Papaya, the Pharmacological Target Anti High Blood Cholesterol Functional Food

By Kyle J. Norton

Papaya may be considered a functional food of high blood cholesterol with inducing any side effects, some scientists suggested.

Cholesterol, a waxy substance produced by the liver or from the intake of dietary sources plays an important role in the building of cell membranes in transmitting information among cells and making steroid hormones, fat-soluble vitamins, and bile acids for digestive system need.

There are 2 major types of cholesterol, 

* Low-density lipoproteins (LDL) are also known as“bad” cholesterol. High levels of LDL cholesterol can block the arteries, causing heart disease. and

* High-density lipoproteins (HDL) are known as“good” cholesterol. HDL cholesterol removes bad cholesterol from other parts of your body and carries them back to the liver.

The healthy ratio of total cholesterol is 4 (bad cholesterol)/1(good cholesterol). If you total blood cholesterol is lower than 4, you are considered a have a healthy level of blood cholesterol.

The Mayo Clinic in the article talking about diet and lifestyle effect in high blood cholesterol wrote, "Poor diet. Eating saturated fat, found in animal products, and trans fats, found in some commercially baked cookies and crackers, can raise your cholesterol level. Foods that are high in cholesterol, such as red meat and full-fat dairy products, will also increase your total cholesterol".

Therefore, by change your diet pattern with more in fruits, whole grain and vegetables and less in saturated and trans fat, red meat and processed food, and following a healthy lifestyle with moderate exercise, you should be free of the syndrome of high blood cholesterol, regardless of your present conditions.

Papaya is a species of Carica Papaya, belongs to the family Caricaceae and native to the tropics of the Americas, and was first cultivated in Mexico and several centuries


Chemical constituents of papaya include
Alkaloids, Cardenolides, Anthraquinones, Saponins, Tannin, phenol, flavonoid, anthocyanin, Benzyl glucosinolate, benzylisothiocyanate, 5-(Hydroxymethyl)-2-furancarboxaldehyde, 2,3-dihydro-3,5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-pyran-4-one and 1,3-dihydroxy-2-propanone, etc.

In the reaffirming of the traditional use of Ficus carica (papaya) for the treatment of several metabolic syndrome-related health problems, researchers at the University of Florida launched an investigation to examine the preventive effects of a Ficus carica (FC) leaf extract on hyperlipidemia in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese male rats.

Male Sprague-Dawley rats (180-200 g) were fed with a regular diet, HFD or a HFD + oral treatment of either 50 mg/kg or 100 mg/kg of FC or 30 mg/kg pioglitazone for six weeks.

At the final report, researchers found that
* Oral administration of FC exerts a significantly anti hyperlipidemia effect by lowered triglycerides (TG), interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels and elevated high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in the tested animal.
* The effects of FC on lipid parameters are more pronounced in treated rats than those of the positive control pioglitazone.

* FC treatment group also significantly lowered atherogenic index (AI) and the coronary risk index (CRI). the indications of the decreased risk of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease.

Dr. Joerin L, the lead author said, "preventive treatment with FC significantly improved the lipid profile and decreased adipogenic risk factors in HFD rats most likely mediated through an increase in HDL-C levels".

Additionally, in the evaluate the effects of the fruit and latex of papaya used in the folk medicine for treatment of hyperlipidemia, researchers conducted an experience to examine the anti-hyperlipidemic effect of the ether- and water-soluble fractions of C. papaya ethanol extract in olive oil-induced hyperlipidemic rats.

The extract and fractions were administered orally at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg body weight in rats. Olive oil (5 mL/kg oral dose) was administered 30 min after treatment.

Oral administration of papaya extract in a dose-dependently inhibited the total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoproteins (LDL) level, and significantly increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) level.

Papaya also exerted a significant acute effect on HDL level and TC and TG elevation induced by olive oil.

These results suggested that papaya extract and water fraction showed protective action by increasing the HDL cholesterol level and lowering the levels of HDL level and TC and TG elevation in hyperlipidemic rats.

Taken all together, papaya may be considered a functional food for treatment of high blood cholesterol.

However, due to the limitation of the above studies, additional data collection large example size and multi-centers studies performed with human consumption of the whole food or its bioactive compounds during the course of the disease will be necessary to complete the picture of papaya antihyperlipidemic possibility.

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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

References
(1) Chemical composition and bioactivity of dried fruits and honey of Ficus carica cultivars Dottato, San Francesco and Citrullara by Loizzo MR1, Bonesi M, Pugliese A, Menichini F, Tundis R.(PubMed)
(2) Ficus carica leaf extract modulates the lipid profile of rats fed with a high-fat diet through an increase of HDL-C by Joerin L1, Kauschka M, Bonnländer B, Pischel I, Benedek B, Butterweck V.(PubMed)
(3) Effect of ether- and water-soluble fractions of Carica papaya ethanol extract in experimentally induced hyperlipidemia in rats by Iyer D1, Sharma BK, Patil UK. (PubMed)