Affiliation

• ¹1Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Department of Human Sciences1, Kingsville, TX, USA
• ²2Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center, Department of Horticultural Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
• ³3Texas A&M University-Kingsville Citrus Center, Kingsville, TX, USA
• ⁴4Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy, Kingsville, TX, USA
• ⁵5University of Texas at Austin, Department of Nutritional Sciences, Austin, TX, USA
• ⁶6Morgan State University, School of Community Health & Policy, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Corresponding Author

Farzad Deyhim, Ph.D., RD., LD., Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Dept. of Human Sciences, MSC 168, Kingsville TX. 78363. Kingsville, USA, Tel: +1 (361) 593-2409; Fax: +1 (361) 593-2230; E-mail: Farzad.Deyhim@tamuk.edu

Citation

Deyhim, F., et al. Grapefruit Juice: Potential Functional Drink for Improved Antioxidant Capacity in Adults. (2017) Int J Food Nutr Sci 4(1): 55-59.

Copy rights

© 2017 Deyhim, F. This is an Open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Keywords

Abstract

  Cardiovascular disease is attributed to sedentary lifestyle, diets high in fat and refined carbohydrates, and low in fruits and vegetables. The objective of this study was to determine whether drinking grapefruit juice positively influences cardiovascular risk markers, antioxidant status, and lipid peroxidation in adults not changing their eating habits. An experiment to test whether daily consumption of 20 fl. oz. of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice for two months affected lipid panels, C-reactive protein, insulin, body composition, blood pressure, antioxidant status, and malondialdehyde production was conducted. Fasting blood samples were collected pre-treatment and 60 days after drinking grapefruit juice post-treatment. Drinking grapefruit juice did not affect (P > 0.1) plasma total cholesterol, triglycerides, Apo A, Apo B, LDL, HDL, body fat percentage, BMI, blood pressure, plasma insulin, or C-reactive protein. Drinking grapefruit juice did not affect systolic and diastolic blood pressure. However, drinking grapefruit juice significantly (P < 0.05) increased total plasma antioxidant capacity and decreased (P < 0.05) plasma malondialdehyde concentration. Drinking grapefruit juice may be cardio-protective via increasing total antioxidant status and decreasing lipid peroxidation independent of any of the cardiovascular risk markers measured in the study.