Fucoidan

Fucoidan is a polysaccharide that is found in brown seaweed. Polysaccharides are complex carbohydrates that are used for different purposes by the body. Fucoidan came under interest of the natural supplement community when it became painfully clear that the Japanese people were living much longer lives that most of their counterparts in the western hemisphere. The people who live in and around the Okinawa area have been known to eat a diet that is high in brown seaweed for hundreds if not thousands of years. They out of all of the Japanese had some of the longest life spans. Their cancer rates were much lower than most as well.

Scientists started looking at brown seaweed to see what components it had. They also looked at the components to see which could be the reason for these people having much healthier lives than those of us who live in the United States for example. What they found was that Fucoidan has some very interesting qualities for health.

Fucoidan has been shown to be responsible for increasing metabolism rates. It has been since been introduced into weight loss products that are on the market today. It also has been reported to be able to reduce cholesterol levels as well as increasing the metabolism and helping someone to lose weight. Fucoidan has also been shown to help reduce clotting times and can be helpful in situations where a person has problems with the tendency to produce blood clots. Research is being done at the present time to see how Fucoidan can be used in addition to mainstream medications in these situations.

Another very promising factor about Fucoidan is that research has shown that this product may well be very helpful in reducing or even killing cancerous tumors. There are two universities in Japan that have studied this substance in vitro which means in a lab either in a petri dish or with mice to see how it would function when exposed to cancer cells. One of these universities was The Research Institute of Glycotechnology Advancement.

The findings showed that Fucoidan was able to impede the progress of cancerous cells. This means that it could stop certain cancerous cells from metastasizing to other organs or areas of the human body. Fucoidan was able to accomplish this by preventing the tumor cells from adhering to the cellular matrix of healthy organs. They also found that Fucoidan was able to cause the apoptosis of tumor cells in the body as well. Apoptosis means that the cell dies without issue. They found that Fucoidan was able to cause apoptosis in certain types of leukemia viruses that cause adult leukemia.

This is very exciting for the medical community as most of the cancer treatments that are presently used by mainstream medicine is in the form of radiation or chemotherapy. Both of these treatments have the ability to kill both cancerous and healthy cells in the body. Chemotherapy also reduces the bodies ability to be immune to diseases and other problems.

Further research is needed with humans before final recommendations can be made as to what Fucoidan can do for cancerous tumors. However as a natural supplement for anyone who wants to be healthy and prevent these types of problems, it seems to be an excellent choice. Fucoidan has no side effects that can be found or that have been recorded other than its ability to increase bleeding times. Therefore it should be safe for most people to use on a daily basis. It is prudent as usual if you have a medical condition to consult with your physician before taking this or any other natural supplement.

Last updated on Jan 25th, 2011 and filed under Health Supplements. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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