A physician’s video came my way about the value of Vitamin P in fighting cardiovascular disease. Perhaps to my discredit, I could not last the full 18 minutes; it seemed much more. So I did a bit of research on this puzzle vitamin. It ends up Vitamin P isn’t too mysterious. It’s a phrase used in the first part of the 20th century for the nutrients we now call bioflavonoids.
Bioflavonoids
These are pigments in plants, particularly yellow or red-blue pigments. They protect plants from insects, fungi and germs. Intensely colored foods have the most. They’re related to the function of each cell in your body. Over 4,000 flavonoids exist. Here are a few: quercetin, rutin, myricetin, apigenin, hesperin, hesperidin, luteolin, catechin, eriodictyol, and cyanidin.
How Can They Fight Heart Disease? Flavonoids are anti-inflammatory. They prevent plaque formation in the arteries. They reduce blood pressure by relaxing nitric oxide. Hesperidin is proven to lower blood sugar, improve insulin sensitivity, and decrease triglycerides – an independent risk factor for heart disease. It combats inflammation, the origin of most disease. Hesperidin lowers total cholesterol and LDL (bad) cholesterol. It increases HDL (good) cholesterol. These modifications can reduce metabolic conditions like heart disease and diabetes.
Take note
Citrus fruits – oranges, lemons, grapefruit – include hesperidin, particularly in the membranes and peel. It’s also in apricots, plums and bilberry. Flavonoids may inhibit tumor growth, stopping or slowing the growth of malignant cells. Quercetin fights several cancers: prostate, breast, colon, pancreatic, head and neck, leukemia, lung, melanoma, liver, ovarian, and cervical. Because quercetin struggles so many cancers, I’ll list its sources : blossoms, red cherries, blackberries, blueberries, and black and red grapes.
What Else Do Flavonoids Do? Bioflavonoids reduce stroke risk. They’re antiviral, antibiotic, and anti-oxidant, and help fight viruses, disease, and disease. Their bacteria-fighting properties destroy bacteria in foods and protect against food poisoning. They may work as antihistamines. Bioflavonoids enhance the absorption and activity of vitamin C. That strengthens the immune system and aids the skin restore and repair. Skin demands both vitamin C and flavonoids to fix bruises, broken capillaries, varicose veins, and sunlight damage.
Did you know?
Rutin strengthens capillary walls (and assists with varicose veins). If you bruise easily, that may be a indication of weak capillary walls. Rutin also helps with nausea, hay fever, and migraines. It reduces allergies. Allergic reactions may be a indication that you need bioflavonoids on your daily diet. Flavonoids may prevent these varied conditions: hemorrhoids, miscarriages, nosebleeds, cataracts, and retinal bleeding in people with hypertension and diabetes. They also improve bile production. Bioflavonoids alleviate pain and prolonged bleeding and heal injuries quicker. They can relieve the pain of oral herpes.
We Get It – More Flavonoids. Our bodies do not produce bioflavonoids, so we get them through diet (or supplements). Maybe vitamin “P” referred to”plants” Plant foods are the best sources of flavonoids. The white pith beneath citrus peel contains all the flavonoids in citrus. Flavonoids pack a potent health punch. Make certain to include these foods in your daily diet. Certain practices and materials could deplete our flavonoid stores. They include smoking, alcohol intake, aspirin, prescription antibiotics, painkillers, and cortisone.
