Dihydroquercetin Fights Cardiovascular Disease

Dihydroquercetin acts in several ways to help avert cardiovascular disease.

Scientists have demonstrated that dihydroquercetin inhibits lipid peroxidation, a process that often leads to atherosclerosis.14,24,32 In an animal study, dihydroquercetin inhibited the peroxidation of serum and liver lipids following exposure to toxic ionizing radiation.33 Dihydroquercetin’s inhibitory effects on lipid peroxidation are enhanced by both vitamin C and vitamin E.34 By inhibiting the oxidation of harmful low-density lipoprotein (LDL), dihydroquercetin may help prevent atherosclerosis.35

Lowering high levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is one the the major goals of anti-cholesterol or statin therapy as used by mainstream physicians. Studies suggest that dihydroquercetin may be helpful in therapeutic efforts to lower LDL by inhibiting the formation of apolipoprotein B, one of the primary components of LDL.36

Other studies have shown that dihydroquercetin lowers serum and liver lipid and cholesterol concentrations in rats.37 A conjugated form of dihydroquercetin known as astilbin inhibits the same enzyme targeted by popular cholesterol-lowering statin drugs such as Lipitor®, Zocor®, and Pravachol®.38

Attacking heart disease from another angle, animal studies showed that dihydroquercetin lowers high blood pressure and normalizes an electrical measure associated with activation of the heart’s pumping chambers (ventricles).39

Vitamin C and Dihydroquercetin: What You Need to Know

• A novel bioflavonoid, dihydroquercetin, offers exceptional benefits by enhancing the health-promoting benefits of vitamin C. Dihydroquercetin enhances the effectiveness of vitamin C by extending its period of bioactivity, enhancing its regeneration, and slowing its elimination from the body.
• Dihydroquercetin offers protection against cardiovascular disease by inhibiting several steps in the disease process. Additionally, dihydroquercetin helps guard nervous system health, prevents the complications of dia-betes, protects the liver against hepatitis-inducing agents, fights infection, and quells inflammation that can lead to dermatitis, arthritis, and pain.
• Some of vitamin C’s best-known applications are preventing viral infection, enhancing cancer protection, and averting cardiovascular disease and stroke.
• In some parts of the world, a combination of vitamin C and dihydroquercetin is available as a prescription drug known as Ascovertin. Physicians utilize Ascovertin to manage health conditions that share oxidative stress as an underlying mechanism. Ascovertin has demonstrated efficacy in protecting against stroke, heart attack, and light-induced damage to the eye.
• Consumers in the United States can use the benefits of a dietary supplement combining dihydroquercetin and vitamin C without a prescription.

Common Applications of Vitamin C

Long considered essential to optimal health, vitamin C may offer targeted protection against viral infections, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and stroke.

• Viruses. Vitamin C is widely used to support the immune system’s protection against colds and flus. In adults and children, the preventive use of vitamin C reduced the duration of colds by up to 14%.64 In athletes and soldiers, daily vitamin C intake reduced the incidence of colds by 50%. A recent study found mice that were deficient in vitamin C experienced increased lung tissue damage following infection with the influenza virus. Vitamin C-deficient mice also demonstrated increased expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. These findings suggest that vitamin C is required for an effective immune response to infection with the influenza virus.65
• Cancer. Vitamin C may offer essential aid in fighting cancer. Higher intakes of vitamin C are associated with a decreased incidence of cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, stomach, colon, and lung.64 In 2005, research by the National Institutes of Health found that vitamin C administered intravenously helped kill several strains of cancer cells. This led scientists to note that intravenous vitamin C may be an important tool in fighting cancer, which supports similar findings by Linus Pauling.66 Furthermore, a recent clinical trial documented the safety of high-dose vitamin C in advanced cancer patients.67 Several recent studies indicate that the combination of lysine and proline with vitamin C more effectively inhibits cancer cells than vitamin C alone.68-79
• Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke. Studies indicate that low or deficient intake of vitamin C is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Similarly, the risk of death from cardiovacular diseases was found to be 25-42% lower in adults who consumed plentiful amounts of vitamin C through diet and supplements compared to adults who were deficient in vitamin C. Some research suggests that vitamin C supplements are more protective than dietary vitamin C in protecting against heart disease. Higher serum levels of vitamin C have been found to diminish the risk of suffering a stroke by up to 29%. Daily supplementation with vitamin C reduces high blood pressure, a contributor to cardiovascular and stroke risk.64

Dihydroquercetin Supports Nervous System Health

The brain and nervous system are particularly sensitive to the damaging effects of free radicals. As we age, free-radical damage can accumulate in the brain, leading to cognitive decline and other illnesses such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. Maintaining optimal mental function is one of the leading goals of aging baby boomers. Fortunately, dihydroquercetin offers essential protection to critical brain and nerve cells.

To examine methods to protect the brain against injury, scientists used an animal model of stroke. Dihydroquercetin inhibited the expression of enzymes that lead to inflammation. Additionally, dihydroquercetin helped prevent inflammatory white blood cells from attacking and adhering to vulnerable areas of the brain. These actions help provide essential neuroprotection against the free-radical-induced oxidative damage that often occurs when the brain does not receive enough blood and oxygen.27,28,40

In addition to the cognitive decline that often accompanies aging, critical functions such perception, thinking, language, and consciousness can be adversely affected. Protecting the areas of the brain that oversee these functions is another important benefit of dihydroquercetin. In one study, researchers found dihydroquercetin prevented free radicals from causing oxidative damage to crucial nerve cells that oversee these functions.41

By protecting the cells of the brain and central nervous system, dihydroquercetin may help avert some of the most devastating changes associated with aging.