Those of you who regularly follow LinkedIn posts from Green Mountain Biotech will notice that we alreadyused a pomegranate image in our greeting for the Jewish New Year (https://www.linkedin.com/posts/green-mountain-biotech_shana-tova-to-our-friends-colleagues-and-activity-6978291826407424001-5JH2?utm_source=share).The pomegranate typically appears on the New Year dinner table, but its imagealso appears throughout the year as a decorative item on Jewish ritualartifacts.
The focus of this week’s leaf is entirelydifferent – phytochemicals of the pomegranate. Punica granatum has beencultivated throughout recorded history and its fruit and juice valued both asdelicacies and for their medicinal properties.
Wu & Yian (2017) have written anextensive, contemporary review about pomegranate that mentions dozens of itsphytochemicals. Prominent are the anthocyanins, deep red pigments, and hydrolysabletannins. These and other phenolics are powerful antioxidants and have useful pharmacologicalproperties in humans that including anti-inflammatory, anticancer, anti-obesityand cardioprotective activities.
Pomegranate extracts can benefit the skin,both when obtained by ingestion or by direct topical application. They feature ina wide range of cosmetic products, touted for all sorts of beneficial effects(e.g., “anti-ageing”, “antipollution”, etc.) – you will find many of theseclaims in an internet search for “pomegranate cosmetics”, but you may have aharder time finding scientific verification. Nevertheless, Henning et al (2019)report clinical-trial results showing that daily pomegranate juice consumptionsignificantly enhances skin resistance[YB1] [RK2] [YB3] [YB4] to UV-B radiation damage. This and other credible scientificstudies supports the wisdom of our ancestors – pomegranates are good news allyear round!
As traditionally said at the Jewish New Yeardinner table, “[RK5] [RK6] יהי רצון מלפניך ה' אלוהינו ואלוהי אבותינו שנהיה מלאים מצוותכרימון” - May it be your will, Lord God, God ofour ancestors, that our lives be filled with good deeds like the pomegranate[is filled with seeds].
Further reading
Brewer, G. (2019,November 18). 5 things you didn’t know about pomegranates. Kew Gardens Read & Watch. https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/surprising-pomegranate-facts
Henning, SM, Yang J, Lee RP et al (2019).Pomegranate Juice and Extract Consumption Increases the Resistance to UVB-induced Erythema and Changes the Skin Microbiome in Healthy Women: a Randomized Controlled Trial. Scientific reports, 9(1),14528. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-50926-2
Wu S, & Tian L (2017). Diverse Phytochemicals and Bioactivities in the Ancient Fruit and Modern Functional Food Pomegranate (Punica granatum). Molecules (Basel, Switzerland), 22(10), 1606. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules22101606
