peaches, plums and nectarines with anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties !

Bioactive compounds in peaches, plums and nectarines can fight-off diabetes, cardiovascular disease   Published on June 19, 2012  Peaches, plums and nectarines have bioactive compounds that can potentially fight-off obesity-related diabetes and cardiovascular disease, according to new studies by Texas AgriLife Research.The study, which will be presented at the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia next August, showed that the compounds in stone fruits could be a weapon against "metabolic syndrome," in which obesity and inflammation lead to serious health issues, according to Dr. Luis Cisneros-Zevallos, AgriLife Research food scientist."In recent years obesity has become a major concern in society due to the health problems associated to it," said Cisneros-Zevallos, who also is an associate professor at Texas A&M University. "In the U.S., statistics show that around 30 percent of the population is overweight or obese, and these cases are increasing every year in alarming numbers."While he acknowledged that lifestyle, genetic predisposition and diet play a major role in one's tendency toward obesity, "the major concern about obesity is the associated disease known as metabolic syndrome."Our studies have shown that stone fruits - peaches, plums and nectarines - have bioactive compounds that can potentially fight the syndrome," Cisneros-Zevallos said. "Our work indicates that phenolic compounds present in these fruits have anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties in different cell lines and may also reduce the oxidation of bad cholesterol LDL which is associated to cardiovascular disease."What is unique to these fruits, he said, is that their mixture of the bioactive compounds work simultaneously within the different components of the disease.