Grapes are one of the most underappreciated fruits in the produce aisle. Fancy fruits like pomegranates and avocados suck up all the attention.
Meanwhile, humble grapes are delicious, inexpensive, and available in every season. Grapes make terrific jams and juices and are LOADED with potent nutrients. Plus, they’re the key ingredient in wine.
But as if that’s not impressive enough, new research hones in on THREE more grape benefits that might have you finally rethinking this common fruit.
They found grapes can…
- LOWER cholesterol
- provide BETTER glucose control
- encourage MORE beneficial bacteria in the gut
Throw in the fact that the only real “side effect” of eating grapes… easier bowel movements… is actually a benefit, and you have a real winner.
Slash cholesterol with this common fruit
While all grapes are good, not all grapes are great. To get the best of the best… and REALLY max out the benefits… you’ll want to stick with red and black grapes.
Their darker color is a sign of their higher polyphenol levels. And in the new study, those incredible compounds delivered big in ways you’ll notice, and your doctor is bound to appreciate, too.
After all, if you were like most folks when you reached a certain age, the strong-arming started. Your doc began to get on your case about your cholesterol levels. And he probably still regularly pushes you to start on statins to lower your LDL
But grapes could turn out to be the secret weapon that finally makes him smile about your cholesterol numbers. Because when volunteers were given a grape powder that was equivalent to two servings of grapes per day, they had significant improvements in their cholesterol.
In just four weeks, the participants had their…
- LDL drop by 5.9 percent
- TOTAL cholesterol levels drop by 6.1 percent
Again, that was within just four weeks. If they had kept eating the grapes, there’s a good chance the cholesterol benefits might’ve been even bigger.
Put that in a pill, and it’d make a billion dollars for Big Pharma.
What grapes do for your gut
More detailed tests revealed the likely reason why grapes were so effective against cholesterol. Eating them caused the levels of steroid acids in the volunteer’s bile to plunge by 40.9 percent.
Those steroid acids play a crucial role in cholesterol metabolism. And that drop in levels could be behind the grape’s ability to reduce LDL naturally.
That’s not the only grape-linked change the researchers spotted. The folks given the grapes also had better diversity among the microbes in their gut biome. And since we know some of our gut bugs play a critical role in cholesterol metabolism, too, it’s likely those changes helped reduce levels as well.
But the grape benefits don’t end with better cholesterol. The gut bacteria that grapes boost can ALSO help with glucose control. Plus, they can help support your overall immune system function.
Now I’m not going to try to sell you on grapes. If you don’t like them, don’t eat them. There are plenty of other healthy and delicious options in the produce department.
But if you ARE a grape fan like me, these findings are a good reason to make like a renaissance painting and have a bowl on your table at all times. Because grapes certainly beat most of the other snacks we all tend to turn to when we have the munchies.
Or follow my lead, wash them, and stick them in the freezer for a healthy frozen treat. It’s my favorite go-to snack for movie nights.
And along with the cholesterol and gut-flora benefits uncovered in the new study, a daily grape habit could also help boost blood vessel health and improve overall cardiovascular health.
Plus, grapes can support healthy brain function. Learn more about that benefit in my earlier report, Grab some grapes to help STOP cognitive decline.
Latest posts by Alice Jacob (see all)
- BEFORE you pop that weight-loss pill read THIS - August 15, 2022
- Shut down “zombie cells” to slow aging to a crawl - August 14, 2022
- Diabetic? THIS number is key [NOT daily blood sugar] - August 13, 2022
