On Oct 31, 9:35 am, ironjustice <***@hotmail.com> wrote:
"Blackpepper, piperine, can reduce high-fat diet induced oxidative
stress" <<
(NaturalNews)
Substance in Black Pepper Increases Nutrient Absorption up to Two
Thousand Percent
Monday, November 17, 2008 by: Barbara L. Minton
Putting black pepper on your food may be one of the easiest, most
economical ways to boost your overall health status. Piperine, the
main alkaloid from black pepper has been shown to substantially
increase the bioavailability of the nutrients in foods and
supplements. As the quality of food declines and the costs of food and
supplements continue to skyrocket, it is increasingly important to
your health that the nutrients you consume are able to be used to
maximum efficiency by your body.
What is piperine?
Piperine is a pungent compound found in the fruit of the plants in the
Piperaceae family, the most famous member of which is Piper nigrum,
black pepper. It has a long history of use in Ayurvedic medicine as a
restorative and treatment.
Piperine is able to increase bioavilability of many substances through
a number of mechanisms. It inhibits several enzymes responsible for
metabolizing nutritional substances, stimulates amino-acid
transporters in the intestinal lining, inhibits removal of substances
from cells so they continue to be available for use, and decreases the
intestinal activity allowing more of the substances to enter the body
in active form. The results of these actions are that substances
reach, enter and remain within their target cells for longer periods
of time than would normally be the case.
Piperine can turn a marginally effective therapeutic substance into a
highly effective one by increasing its bioavailability and
intracellular residency time. As an example, piperine can increase the
bioavailability of the cancer, inflammation and infection fighter,
curcumin, by twenty-fold.
Piperine favorably simulates the digestive enzymes of the pancreas,
enhances digestive capacity and significantly reduces gastrointestinal
food transit time. Black pepper or piperine treatment has also been
evidenced to lower lipid peroxidation in vivo and beneficially
influence the cellular status of organic sulfur compounds, antioxidant
molecules, and antioxidant enzymes in a number of experimental
situations of oxidative stress.
In addition to its effects on bioavilability, piperine has many other
actions in the body that include increasing beta-endorphins in the
brain, acting as an anti-depressant, increasing serotonin production,
boosting brain functioning, stimulating adrenal production, relieving
pain and asthma symptoms, stimulating melanin production, decreasing
ulcerations of the stomach, reducing stomach acid production, and
coordinating digestive tract contractions. It is highly effective
against colon cancer.
New research is documenting the many health benefits of piperine
The journal Biometals reports a study involving cadmium, a well known
environmental carcinogen and immuno-toxicant that is characterized by
marked atrophy of the thymus and spleen enlargement. Cadmium induces
death in lymphocytes and alters immune functions. Researchers tested
the ameliorative effects to cadmium damage using piperine, picroliv-
glycosides, and curcumin polyphenols. They found that of the three
herbals, piperine displayed maximum efficacy. All the examined doses
of piperine increased cell viability in a dose dependent manner.
Restoration of cell damage such as cytotoxicity, oxidative stress and
phosphatidylserine externalization was potentiated with piperine. T
and B cell phenotypes and cytokine release were also mitigated best
with piperine, rendering piperine the compound of choice under immuno-
compromised conditions.
In a study reported in the September edition of the journal Food and
Chemical Toxicology the effect of various doses of piperine was
determined. Results showed that piperine at all dosage ranges used in
the study possessed anti-depression like activity and cognitive
enhancing effects at all treatment durations. Researchers determined
that piperine is a functional food that improves brain functioning.
The medicinal properties of various compounds such as curcumin cannot
be well utilized because of poor bioavailability due to its rapid
metabolism in the liver and intestinal wall. In an older study
reported in Planta Medica, the effect of combining piperine, a known
inhibitor of hepatic and intestinal glucuronidation, was evaluated to
determine the bioavailability of curcumin in rats and healthy human
volunteers. When curcumin was given alone to the rats, moderate serum
concentrations were achieved over a period of 4 hours. When piperine
was added with the curcumin, the serum concentration of curcumin
increased for a 1-2 hour period. Time to maximum concentration was
significantly increased while elimination half life and clearance
significantly decreased. The bioavailability was increased by 154%.
When curcumin was given alone to humans, serum levels were either
undetectable or very low. Addition of piperine produced much higher
concentrations from 0.25 to 1 hour following administration. The
bioavailability of curcumin when taken with piperine increased 2000%.
A study reported in the September issue of Phychopharmacology was
designed to investigate the involvement of monoaminergic systems in
the antidepressant activity of curcumin and the effect of piperine as
a bioenhancer to the biological effects of curcumin. The researchers
found that the enhanced curcumin dose dependently inhibited the
immobility period, increased serotonin, and inhibited the monoamine
oxidase enzymes. The compound also enhanced the anti-immobility effect
of sub-threshold doses of various antidepressant drugs like
fluoxetine, venlafaxine, or bupropion. The combination of sub-
threshold dose of enhanced curcumin and various antidepressant drugs
resulted in synergistic increase in serotonin levels. The co-
administration of piperine with curcumin resulted in potentiation of
pharmacological, biochemical, and neurochemical activities. They
concluded that the curcumin, piperine combination proved to be a
useful and potent natural antidepressant.
The summer issue of Clinical Laboratory Science reports a study to
determine if resveratrol from red grapes, cinnamaldehyde from
cinnamon, and piperine from black pepper have anti-proliferative
effects on colon cancer. Quantitative effects of each phytochemical on
concentration responses and time courses of proliferation of cultured
human colon cancer cells were assessed. The results showed the
phytochemicals each displayed anti-proliferative effects. Piperine
displayed a trend toward anti-proliferation at 24 hours and
statistically significant inhibition at 48 and 72 hours. Researchers
concluded that all three compounds offer significant anti-
proliferative effects on human colon cancer cells and provide
protective effects against colon cancer.
Using piperine
Piperine is generally consumed as a component of black pepper. Adding
black pepper to cooked foods, raw foods, and fresh juices is a good
way to increase nutrient absorption. Black pepper spices up almost all
foods, even snacks like popcorn. It can be added to the Budwig
protocol used as a preventative and cure for cancer. It is natural
that the foods and the compound that makes their nutrients so highly
available go so well together.
For those with an aversion to black pepper, piperine can be bought as
a supplement called Bioperine. Source Naturals Bioperine is available
at Lucky Vitamin. Swanson Vitamin sells a house brand of Bioperine.
There are multi-vitamins on the market that contain Bioperine as well
as Curcumin supplements with Bioperine added. Supplemental piperine
should be taken along with meals and supplements for maximum benefit.
Additional sources:
"Piperine Report", Cochran Foundation of Medical Research.
Russell Mills, "Piperine Multiplies the Strength of Many Supplements
and Drugs", The Delano Report.
About the author
Barbara is a school psychologist, a published author in the area of
personal finance, a breast cancer survivor using "alternative"
treatments, a born existentialist, and a student of nature and all
things natural.
Who loves ya.
Tom
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