The Wellness Fruit: Pomegranates

by Angela Spears
Examiner.com
December 24, 2008

Despite all the hype about the benefits of pomegranate juice, I never drank it because of its high sugar content. However, high in fiber, vitamin C and potassium pomegranates are also high in polyphenols, a type of antioxidant that has been linked with reduced risk of heart disease and some cancers.

According to studies at the University of Naples, Italy and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), pomegranate contains powerful antioxidants, but its main claim to fame is in supporting cardiovascular health — particularly arterial and vein.

A recent, UCLA study ranked 10 beverages by their levels of disease-fighting antioxidants—and pomegranate juice came out on top. Pomegranate is the healthiest of them all because it contains the most of every type of antioxidant. It wins in all categories. And it's thought that it might do some very good things; protect against some cancers, such as prostate cancer. It might also modify heart disease risk factors, and it could be healthy for your heart.

The pomegranate has been traditionally used as medicines in many countries and is known to treat diarrhea, is an anti-parasite and antioxidant.

Here are the top 10 healthy juices according to a UCLA study:

1. Pomegranate juice
2. Red wine
3. Concord grape juice
4. Blueberry juice
5. Black cherry juice
6. Açaí juice
7. Cranberry juice
8. Orange juice
9. Tea
10. Apple juice

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