Grapefruit Juice May Contain Cancer-Fighting Compounds

(August 2004) A team from the University of Hawaii reported that drinking grapefruit may help reduce the risk of cancer in smokers.

A controlled study was performed using 49 smokers. The researchers found that those drinking three 6-ounce glasses of grapefruit juice a day reduced the activity of a liver enzyme called CYP1A2 that is thought to activate cancer-causing chemicals found in tobacco smoke.

Although times are tough for fruit now with low-carb diets and warnings about the interaction between grapefruit and prescription drugs, this study, along with other findings, help underline the fruit’s nutraceutical potential.
Another study presented earlier this year shows that grapefruits may even stop weight gain by lowering insulin levels. Meanwhile the fruit’s effects on drugs could be beneficial for the pharmaceutical industry. Scientists at Texas A&M Citrus Center have identified three compounds belonging to a class called furocoumarins that are responsible for inhibiting a key enzyme, CYP3A4, which metabolizes and regulates certain drugs involved in the grapefruit-drug interaction.

Researchers hope that these enzyme-blockers could be developed into a specialty grapefruit juice that can be co-administered with prescription drugs to increase their bioavailability, thus reducing dose and cost.

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