First Vita Plus Lifestyle = Health.Wealth.Time Freedom : How to reduce risk of CVD (Cardio Vascular Disease)

Sweet potato leaves :
polyphenol, antioxidant activity, low-density lipoprotein, atherosclerosis
Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) leaves are consumed as vegetables around the world, especially in Southeast Asia. The aim of this study was to investigate the inhibitory effect of sweet potato leaves on low-density lipoprotein oxidation in vitro and in human subjects. We compared the antioxidant activity of 8 kinds of sweet potato leaves.

Every sweet potato leaf had high radical scavenging activity and prolonged a lag time for starting low-density lipoprotein oxidation in vitro.
Sweet potato leaves contained abundant polyphenol compounds and the radical scavenging activity and prolongation rate of lag time were highly correlated with total polyphenol content.
We also confirmed that thiobarbituric acid reactive substances production was increased in endothelial cell-mediated low-density lipoprotein oxidation, which was decreased by treatment with sweet potato leaves.
We further measured the low-density lipoprotein oxidizability in 13 healthy volunteers after their intake of 18 g of “Suioh”, raw sweet potato leaves. “Suioh” prolonged a lag time for starting low-density lipoprotein oxidation and decreased low-density lipoprotein mobility. These results suggest that sweet potato leaves have antioxidant activity leading to the suppression of low-density lipoprotein oxidation.

The high consumption of vegetables and fruits has been linked epidemiologically to a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).(–) Polyphenols are the major photochemical with antioxidant properties in vegetables and fruits, which partly contribute to their beneficial effect on the prevention of CVD. The oxidative modification of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is related to foam cell formation, and can result in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis leading to CVD.()

Several studies have shown that polyphenolics from various foods such as red wine, green tea, and chocolate could play a positive role in preventing LDL oxidation.(–)

Many cultivars of sweet potatoes are consumed around the world. In Japan, the roots of sweet potatoes such as “Naruto Kintoki”, “Beni Azuma”, “Purple Sweet Road”, “Quick Sweet”, and “Kogane Sengan” are commonly eaten as root crops and used to make spirits. “Simon No. 1” is used as a folk medicine in Brazil. Sweet potato leaves are consumed as vegetables in tropical areas, especially Southeast Asia.(8)These leaves can be harvested many times per year because they grow well during the rainy season. Recently, the cultivars known as “Elegant Summer” and “Suioh” have been improved to produce more edible leaves and petioles.

Several reports have indicated that sweet potato leaves inhibited HIV replication, mutagenicity, diabetes, and the proliferation of cancer cells,(9,) although the effect of these leaves in inhibiting LDL oxidation has not been sufficiently demonstrated. The aim of this study was to compare the antioxidant effect on LDL oxidation of several cultivars of sweet potato leaves.

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