Pomegranate juice is a delicious fruit juice with many health benefits. Pomegranate juice has substances, such as polyphenols, that have antioxidant, anti-viral, and anti-tumor activity. Pomegranate juice may also be of benefit in maintaining healthy cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and has compounds that play a role in osteoarthritis and prostate health. The consumption of pomegranate juice, a rich source of antioxidant polyphenols, has grown tremendously due to its reported health benefits.   
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Buy Pomegranate juice
Pomegranate juice is now available in health food stores and most grocery stores.

Pomegranate extract supplement, alternative to pomegranate juice


Pomegranate Extract (Punica granatum) from a pure, whole-fruit source to maximize its antioxidant benefits.

Get the benefits of pomegranate juice and avoid the calories and sugar (fructose).

Pomegranate Supplement Facts
Pomegranate extract - 500 mg *

Recommendation: Take 1 or 2 pomegranate capsules daily with food or water.
* Pomegranate daily value not established.

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Availability of Pomegranate juice
The pomegranate fruit can be made into pomegranate juice, pomegranate extract, jam, jelly, pomegranate juice concentrate, molasses, and even pomegranate wine and martini. Pomegranate pills are available and are a good option in order to avoid the calories. See also acai berry information.

Pomegranate Juice Benefit
Even though pomegranate has substances, such as polyphenols, that have antioxidant, anti-viral, and anti-tumor activity, it will take many years to find out how the health benefit of pomegranate juice in humans and how many ounces are required. One drawback with any type of juice is the excess calories and fructose. Hence, a pomegranate extract supplement could be useful by reducing the caloric intake from the pomegranate juice. This is particularly appropriate for those who are overweight.

Pomegranate Health Benefits
Pomegranate has been found helpful in reducing the risk of stroke and heart disease. It also helps regulate blood pressure and improves blood flow to the heart. Pomegranate may be helpful in slowing tumor and cancer cells, especially prostate, breast and skin cancer. Research is also ongoing about its use in lowering cholesterol. Pomegranate juice can help reduce the risk for blood clots and osteoarthritis and has excellent benefits for Alzheimer’s and arthritis. It is known to help age related degeneration.

Pomegranate juice and prostate cancer
Natural chemicals in pomegranate juice, called ellagitannins, are also found in foods including strawberries, raspberries, and muscadine grapes. When a person drinks pomegranate juice, the juice releases ellagitannins, which get digested into chemicals called urolithins, which have been shown in rodent studies to protect against prostate cancer.
   A study funded by a pomegranate juice maker found men who drank the fruit juice took longer to double their blood levels of PSA -- a protein that indicates the presence of prostate cancer. The quicker PSA doubles means the quicker the prostate cancer is growing. When the men started drinking eight ounces of pomegranate juice a day, the time until PSA doubling after treatment extended to 54 months on average while before drinking the juice, PSA doubled in an average of 15 months. No major side effects were reported from drinking the juice. The findings were published in the peer-reviewed journal Clinical Cancer Research and funded by a trust established by the owners of Pom Wonderful, a brand of pomegranate juice.
   There are many herbs and fruit extracts that have shown promise to help reduce prostate cancer. For those who do not wish to ingest pomegranate juice either because of the taste or because of added calories or fructose (particularly diabetics), a pomegranate extract capsule is a good option. Eight ounces of pomegranate juice is a lot of calories and a lot of fructose.

Pomegranate Juice protects nitric oxide
Pomegranate juice protects nitric oxide against oxidative destruction and enhances the biological actions of nitric oxide.
Nitric Oxide. 2006 Apr 18; Ignarro LJ, Byrns RE, Sumi D, de Nigris F, Napoli C. Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA.
Pomegranate juice, a rich source of potent flavonoid antioxidants, was tested for its capacity to protect nitric oxide against oxidative destruction. Pomegranate juice was found to be a potent inhibitor of superoxide anion-mediated disappearance of NO. Pomegranate juice was much more potent than Concord grape juice, blueberry juice, red wine, ascorbic acid, and dl-alpha-tocopherol. These observations indicate that pomegranate juice possesses potent antioxidant activity that results in marked protection of nitric oxide against oxidative destruction, thereby resulting in augmentation of the biological actions of NO.

Pomegranate Juice Research Update
Pomegranate juice extracts can block enzymes that contribute to osteoarthritis according to a Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine study published in the September 2005 issue of the Journal of Nutrition. The study looked at the ability of an extract of pomegranate against Interleukin-1b (IL-1b), a pro-inflammatory protein molecule that plays a key role in cartilage degradation in osteoarthritis. Plant-based flavonoids found in fruits, leaves and vegetables have attracted a lot of attention for their beneficial health effects in various diseases. Pomegranate juice, in particular, has been found to possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that have potential therapeutic benefits in a variety of diseases. The Case study demonstrated for the first time the ability of pomegranate juice extracts to slow the deterioration of human cartilage.

Pomegranate juice extract may prevent prostate cancer or slow its growth, if results of lab experiments conducted at the University of Wisconsin in Madison translate to real-world benefits. Pomegranates are high in polyphenolic compounds, making its juice higher in antioxidant activity than red wine and green tea. When they incubated prostate cancer cells with low concentrations of pomegranate extract, they observed a dose-related inhibition of cell growth. In prostate cancer cells driven by male hormones (androgens) and expressing prostate specific antigen (PSA), treatment with pomegranate juice extract decreased androgen receptors and PSA expression. When human prostate cancer cells were injected into mice, feeding the animals pomegranate juice extract delayed the appearance of tumors. Tumor growth was significantly inhibited and survival was prolonged.

In men with recurrent prostate cancer, drinking 8 ounces per day of pomegranate juice significantly increases the time it takes for an increase in levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA), an indicator of prostate cancer. Before the men in the study began consuming pomegranate juice, the average PSA doubling time, a measure of tumor activity, was 15 months. The average time after treatment was 37 months. So, there was almost a 2-year increase in the doubling time. Pomegranate juice contains a number of antioxidants thought to have anti-cancer effects, Pomegranate juice contains estrogen-like plant substances called phytoestrogens that could be useful in combating prostate cancer. Pomegranate juice therapy was well tolerated and no serious adverse effects were reported. In addition to the beneficial increase in PSA doubling time, in vitro testing showed decreased cancer cell division and proliferation and increased cancer cell death. Urine testing confirmed the presence of pomegranate juice antioxidants in all men. The study was funded by the Stewart and Lynda Resnick Trust, which own the POM Wonderful pomegranate juice company.

Pomegranate juice and pregnancy
Drinking pomegranate juice during pregnancy may help reduce the risk of brain injuries in babies. Decreased blood flow and oxygen to an infant's developing brain during pregnancy, birth and early development is linked to premature birth and can lead to brain tissue loss, seizures and mobility impairments such as cerebral palsy. The phenomenon, called hypoxia ischemia, causes brain injury in approximately two of every 1,000 full-term human births and in a very high percentage of babies born before 34 weeks of gestation. Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that newborn mice whose mothers drank water mixed with pomegranate juice concentrate lost 60 percent less brain tissue than mice whose mothers drank sugar water or other fluids. Pomegranate juice contains very high concentrations of polyphenols, a substance also found in berries and grapes, which has been shown to potentially have anti-aging and neuroprotective effects.

Pomegranate juice extract can block skin tumor formation in mice exposed to a cancer-causing agent, according to a report in the International Journal of Cancer. Dr. Hasan Mukhtar and colleagues from the University of Wisconsin at Madison conducted a variety of experiments to test the anti-cancer effects of pomegranate, a chemical with strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. In mice, putting pomegranate on the skin before exposure to the cancer-causing substance TPA inhibited the skin swelling and excessive cell growth that typically occurs. Moreover, mice treated with pomegranate juice extract developed fewer skin tumors than untreated mice.

Punica granatum (Pomegranate) juice provides an HIV-1 entry inhibitor and candidate topical microbicide.
BMC Infect Dis. 2004 Oct 14;4(1):41.
HIV-1 entry inhibitors from pomegranate juice adsorb onto corn starch. The resulting complex blocks virus binding to CD4 and CXCR4/CCR5 and inhibits infection by primary virus clades A to G and group O. CONCLUSION: These results suggest the possibility of producing an anti-HIV-1 microbicide from inexpensive, widely available sources, whose safety has been established throughout centuries, provided that its quality is adequately standardized and monitored.

Concentrated pomegranate juice improves lipid profiles in diabetic patients with hyperlipidemia.
J Med Food. 2004 Fall;7(3):305-8.
This study assessed the effect of concentrated pomegranate juice consumption on lipid profiles of type II diabetic patients with hyperlipidemia. In this quasi-experimental study 22 otherwise healthy diabetic patients, 14 women and eight men were recruited from among patients referred to the Iranian Diabetes Society. The patients were followed for 8 weeks to establish a baseline for normal dietary intake before beginning the concentrated pomegranate juice intervention. During the pre-study period a 24-hour food recall and food records (recording flavonoid-rich foods) were completed every 10 days. At the end of the eighth week, anthropometric and biochemical assessments were done. Thereafter the patients consumed 40 g/day of concentrated pomegranate juice for 8 weeks, during which time dietary assessment was continued. After completing the study, anthropometric and blood indices were again evaluated. After consumption of concentrated pomegranate juice, significant reductions were seen in total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol / high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol, and total cholesterol/HDL-cholesterol. But, there were no significant changes in serum triacylglycerol and HDL-cholesterol concentrations. Anthropometric indices, physical activity, kind and doses of oral hypoglycemic agents, and the intakes of nutrients and flavonoid-rich foods showed no change during the concentrated pomegranate juice consumption period. It is concluded that concentrated pomegranate juice consumption may modify heart disease risk factors in hyperlipidemic patients, and its inclusion therefore in their diets may be beneficial.

Pomegranate juice consumption for 3 years by patients with carotid artery stenosis reduces common carotid intima-media thickness, blood pressure and LDL oxidation.
Clin Nutr. 2004 Jun;23(3):423-33.
Dietary supplementation with polyphenolic antioxidants to animals was shown to be associated with inhibition of LDL oxidation and macrophage foam cell formation, and attenuation of atherosclerosis development. We investigated the effects of pomegranate juice (which contains potent tannins and anthocyanins) consumption by atherosclerotic patients with carotid artery stenosis (CAS) on the progression of carotid lesions and changes in oxidative stress and blood pressure. Ten patients were supplemented with pomegranate juice for 1 year and five of them continued for up to 3 years. Blood samples were collected before treatment and during pomegranate juice consumption. In the control group that did not consume pomegranate juice, common carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) increased by 9% during 1 year, whereas, pomegranate juice consumption resulted in a significant IMT reduction, by up to 30%, after 1 year. The results of the present study thus suggest that pomegranate juice consumption by patients with CAS decreases carotid IMT and systolic blood pressure and these effects could be related to the potent antioxidant characteristics of pomegranate juice polyphenols.

Pomegranate juice questions
Q. How does 500 mg of pomegranate extract compare to 8oz of pomegranate juice? I would like to substitute the pomegranate extract capsules for for the pomegranate juice that I've been drinking.
   A. This is a good question and we really don't have a good answer. It is very difficult to compare since no studies have been done to find out which form is better and what the equivalency of pomegranate juice is to pomegranate extract. The pomegranate juice has a lot of calories and fructose. On average, most people take 1 to 3 pomegranate capsules a day. Studies in the future could perhaps shed some light.

Q. I have a pomegranate question please. I drink pomegranate mixture daily for its healthy antioxidant properties, especially as affects the prostate gland (I have prostate cancer). For the past 6 months I have been making up my daily "dose" by mixing about 3 tablespoonfuls of pomegranate molasses in 1 cup (8 ounces) of cold water. I buy the molasses from the least expensive sources most of which seems to come from Lebanon or Turkey. I recently tasted some pure pomegranate juice made by "POM" (U.S.) and a brand from Georgia (Old Soviet Union). They both tasted VERY different from my concoction in that they were more, well. for lack of a better word- pomegranatety. There was a distinct smell of the beige membrane in the fruit which my mix doesn't have. I am a pensioner with high drug costs and living on a very limited budget and am economizing by using the molasses as an economical way to get the antioxidant effects of the pomegranate. By doing so, however, am I losing any of the healthy qualities of the fresh fruit by not buying the juice products which are much more expensive than the molasses? I am not concerned about taste, I just want to make sure that I am getting the maximum antioxidant (and other) benefits at the lowest cost.
   A. We have not seen a head to head comparison of pomegranate juice versus molasses, and there could be different manufacturing techniques from different companies, therefore it is difficult to make any good comparisons. Another option is to alternate with pomegranate extract capsules which would reduce the caloric intake.

Q. Is there any incoming research of taking one ounce of Pomegranate Juice a day that has caused joint related problems. I went to my foot doctor recently, being my foot got extremely painful and swollen. They ran a check on my uric acid levels, being I get gout once and while, but I was at 3.7, which is well in the normal range. My doctor was a little stumped. I have been taking Pomegranate Juice for about a week and that is the only thing I have change in my vitamin intakes. If you can’t help me, is there a web page to go to that would have adverse effects of Pomegranate Juice?
   A. We have not come across any research or any feedback from pomegranate juice drinkers that indicate it causes joint related problems. It could be a coincidence, however, there are odd things that occur with any food or herb ingestion. One way to tell is to stop the pomegranate juice for a month and then resume to see if the symptoms recur.
      Q. Thanks: I stopped the pomegranate juice for a week and started back, but so far no swollen foot. Having bone scan to see what’s going on.

Q. Can you provide me with any evidence or customer feedback, that pomegranate juice or pomegranate capsules has proven to reduce PSA levels / block cancer cells. Do you have any link where I can read customer comments / feedbacks ?
   A. Thus far we have not received such testimonials regarding pomegranate juice and psa levels. It takes many years for cancer cells to develop and it would be difficult for a consumer to determine whether drinking pomegranate juice or taking pomegranate capsules is influencing the cancer cells in their body.