Mark Stengler, N.D.
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 But scientists have been interested to note that the flavonoids found in propolis are totally unlike those found in plants. Their unique biochemical makeup might account for the powerful therapeutic activity of propolis.
In addition, bee propolis contains a class of chemicals known as phenols that seem to be responsible for many of its antimicrobial effects. The bee product also has B vitamins and amino acids, more essential components of human health. Finally, it contains an essential oil that likely contributes to its medicinal effects. |
| Among the other nutrients are carotenoids, calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, potassium, and flavonoids such as rutin and quercitin— all of which are believed to give bee pollen a large part of its anti-allergy effect. In addition, it contains those hard-to-get trace minerals such as silicon, molybdenum, boron, and sulfur. It also contains life-sustaining enzymes and plant hormone structures known as sterols, which are thought to have hormone-balancing effects.
Bee pollen is used to treat or prevent many different conditions, from arthritis and allergies to depression and fatigue. |
| In studies, researchers have usually given butcher's broom combined with flavonoids and vitamin C—which is the formula I recommend for maximum healing benefits.
°^ Varicose Veins
Butcher's broom is a venotonic, so it can also be used for varicose veins.
A study was done of 40 people with chronic venous insufficiency. They had various symptoms—such as varicose veins in the legs, edema (swelling caused by buildup of fluids), itching, and leg cramps—that indicated poor venous blood flow. |
| Scientists have shown that they do this by binding to special receptor sites in the brain, helping to induce a state of relaxation. flavonoids also add to the antiinflammatory effects of chamomile.
DOSAGE
°* Tea
Chamomile works best, I've found, when you brew fresh tea. When the chamomile flowers are freshly steeped in boiling water, the essential oils form a high concentration. Also, just taking the time to make a fresh cup of chamomile tea is therapeutic. It's a way of saying, with your actions, "My health is important so I will take the time to make a health-promoting cup of tea. |
| DOSAGE
Practitioners commonly use standardized extracts of 2.2% flavonoids or 18.75% procyanidins. In many of the studies where patients showed the greatest improvement, researchers were administering between 160 and 900 milligrams daily of the capsule extract.
With serious heart conditions like congestive heart failure, it's important for anyone taking hawthorn to get the benefit of its therapeutic effects as quickly as possible. For those taking it in tincture form, I have seen good results with doses of 30 to 60 drops three times daily. |
| Polyphenols contain flavonoids such as catechin, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, epigallocatechin gal-late (EGCG), and quercitin. Of all these, EGCG appears to have the strongest antioxidant and anticancer activity. The polyphenols have been shown to have a protective effect on vitamin E, helping to maintain vitamin E levels in the body rather than allowing it to become depleted.
Green tea also contains vitamins C, D, K, and B12. It has ample supplies of minerals, too—including calcium, magnesium, chromium, manganese, iron, copper, zinc, molybdenum, selenium, and potassium. |
Earl Mindell
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 The flavonoids in red grapes are more than a thousand times more powerful than vitamin E in inhibiting oxidation of human LDL cholesterol.
• The amino acid arginine can help make erections stronger.
• 100 mg. of the phospholipid supplement phosphatidylser-ine (PS) daily can help people with normal age-related memory problems regain twelve years of brainpower.
• Recent research shows that adequate levels of selenium may slow the progression of HTV significantly.
• Carpal tunnel syndrome and hormonal imbalance may be symptoms of a vitamin B6 deficiency. |
Rebecca Wood
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 Their flavonoids may reduce the risk of heart disease and inhibit the development of certain cancers. Apples reduce pitta and kapha. When cooked, they can be eaten in moderation for vata.
Use More than 7,500 apple varieties are grown throughout the world today. Because every apple seed contains unique genetic material, you can plant ten seeds from a single apple and get ten different kinds of apple trees. However, most of our commercial varieties lack genetic diversity. |
Sheldon Saul Hendler and David Rorvik
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 Plant phenolic compounds and flavonoids: may participate in redox cycling reactions and help maintain levels of reduced gamma-tocopherol.
Selenium: may function synergistically with gamma-tocopherol.
Vitamin C: may help maintain gamma-tocopherol in its reduced (antioxidant) form.
FOODS
Olestra: is likely to inhibit the absorptin of gamma-tocopherol. Although alpha-tocopherol is added to olestra, gamma-tocopherol is not.
HERBS
Some herbs, including garlic and ginkgo, possess antithrombotic activity. |
| Other substances, including flavonoids, may also play a role in these possible activities. Barley grass extracts have been found to protect human fibroblasts against carcinogenic agents. Again, chlorophyll may, in part, account for this effect. Barley grass contains several substances other than chlorophyll that have antioxidant activity and that may contribute to its possible antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activities.
PHARMACOKINETICS
The proteins, lipids and carbohydrates in wheat grass and barley grass are digested, absorbed and metabolized by normal physiological processes. |
John Boik
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 Citrus flavonoids also exhibit anti-invasive activity in vitro. Tangeretin has been shown to inhibit both invasion and proliferation of malignant tumor cells, but appears to act by a different mechanism. Tangeretin shows poor affinity to the extracellular matrix and does not bind enzymes to laminin (Bracke et al., 1991).
Inducing the Production of Transforming Growth Factor-(3,
Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-(3j) is present in a variety of normal and neoplastic cells and is involved in regulating normal growth and differentiation. |
Sheldon Saul Hendler and David Rorvik
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| DGL contains some flavonoids that have antimicrobial activity, including activity against the ulcer-causing bacterium Helicobacter pylori. This too could account, at least in part, for DGL's activity. New substances are continually being discovered in licorice, and it is possible that some of these may also play a role in DGL's activity.
PHARMACOKINETICS
There is very little known about the pharmacokinetics of DGL.
INDICATIONS AND USAGE
DGL has been shown to be useful in the management of gastric and duodenal ulcers. |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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 The herb contains both oligomeric procyanidins and flavonoids, including hy-peroside, quercetin, vitexin, and vitexin rhamnoside. These compounds open (dilate) your coronary arteries by relaxing the smooth muscle tissue that lines them. This allows more blood—and more nourishment—to flow into your heart muscle. As a bonus, hawthorn lowers cholesterol.
These properties, verified by research, support hawthorn's strong folk reputation as a heart herb. In Europe, hawthorn berry preparations have been used for generations to treat angina. They're still quite poptamarind [tamarindus indica). |
Sheldon Saul Hendler and David Rorvik
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| However, recent research indicates that flavonoids may actually inhibit the uptake of vitamin C into cells. More research is necessary in order to clarify this issue.
FOODS
Rutin may undergo nitrosation with nitrites and nitrates found in some processed meat products to form potentially mutagenic substances.
DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION
Typical doses used are 500 mg once or twice daily. Those with venous insufficiency/varicose veins often use 500 mg taken twice daily.
HOW SUPPLIED
Tablets — 50 mg, 250 mg, 500 mg,
LITERATURE
Clement DL. |
Earl L. Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D.
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 Vitamin E works well taken with its partners in the body, the nutrients vitamin C, beta-carotene and other flavonoids, and selenium.
Natural Remedies for a Stron
Natural remedies for strengthening the heart tend to help significantly with symptoms such as arrhythmia and angina, and can also make a big difference in people with congestive heart failure. Three of the most effective are coenzyme Q10, hawthorn and carnitine.
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQIO)
CoQIO has the ability to protect and strengthen the heart and lower blood pressure. |
volker schulz and Rudolf Hansel
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 The relatively high tannin content of the herb limits the duration of its use to about 2-3 weeks. The antibacterial principle is arbutin or its hydrolysis product hydroquinone. Relatively little is known about the pharmacokinetics of arbutin; all data are based essentially on studies by Frohne (1986). Arbutin itself is poorly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. The aglycone hydroquinone is well absorbed following hydrolytic cleavage of the glycosidic bond by intestinal flora. |
| The topical application of these agents does not produce systemic therapeutic levels of the active principle. Their therapeutic effects may be based largely on the ointment base and the tissue massage that occurs when the ointment is applied. Patients frequently experience subjective improvement in their complaints, but the benefits are not referable to specific plant constituents because all but one of the commercial preparations (Venostasin N ointment, active ingredient: horse chestnut extract) are combination products. |
Textbook of Natural Medicine 2nd Edition Volume 1Michael T. Murray, ND
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| Anti-aggregation effect on platelets
Anthocyanosides, like many other flavonoids, have been shown to possess significant anti-aggregation effects on platelets.25"27 Their action in vivo appears to be direct anti-aggregation effects on the platelets and an indirect effect via prostacyclin-like action.25"27 Prostacyclin (PGI2) is a potent stimulator of adenyl cyclase, the enzyme which catalyzes the production of cAMP from ATP. cAMP prevents platelets from aggregating and adhering to the endothelial surface. |
| Flavonoids have been shown to be potent in vitro and in vivo inhiitors of sorbitol accumulation. In laboratory experiments they have been shown capable of inhibiting the development of diabetic cataracts.46-48
Other clinical applications
Diabetes mellitus
A decoction of blueberry leaves has a long history of folk use in the treatment of diabetes. This use is supported by research, which has shown that oral administration reduces hyperglycemia in normal and depancreatized dogs, even when glucose is concurrently injected intravenously. |
| Other flavonoids which demonstrated this activity produced 02~ and H202, suggesting that quercetin may also generate these cytotoxic chemicals. Among the enzymes inhibited by quercetin are:36,37,53
• NADH oxidase
• phosphodiesterase
• cAMP-independent protein kinases
• Ca2+ phospholipid-dependent protein kinase
• tyrosine protein kinases.
Shapiro et al suggested that the cytotoxicity of quercetin may be due to its chelating abilities.20 It is trypanocidal to Trypanosoma brucei, a livestock parasite belonging to the same genus as Trypanosoma cruzi. |
Michael Castleman
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 Passionflower contains potent tran-quilizing chemicals (maltol, ethyl-maltol and flavonoids). In Europe, it's an ingredient in many herbal sedatives.
When using commercial preparations, follow package directions. With the bulk herb, use one teaspoon of dried flowers per cup of boiling water. Steep 10 to 15 minutes. Drink one cup before bed. Taste: pleasant.
Skullcap. Chinese physicians have used skullcap as a tranquil-izer/sedative for centuries, and it was a popular sleep aid in nineteenth-century America. |
Committee on Comparative Toxicity of Naturally Occurring Carcinogens
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 Most of these fall under the following classes: flavonoids, phenolic acids, phenylpropanoids, coumarins, depsides, cyclitols, isothiocyanates, catechins, simple phenols, monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, amino acids, and anthraquinones (Farnsworth 1994).
Effect of Dietary Macronutrients on Carcinogenesis
In this and the following section, we discuss the effects of dietary nutrients (macro- and micro-) separately from non-nutrients, because the data available on these two categories are considerably different. |
Sheldon Saul Hendler and David Rorvik
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| There are other reports, again from cell culture studies, that certain flavonoids such as quercetin and hesperetin may inhibit the uptake of vitamin C into cells.
Glutathione: Ascorbic acid may help maintain reduced glutathione levels in cells.
Iron: Vitamin C used concomitantly with nonheme iron supplements may increase the uptake of iron. This may cause problems in those with high iron stores or with propensity for iron overload, such as those with hemochromatosis, sideroblastic anemia, sickle cell anemia, thalassemia and erythrocyte G6PD deficiency. |
Earl Mindell
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| PROANTHOCYANIDINS AND ANTHOCYANIDINS (PCOs): [also known as oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPCs)] These flavonoids (technically, "flavonals"), are powerful vascular protectors and remarkable in their ability to connect and strengthen the body's many strands of collagen protein—particularly in soft tissues, tendons, ligaments, and bones. |
John Boik
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| Flavones and flavonols are the most widely occurring flavonoids. Although several hundred flavonol aglycones are known, only quercetin, kaempferol, and myricetin are widely distributed.5 The other known flavonols are structural variants on these three and occur in limited distribution. More than 135 different glycosides of quercetin have been isolated, the most common of which is rutin, a flavonol that has been used to treat capillary fragility. Flavones also occur as glycosides, but in a more limited fashion than flavonols. |
| Quercetin (and many other flavonoids discussed in this book) are metabolized relatively quickly. An intravenous injection of 100 mg quercetin produced a plasma concentration of 3.7 pg/ml in humans after 5 minutes. The terminal half-life was 2.4 hours (Gugler et al, 1975). No toxic effects were observed. An oral dose of four grams produced a zero plasma concentration, suggesting that quercetin is not absorbed in humans. Absorption is severely limited by its low solubility in water and lipids.
The 10 uM (4. |
| AGENTS THAT FACILITATE COLLAGEN PRODUCTION OR CROSS-LINKING
AGENT
EFFECT
REFERENCE
Anthocyanins
Anthocyanins, the flavonoids found in red-blue fruits such as Vaccinium myrtillus (bilberry) and Crataegus oxyacantha (shan zha) reportedly protect collagen from degradation by inducing cross-linking of collagen fibers, by promoting collagen synthesis, and by preventing enzymatic cleavage of collagen. Other red-blue fruits, such as blackberries, cherries, blueberries, and red grapes might also produce these effects.
Reviewed by Pizzorno and Murray, 1987; Raoetal. |
| Certain flavonoids may potentiate the ability of hyperthermia to destroy tumor cells. The flavonoid quercetin inhibits intracellular synthesis of heat shock proteins, which protect cells against damage from heat (Elia and Santoro, 1994).5 Heat shock proteins are universally induced in human cells exposed to high temperatures (and other stresses such as radiation and chemicals). Inhibiting the synthesis of these proteins increases the vulnerability of tumor cells to stress damage. |
Committee on Comparative Toxicity of Naturally Occurring Carcinogens
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| These opposing effects on cancer are not unique to flavonoids. For example, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, and eugenol have been observed both to increase and to inhibit the formation of neoplasias. Observations of both positive and negative effects on health have been made for numerous other compounds in foods, such as lectins, phenolic compounds, saponins, and enzyme inhibitors (Thompson 1993). Similarly, synthetic dietary compounds such as butylated hydroxy-anisole (BHA) have been found both to induce and to inhibit carcinogenesis in animals (Ito et al. 1989). |
| The flavonoids.
Vols. 1 and 2. London: Chapman and Hall. 1204 pp. Hart, R.W., and A. Turturro. 1995. Dietary restriction: An update.
Pp. 1-12 in Dietary Restriction: Implications for the Design and
Interpretation of Toxicity and Carcinogenicity Studies. R.W. Hart, D.A. Neumann, and R.T. Robertson, eds. Washington, DC: ILSI Press.
Haseman, J.K., and G.N. Rao. 1992. Effects of corn oil, time-related changes, and inter-laboratory variability on tumor occurrence in control Fischer 344 (F344/N) rats. Toxicol. Pathol. 20:52-60.
Hawk, P.B. 1965. Hawk's Physiological Chemistry, 14th edition. B.L. |
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