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With a long history of traditional use, Medicinal Spice Oils have proven themselves time and again as safe yet potent healers and preventers of disease. Modern science has verified these traditional uses. See articles and research below on the following:
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Rosemary's Whole-Plant Properties Counter Cancer By Cindy Jones, Ph.D., Health & Nutrition Breakthroughs, July, 1998 Rosemary acts as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. It prevents carcinogens from binding to DNA and stimulates liver detoxification. Ultimately, the whole plant is proving to be more powerful than any one of its constituent parts. The Romans used rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) to improve memory. Since the Middle Ages, people have taken it internally and applied it externally against all manner of ills, including nervous disorders, upset stomach, poor appetite, headaches, baldness, arthritis, pains, strains and bruises. It was said that rosemary flowers sprinkled on clothing discouraged moths, that the leaves laid under a pillow protected the sleeper from evil spirits and bad dreams, and that just the smell of it would keep old age at bay.1 Now rosemary is being investigated as a cancer therapy. Its active constituents--carnosol, carnosic acid, ursolic acid, betulinic acid, rosmaridiphenol and rosmanol--likely contribute to its cancer-fighting ability, but research is showing that the whole herb may be more effective than its parts. The Many Roles of Rosemary Antioxidant: Research shows that rosemary has strong antioxidant effects. Free radical oxidation is thought to contribute to many chronic illnesses, including cancer. As well as direct health benefits derived from the antioxidant properties, these free radical-fighting constituents also make rosemary a good food preservative--with greater antioxidant properties than common food additives such as tert-butyl-4-hydroxytoluene (BHT) and tert-butyl-4-hydroxyanisol (BHA).2 Its strong taste, however, precludes its use as a food preservative. Anti-inflammatory: Cancer is often associated with states of chronic inflammation, and extinguishing such inflammation may block cancer. One reason is that nitrites, chemical by-products of nitric oxide released during inflammation, are free radicals that can damage DNA and lead to cancer. Hence, to prevent colon cancer, for example, some physicians recommend nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin and sulindac.3 In rosemary's case, one experiment showed that the rosemary constituent carnosol reduced cellular nitric oxide production in mice.4 Carcinogen blocker: Several animal studies indicate that rosemary can prevent cancer-causing chemicals (carcinogens) from binding to and possibly mutating cellular DNA--two of the earliest steps in cancer development. In one study, researchers compared the effects of whole rosemary extracts to the purified rosemary components carnosol and ursolic acid on breast cancer in rats. They found that whole rosemary extract taken orally prevented the carcinogen 7, 12-dimethyl-benz[a]anthracene (DMBA) from binding to the rats' breast cell DNA. Neither carnosol nor ursolic acid had any effect when taken orally. When injected, whole rosemary extract and carnosol (but not ursolic acid) decreased carcinogen binding to DNA and decreased tumor formation by 37 percent. Again, ursolic acid had little effect.5 A later study confirmed these results. This time, rats fed rosemary as 1 percent of their diet for two weeks prior to the administration of DMBA had 76 percent less of the carcinogen bind to their DNA than rats fed a control diet. Because high-fat diets are associated with a higher risk of breast cancer, researchers then fed the rats excess fat, which indeed increased the amount of carcinogen that bound to DNA. Nevertheless, rosemary performed just as well. And when rats consumed only 0.5 percent dietary rosemary, protection from carcinogen binding to DNA was still significant.6 These results mirror earlier mouse studies showing that rosemary extracts can decrease skin tumors caused by certain carcinogens.7 In human cell lines, rosemary also inhibits the carcinogen aflatoxin from binding to liver cells and prevents benzo(a)pyrene from binding to bronchial cells.8 These results indicate that rosemary's protective abilities extend beyond one carcinogen and one type of tissue. Liver detoxifier: The liver enzymes glutathione S-transferases (GST), quinone reductases (QR) and P450s can modify the toxicity of some chemicals. The enzymes GST and QR actually deactivate carcinogenic substances, thus also protecting against cancer. Although P450 enzymes primarily detoxify compounds, they also convert a class of chemicals known as aromatic hydrocarbons into more potent carcinogens. Examples of such chemicals include DMBA, benzo(a)pyrene and aflatoxin. Without liver conversion, they are only weakly carcinogenic. Rosemary, it appears, can stimulate liver detoxification by enhancing helpful enzymes and suppressing P450. When rats were fed diets containing whole rosemary extract, GST and QR enzyme levels increased significantly compared to controls. Animals supplemented with carnosol did not have an increase in these liver enzymes.9 The results suggest that rosemary might protect against cancer by increasing the number of liver enzymes that deactivate carcinogens, and that the effect of the whole plant is greater than the effect of carnosol alone. Human Trials Await Similar experiments using human bronchial cells and liver cells in tissue culture show that rosemary extract, carnosol and carnosic acid all reduced levels of P450 enzymes after treatment with benzo(a)pyrene or aflatoxin. In bronchial cells, after treatment with benzo(a)pyrene, rosemary extract, carnosol and carnosic acid stimulated the QR and GST enzymes.10 Thus, rosemary not only increases the liver enzymes that defuse carcinogens, but also reduces those enzymes that can enhance carcinogens--double protection against cancer. Whether rosemary can cast out evil spirits and banish bad dreams remains a mystery. What's clear is that rosemary acts as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent, prevents carcinogens from binding to DNA, and stimulates liver detoxification of carcinogens. In other words, rosemary has a four-pronged approach to fighting cancer, and the sum of its parts is greater than any one constituent. So far, none of the rosemary trials have been on humans Human trials are needed to confirm efficacy, establish dosage and demonstrate safety. In the meantime, rosemary should be considered as more than flavoring for marinara sauce. References 1 Rose, J. Herbs and Things: 102. New York: Workman, 1974. 2 Ho, C-T., et al. "Phytochemicals in tea and rosemary and their cancer-preventive properties." In Ho, C-T., et al., eds., Food Phytochemicals for Cancer Prevention, II: 2-19. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 1994. 3 Boone, W.C. & Wattenberg, L.W. "Current strategies of cancer chemoprevention: 13th Sapporo cancer seminar." Cancer Research, 54: 3315-18, 1994. 4 Chan, M. M-Y., et al. "Effects of three dietary phytochemicals from tea, rosemary and turmeric on inflammation-induced nitrite production." Cancer Letters, 96: 23-29, 1995. 5 Singletary, K., et al. "Inhibition by rosemary and carnosol of 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced rat mammary tumorigenesis and in vivo DMBA-DNA adduct formation." Cancer Letters, 104: 43-48, 1996. 6 Amagase, H., et al. "Dietary rosemary suppresses 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene binding to rat mammary cell DNA." J Nutr, 126: 1475-80, 1996. 7 Huang, M.T., et al. "Inhibition of skin tumorigenesis by rosemary and its constituents carnosol and ursolic acid." Cancer Res, 54: 701-08, 1994. 8 Offord, E.A., et al. "Rosemary components inhibit benzo(a)pyrene-induced genotoxicity in human bronchial cells." Carcinogenesis, 16: 2057-62, 1995. 9 Singletary, K.W. "Rosemary extract and carnosol stimulate rat liver glutathione-S-transferase and quinone reductase activities." Cancer Letters, 100: 139-44, 1996. 10 Offord, E.A., et al. "Mechanisms involved in the chemoprotective effects of rosemary extract studied in human liver and bronchial cells." Cancer Letters, 114: 275-81, 1997. Cindy Jones, Ph.D., is a former cancer researcher who regularly writes about the nutritional aspects of preventing and treating cancer. She lives and teaches in Colorado's Western Slope area. |
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