Blueberries have been shown to provide numerous health benefits in several studies. They contain a high amount of polyphenols, which fight adipogenesis (the development of fat cells), and induce lipolysis (the breakdown of lipids/fat). ScienceDaily recently published an article about a graduate student from Texas Woman’s University (TWU), who conducted a study to see if using blueberry polyphenols could help fight obesity at a molecular stage. The student, Shiwani Moghe, wanted to see if blueberry polyphenols play a part in adipocyte differentiation, which is the “process in which a relatively unspecialized cell acquires specialized features of an adipocyte, an animal connective tissue cell specialized for the synthesis and storage of fat.” Moghe presented her research at the Experimental Biology 2011 meeting for the American Society for Nutrition on April 10, 2011.
The study used tissue cultures from mice and dosed them with different levels of blueberry polyphenols. The findings were that polyphenols suppressed adipocyte differentiation. The lipid/fat content in the control group was significantly higher than the tissue given three doses of blueberry polyphenols. The highest dose of blueberry polyphenols resulted in a 73% decrease in lipids and the lowest dose resulted in a 27% decrease. While more testing will need to be done to determine the proper dosing in humans, the results of this study further support the importance of including blueberries in our diet.
You can read ScienceDaily’s article here.
Nutrition & Lifestyle