The flavored orange juice reduces the oxidative stress caused by eating unhealthy food and prevents damage to blood vessels, researchers from the University of Buffalo in the United States report on their website.
Free radicals produced, among others, by while eating hamburgers or French fries, they increase the risk of stroke and heart attack. According to scientists, their negative influence can be neutralized by naringenin and hesperidin – flavonoids with strong antioxidant properties.
These studies show, to the best of our knowledge, that drinking orange juice with a meal high in fat and carbohydrates prevents the build-up of reactive oxygen species and inflammatory substances, says study author Dr Husam Ghanim.
Thirty people, aged 20-40, were served a breakfast containing 900 calories, 81 grams of carbohydrate, 51 grams of fat and 32 grams of protein in the study by Dr. Ghana. For breakfast, one group was given orange juice, the other a glucose drink, and the third water.
One, three and five hours after breakfast, researchers collected and analyzed blood samples of the subjects. It was observed then that the level of free radicals increased on average by 62-63% when the meal was washed down with a glucose drink or water, and only by 47% when it was washed down with orange juice. There was also a marked increase in the levels of Toll receptors in the juice-drinking group, which play an important role in regulating the immune response. In addition, orange juice prevented the increase in the production of SOCS-3 protein contributing to the development of type 2 diabetes (PAP)