“A Toast to Grape Juice” 

 

Now, even teetotalers and kids can get in on the benefits of red wine, indirectly.  A small but intriguing study conducted at Georgetown University suggest that purple grape juice contains the same antioxidants believed to give red wine many of its healthful benefits.  Previous studies have shown that purple grape juice may help fight atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries, and reduce dangerous levels of LDL, the bad cholesterol.

 

The latest research, published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation (June 2001), indicates that purple grape juice may also be a potent cancer fighter.  How?  It increases antioxidant activity within the body while decreasing free radical activity.  A higher level of antioxidants makes for a better defense against free radicals, the cellular troublemakers widely believed to accelerate aging and disease.

 

As part of the study, 20 male and female subjects drank about two cups of juice a day.  After two weeks, their blood levels of vitamin E, a powerful antioxidant, were approximately 13 percent higher and their free radical production was slashed by one-third.  Scientists believe that flavonoids, compounds that function as antioxidants and that also five fruits and vegetables their bright, vibrant colors, are responsible for grape juice’s beneficial effects: meaning nondrinkers and toddlers can now raise their own glass to good health.

 

Too juiced?  As good as juice is, there’s a limit, which parents need to recognize.  Giving kids cup after cup can lead to diarrhea, cavities, obesity and even malnutrition, because kids fill up on juice and won’t eat real food.  In the May issue of Pediatrics (AAP) urged parents to heed these limits:  For children ages 1 to 6, no more than four to six ounces per day; for 7 to 18 year-olds, 12 ounces per day.  And no juice before the child is 6 months; stick with breast milk.  To read the AAP’s juice recommendations in full, log onto www.aap.org/policy/re0047.html.

 

Vegetarian Times, September 2001