Cranberries really are a miracle cure for women

Cranberry juice, long dissed as a mere folk remedy for relieving urinary tract infections in women, is finally getting some respect.

Thanks to Prof. Itzhak Ofek, a researcher at Tel Aviv University's Sackler Faculty of Medicine, the world now knows that science supports the folklore. Prof. Ofek's research on the tart berry over the past two decades shows that its juice indeed combats urinary tract infections.

And, he’s discovered, the refreshing red beverage has additional medicinal qualities as well. Prof. Ofek has found that cranberry juice exhibits anti-viral properties against the flu, can prevent cavities, and lessens the reoccurrence of gastric ulcers. Unhappily for half the human race, however, new research published this year in the journal Molecular Nutrition & Food Research on ulcers, suggests that, like urinary tract infections, the healing power of cranberries apply only to women.

Medicinal "Teflon"

The remarkable healing property in cranberries stems from a heavy molecule known as non-dialyzable material or NDM. This molecule, isolated by Prof. Ofek and his colleagues, seems to coat some bodily surfaces with Teflon-like efficiency, preventing infection-causing agents from taking root.

Surprisingly, NDM appears to have no effect on some of the good bacteria in our bodies, says Prof. Ofek. His seminal research on the subject, in collaboration with Prof. Nathan Sharon from the Weizmann Institute, appeared in the world’s leading medical journal, the New England Journal of Medicine, in 1991. “We understood that there was something in cranberry juice that doesn’t let infections adhere to a woman’s bladder," Prof. Ofek says. "We figured it was a specific inhibitor and proved this to be the case.”

A Unique Mouthwash

After the 1991 study, Prof. Ofek conjectured that if cranberries could protect against bacterial invasion in the bladder, "Could they work wonders elsewhere"” He took the question Tel Aviv University’s School of Dental Medicine, and together with Prof Ervin Weiss, produced positive results.

“We found that NDM inhibits adhesion of oral bacteria to tooth surfaces and as a consequence reduced the bacterial load that causes cavities in the mouth,” says Prof. Ofek. “And after a clinical trial, we formulated a mouthwash based on cranberries which was patented by Tel Aviv University.”

From Mouth to Midsection

But Prof. Ofek wasn’t content to stop at cavities. Working with Prof. Ervin Weiss and Prof. Zichria Rones at Hadassah Medical and Dental School, he found that NDM inhibits the flu virus from attaching to cells and prevented experimental flu infections in animal models.

Most recently, Prof. Ofek collaborated with Dr. Haim Shmuely, a resident physician at the Beilinson Hospital and lecturer at Tel Aviv University, to find that cranberry also inhibits two-thirds of the “unhealthy” bacteria that clings to gastric cells, which lead to ulcers.

“The results were very interesting,” says Prof. Ofek. “Cranberry helped reduce the load of this bacteria, Helicobacter pylori, in the gut. In combination with antibiotics, it reduced repeat ulcers from approximately 15 percent to about 5 percent.”

Ladies Only

The one drawback to this research is that it only holds true for women, showing once again cranberry’s affinity for the female. “The whole thing with cranberries seems to be female-oriented,” admits Prof. Ofek.

He continues, “The take-home message is that God created this fruit with a polyphenolic material. We still don't know its chemical formula, but it seems to target a fraction of bacteria and viruses.”

Today, a cranberry research team comprised of scientists from across Israel, and headed by Professors Ofek and Weiss, are investigating the berry's healing powers. Recently, it was found that cranberry NDM may also act as an anti-cancer agent. The scientific research methods behind the research have been patented by Tel Aviv University.

Prof. Ofek’s recommendation is that women drink two glasses a day to treat certain infections. And because “there is still so much we don’t know about cranberries, I would suggest that men also drink two glasses a day,” he concludes.

Source: American Friends of Tel Aviv University

Related stories:

Opposites interfere
In a classic physics experiment, photons (light particles), electrons, or any other quantum particles are fired, one at a time, at a sheet with two slits cut in it that sits in front of a recording plate. For photons, a photographic plate reveals an oscillating pattern (bands of light and dark) – a sign that each particle, behaving like a wave, has somehow passed through both slits simultaneously and interfered, canceling the light in some places and enhancing it in others.
Atomic structure of the mammalian 'fatty acid factory' determined
Mammalian fatty acid synthase is one of the most complex molecular synthetic machines in human cells. It is also a promising target for the development of anti-cancer and anti-obesity drugs and the treatment of metabolic disorders. Now researchers at ETH Zurich have determined the atomic structure of a mammalian fatty acid synthase. Their results have just been published in Science magazine.
Astronomers discover missing link for origin of comets
(PhysOrg.com) -- An international team of scientists that includes University of British Columbia astronomer Brett Gladman has found an unusual object whose backward and tilted orbit around the Sun may clarify the origins of certain comets.
Researchers create new stem cell screening tool
Stem cell research is the next great leap in medicine. In the future, new tissue grown in a laboratory could replace a failing heart, or new cells take the place of damaged cells in the brain. Rather than using stem cells from embryonic sources, which opens difficult ethical and complicated scientific issues, scientists have been looking to adult human stem cells, culled from a person's own body. Adult stem cells are now being cultivated from various tissues in the body -- from skin, bones and even wisdom teeth.
Next stop: The fourth dimension
How did the universe come to be? What is it made of? What is mass? Can science prove that there are other dimensions? We may have answers soon.
Climate change target may lead to 'dangerously misguided' policies
The pledge from G8 countries to cut global emissions by 50 per cent by 2050, in an effort to cut global warming to 2ºC, could lead to ‘dangerously misguided’ climate change adaptation policies, according to new research from The University of Manchester.
Children with TVs in their room sleep less
Middle school children who have a television or computer in their room sleep less during the school year, watch more TV, play more computer games and surf the net more than their peers who don't – reveals joint research conducted by the University of Haifa and Jezreel Valley College.
Battling diabetes with beta cells
Affecting eight percent of America's population, diabetes can lead to blindness, kidney failure, strokes and heart disease. Thanks to Tel Aviv University researchers, a new cure –– based on advances in cell therapy –– may be within reach.

News discussion:

Medicine & Health news