Health Vitamins and Minerals Guide

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Pycnogenol (pronounced pick-nah-geh-nol), is a trademarked name for proanthocyanidin, a bioflavanoid complex extracted from the bark of the European coastal pine, Pinus Maritima. It is a powerful antioxidant, and is being studied as a treatment for many free-radical-related disorders, including Alzheimer’s, cancer, macular degeneration, glaucoma, and senility.

Pycnogenol has anti-ageing properties and is usually taken to boost the immune response and prevent the degenerative diseases of ageing, such as cancer, atherosclerosis, heart attack, arthritis and diabetes.

Pycnogenol restores elasticity and smoothness to skin via its influence on skin protein formation. What is even more exciting, is that Pycnogenol is more than a powerful antioxidant. It nourishes blood cells, blood vessels and the skin. Pycnogenol is unique because it also alleviates hay fever and other allergies, and strengthens capillaries to reduce edema, bruising, and varicose veins.

Pycnogenol can help support circulation in the hands, feet, and small eye capillaries.
It also helps increase skin smoothness, is soothing to mucous membranes, and supports joint flexibility.

Pycnogenol benefits in Joint Protection

Pycnogenol is able to inhibit certain proteolytic enzymes such as collagenase and elastase, which degrade the collagen and elastin in connective tissue, giving rise to such conditions as joint degeneration.

As an antioxidant, Pycnogenol protects the nervous system from free-radical damage. It also improves circulation, which in turn delivers more oxygen and nutrients to the brain, and clears away metabolic waste products. Research conducted using the brain cells of rats indicates that Pycnogenol may protect brain cells from the toxic actions of amyloid beta-protein-an abnormal protein substance-which is characteristically found in high amounts in the brain tissue of people with Alzheimer’s disease. Amyloid beta-protein forms plaques in the central nervous system, and is directly toxic to nerve cells in cell cultures.

Benefits of Pycnogenol and Tissue & Organ Protection

Pycnogenol plays an important role in the support of the blood vessels as described earlier, and as a consequence of this it helps to support tissues and organs throughout the body that rely on adequate blood flow.

It also appears to be effective at controlling blood sugar levels.  Research by Liu et al., (2004b) found that just 100mg daily of Pycnogenol significantly lowered blood sugar levels in Type II diabetes patients.  The blood sugar lowering effect also suggests that Pycnogenol may also prove to be beneficial for weight management.  In fact research has found that pycnogenol stimulates the break down of fats from within fat cells (Hasegawa, 1999; Mochizuki and Hasegawa, 2004) as well as inhibiting the build up of fats within fat cells (Hasegawa, 200

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