and ageing effects on the skin, were noted.
Rich in vitamin A, C and E and high in iron and antioxidants, the pomegranate has long been touted as a super-fruit, believed to inhibit the oxidation of DNA in cells, thus slowing the aging process.
Study leader, Dr Sergio Streitenberger explained: “One way to look at ageing is to think of it as rusting, or oxidizing, a damaging process. Being able to guard against this process would be a significant breakthrough."
Last year, researchers at the Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh published similar findings, and even suggested that the fruit could help reduce workplace stresses.
Both studies were funded by Pomegreat PurePlus.