Study Shows Boysenberries May Impede Mesothelioma

February 13, 2007 - A recent article in The Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper cites a Japanese study, currently being conducted at Sagami Women's University in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, which endeavors to prove that the polyphenol in boysenberries may prevent the development of mesothelioma.

The study, led by university professor Shuichi Adachi, has shown that laboratory rats that were fed food containing boysenberries were found to be less likely to develop symptoms of asbestos-induced mesothelioma than rats that did not consume the fruit.

According to an account of the study issued by the researchers, 40 rats were injected with 10 milligrams of asbestos and then divided into two groups. One group ate food containing 2 percent boysenberry powder, and the others ate ordinary food. After a year, 14 rats from the non-boysenberry group manifested symptoms of mesothelioma, but only seven rats from the boysenberry group developed symptoms. Symptoms first developed in a rat from the boysenberry group two months after the first signs were spotted among the non-boysenberry group.

The article points out that active oxygen is thought to be connected to mesothelioma, and according to Adachi, the antioxidant effects of the polyphenol in boysenberries may counteract the disease. Blueberries and raspberries also contain antioxidants but in lesser amounts than the boysenberries.