Although research is still in preliminary stages, early results from a University of Queensland study presented at the Australian Health and Medical Research Congress indicated that compounds in mangoes may offer some surprising health benefits. They seem to act on the "same pathways that diabetes and cholesterol drugs target," blocking or activating receptors known as "peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors." These receptors play key rolls in people with diabetes and high cholesterol, but are also being linked with some types of cancer. If the mango compounds do target them, it is possible that the fruits could ease the effects of diabetes and high cholesterol, or even be able to combat cancerous cells.
The name "nutritional bioactive" is given to the unique components of fruits and vegetables that have particular health effects and study of these bioactives has been primarily directed at temperate, highly common fruits and vegetables (broccoli, etc). The researchers at Queensland have focused on tropical fruits, which is what led to their current findings.
11-27-2006 @4:43PM FiltEr said... If you would compare treatment of diabetes thirty years ago and now you would be surprised. In that time there wasn't any research in this way. Now almost all medical universities research this problem. But 30 years ago this problem wasn't so big, as now :(
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11-28-2006 @1:48AM Sukie Crandall said... Some mango varieties can be seasonally high in chromium, and when that mineral is supplemented at safe levels it can reduce blood glucose, so there may be more going on here. (Too much chromium can be toxic, though.)
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