One of my family's favorite remedies for hypoglycemia is orange juice. Quickly absorbed, it packs a glucose punch. Get this -- not only do a few ounces of orange wonder bring 'em back to the land of clarity, it also reduces inflammation in the body.
A recent study by endocrinologists at the University of Buffalo reveals orange juice is packed with flavonoids. Not only that, flavonoids suppress destructive oxygen free radicals (aka reactive oxygen species or ROS). ROS can damage cells and contributes to chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Previous research has shown 300 calories of glucose induces ROS and other proinflammatory responses. Now the researchers wanted to see how orange juice, fructose and saccharin-sweetened water impacted ROS compared to glucose. For this study, 32 healthy people between ages 20 to 40 were divided equally into four groups and given 300 calories worth of either o.j., fructose, saccharin water or glucose. Significant increases in ROS were reported in samples from the glucose group, but not the o.j., fructose or water group.
Orange juice has the same concentration of glucose as participants in the glucose group, so the researchers dug further to determine what was suppressing ROS in the juice. Turns out two flavonoids in orange juice inhibited ROS generation.
Dr. Paresh Dandona, senior author of the study, stated it is important people with diabetes are aware of non-inflammatory food choices. Gotta spread the good news to my family! Read more in Medical News Today.
