Citrus Pectin is a plant fiber obtained from the rind and peel of citrus fruits such as lemons, grapefruits, oranges and tangerines. Structurally, pectin is classified as a water soluble, complex polysaccharide, rich in the sugar - galactose. At a molecular level, pectin is a strong binding agent, which directly relates to its tremendous detoxification and cholesterol lowering properties.

Citrus pectin is very bioavailable and has a galactose rich make-up, giving it the ability to deliver the following extraordinary benefits:

• removes heavy metals and toxins
• promotes cardiovascular health
• promotes normal cell growth

Together, acting with very different biochemical mechanisms, Citrus Pectin, Cilantro and Garlic work synergistically in: detoxifying the body, promoting "normal" cell growth & cardiovascular health

That is why Nature's Health Supply has uniquely formulated them together in Pectin Plus^®

In today's world, more than ever, we are exposed to a wide variety of toxins: They're in our air, food and water, in the workplace and at home. We even generate toxins within our own bodies. Our bodies are designed to be self-cleansing and self-healing. The internal detoxification process is an automatic daily procedure of the major detoxification organs. Toxins, however produce irritation and inflammation, adding to the burden of our digestive system. When our digestive system becomes overwhelmed, it is no longer able to adequately perform detoxification functions. This is a condition called "toxic overload".

Exposure to toxins results in an increased production of free radicals which over time damage or age our body tissues. Long term "toxic overload" may result in metabolic and genetic alternations that can affect cell growth, behavior and immune response. This is because the molecular structures of toxins are carcinogenic as they interact with human DNA. The World Health Organization has implicated environmental toxic chemicals in over 60 to 80 per cent of all cancer cases.

Scientists estimate that over 50 percent of U.S. residents have too much heavy metal in their bodies. These metals, which include lead, mercury, aluminum, cadmium and arsenic, are found in industrial byproducts as well as in tainted drinking water, pesticides and even things as common as dental fillings and cooking utensils. Once these chemicals are inside us, we can never fully eliminate them unless we undergo a detoxification process. As a result, most of us need some form of detoxification.

In the past, detoxification was administered to reformed alcoholics and drugs addicts, cancer patients and people with severe allergies. Nowadays it is adopted by healthy individuals to maintain their body systems in pristine condition. Detoxification can make a big difference in optimizing the bodily functions. In fact, it might even help prevent chronic opportunistic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, chronic fatigue and arthritis. Detoxification, coupled with a healthy diet, is an essential anti-aging tool. It is one of the best ways to remain healthy in a polluted and toxic environment.

Signs that Detoxification is Needed:

• unexplained headaches or back pain
• joint pain or arthritis
• memory is failing
• depression or lack energy
• brittle nails and hair
• psoriasis
• abnormal body odor, coated tongue or bad breath
• unexplained weight gain
• frequent allergies

• heavy alcohol use
• natural and synthetic steroid hormone use
• exposure to cleaning solvents, pesticides, diuretics and certain drugs

• More Energy
• Stronger Immunity
• Easier Weight Loss
• Fewer Allergies
• Fewer Aches & Pains
• Healthier Skin, Hair and Nails

Citrus Pectin and Detoxification

The standard western medical approach for removing heavy metals from the body is chelation therapy. This procedure, performed with harsh chelators introduced intravenously, can cause multiple side effects while potentially robbing the body of some of its essential nutrients. Citrus Pectin as a detoxification agent that works as a gentle chelator in the bloodstream and it is very useful for ongoing use with no side effects.

Two recent clinical studies have found that Citrus Pectin is a very safe and effective supplement for reducing heavy metal load. In one recent clinical study, Citrus Pectin was administered to a group of volunteers, and baseline levels of their total body mercury burden were measured and then compared against levels after treatment with Citrus Pectin for four months. The results showed a significant average decrease (over 60%; p=0.03) in the total body mercury burden after treatment with Citrus Pectin. In an earlier study, Citrus Pectin was given to patients and proven to increase urinary secretion of heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic. Both studies concluded that Citrus Pectin is a viable alternative to the harsher intravenous chelating therapies as Citrus Pectin was found to be both effective and free of any side effects.

Cilantro and Detoxification

Cilantro has long been known to decrease heavy metals levels in the body and increase their levels in the urine. This detoxification property of cilantro was discovered through the work of Dr. Yoshiaki Omura. Dr. Omura treated several patients for an eye infection called trachoma (granular conjunctivitis), which is caused by the micro-organism Chlamydia trachomatis. Following the standard treatment, Dr. Omura found that the patients' symptoms would initially clear up, only to recur within a few months. He experienced similar difficulties in treating viral-related problems like herpes simplex types I & II and cytomegalovirus infections.

After taking a closer look, Dr. Omura found these organisms seemed to hide and flourish in areas of the body where there were concentrations of heavy metals like mercury, lead, and aluminum. Somehow the organisms were able to use the toxic metals to protect themselves from the medicine. While he was testing for these toxic metals, Dr. Omura discovered that the leaves of the coriander plant (cilantro) could accelerate the excretion of mercury, lead, and aluminum from the body.

This came about accidentally when he noticed that mercury levels in urine increased after an individual consumed Vietnamese soup. The healthy soup contained coriander, or, as it is better known in this country, cilantro. And when cilantro was used concurrently with natural antiviral or antibiotic agents and/or omega-3 fatty acids, the infections could be eliminated for good.

Dr. Omura's discovery resulted in a novel technique, which greatly increased the body's ability to clear up recurring infections, both viral and bacterial. By chance, he also discovered a natural, inexpensive, way to remove toxic metals from body tissues (even neural tissues of the brain and central nervous system) with no dangerous side effects.

Cillantro's chelating ability plays an important role in the Pectin Plus^® approach to detoxification. Cilantro mobilizes heavy metals out of the tissue so that garlic and pectin can bind to them and allow them to be excreted from the body.

Click Here to read more about cilantro research.

Garlic and Detoxification

The sulfhydryl (sulfur and hydrogen) compounds in garlic are potent chelators of toxic heavy metals, binding with them so that they can be excreted. Garlic also aids in the detoxification of peroxides such as hydrogen peroxide, and protects the liver from the toxicity of carbon tetrachloride. In addition, garlic extract increases the glutathione level and glutathione related enzymes which aid in detoxifying the body. Research has also suggested that garlic extract may help to protect the body from heavy metal poisoning. When garlic extract was combined with red blood cells it prevented lead, mercury and aluminum from destroying them. When no garlic extract was added to the blood samples, these heavy metals ruptured the red blood cells.

Citrus Pectin and Cardiovascular Health

The idea of using pectin to control cholesterol levels is not new. Several studies published in the 1990s (the Journal of Nutrition and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition) have examined the cholesterol lowering effect of pectin in animals and humans. It is well documented that pectin binds to cholesterol, enabling the cholesterol to be excreted from the body.

Citrus Pectin also has the additional property of inhibiting cholesterol from forming plaque, the sticky substance which adheres to blood vessel walls, clogging and restricting blood flow. This is a huge benefit in reducing the risk of stroke and heart attack.

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Cardiology showed citrus pectin supplementation significantly decreased blood cholesterol levels without altering patients diet or lifestyle.

A recent study published in the May, 2004 issue of the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry shows that Citrus Pectin contains a powerful compound called polymethoxylated flavones or PMFs that can lower bad LDL cholesterol as effectively as the dangerous statin drugs and without side-effects.

Extensive research by Texas A & M University's Agricultural Research Center has shown that Citrus Pectin may prevent prostate cancer.

Click Here to read more about research documenting the cardiovascular benefits of Citrus Pectin.

Cilantro and Cardiovascular Health

As discussed above, cilantro has been proven as an effective heavy metal chelator. It is these chelating properties which give cilantro its cardiovascular health benefits as well. Patients with cardiovascular disease, who have used cilantro to detoxify, report feeling much better, more alive, and can exercise longer without angina pains and shortness of breath. It is theorized that if you get rid of the heavy metals in your body, you've removed the source of millions of free radicals and the tissues of the body begin to heal themselves.

Click Here to read more about cilantro research.

Garlic and Cardiovascular Health

Through its extensive use in herbal medicine, garlic's medicinal properties and numerous health benefits have been well documented over the years. Modern science too has shown that garlic is a powerful antibiotic, albeit broad-spectrum rather than targeted, and, while far less strong than modern antibiotics, can still kill some strains of bacteria that have become immune or resistant to modern antibiotics. The body does not appear to build up resistance to the garlic, so its positive health benefits continue over time.

Studies have also shown that garlic reduces cholesterol by an average of 9 percent, significantly thins the blood by inhibiting abnormal platelet aggregation, reduces cancer risk by neutralizing dietary mutagens and inhibiting free radicals, helps to remove iron and other toxic heavy metals from the body, protects neurons from "free radical" aging damage, boosts immune function, inhibits oxidation of LDL and VLDL cholesterol, and lowers blood pressure in some people.

Due to the overwhelming evidence of the cardiovascular benefits garlic has to offer, the nutrition committee of the American Heart Association now publicly acknowledges garlic's potential in helping to reduce the risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases.

Click Here to read more about garlic research.

Citrus Pectin and Cancer

Conventional cancer treatment involves surgery to remove primary tumors, followed by chemotherapy, radiation, or a combination of treatments designed to eradicate all remaining traces of cancer. This follow-up therapy is critical for addressing the biggest threat from cancer - the formation of secondary cancers, or metastases. Metastases are not new or different cancers, but rather new cancer colonies started from primary cancer cells that have migrated to new sites. Sites where metastases commonly occur include the bones, lungs, prostate, kidney, liver, thyroid and brain. Left unchecked, metastases can quickly overwhelm the body's defenses. In fact, it is metastases, not primary tumors that are responsible for most cancer deaths.

Scientists used to think cancer cells were individual actors, and that even a single cell escaping from the main tumor would likely start a new colony elsewhere in the body. But now we know that cancer growth is more of a "group activity". Just as a platoon of soldiers is more powerful than a single rifleman, cancer cells are more dangerous when they assemble and clump together. To do this, they must communicate with and bind to one another. That cell-to-cell interaction is made possible by special protein molecules called galectins that sit on the outer surfaces of the cancer cells.

After a cancer cell has broken free from its primary tumor (or is accidentally dislodged during surgery) it floats freely through the blood and lymph systems until it eventually becomes trapped in a small blood vessel (microcapillary). Firmly lodged in the microcapillary, galectins on the surface of the cancer cell start to bind to galactose receptors on endothelial cells (the cells that form the inside lining of blood vessels). After securely attaching to the endothelium, the cancer cells penetrate through and invade the blood vessel walls. The final step in establishing a new tumor colony is the release of chemical signals that trigger new blood vessel growth (angiogenesis). The new blood vessels will supply the cancer cells with the nutrients they need to grow and thrive.

The powerful attraction between galectins and galactose plays a pivotal role in Citrus Pectin as a potential cancer therapy. Galectins and galactoses work much like a car's key and ignition. Only the correct key will fit into the ignition and activate the engine. Other keys may "fit", but they will not "fit" quite right - they will only jam the ignition and prevent it from working. Galactose rich Citrus Pectin has a strong binding affinity for galectins and being the "wrong key" has the ability to jam up the "molecular ignition", preventing the right key from getting in. With their molecular ignitions jammed, cancer cells find it harder to stick to other cancer cells or to healthy tissues. In short, they are rendered less likely to metastasize. Citrus Pectin has the additional effect of blocking angiogenesis which results in the cancer cells being starved to death.

Of all diseases, Citrus Pectin has been studied most extensively for prostate cancer, one of the most common cancers in men. Citrus Pectin has been shown to slow PSA doubling time, which could potentially result in the inhibition of cancer metastasis.

Click Here to read more about research on Citrus Pectin and Cancer.

Garlic and Cancer

Garlic is believed to have anti-tumor properties, owing to its content of a wide variety of organic sulfides and polysulfides, which disrupt the metabolism of tumor cells. This inhibition seems to be most effective when the tumor is small. It is theorized that garlic enhances immune function by stimulating lymphocytes and macrophages to destroy cancer cells. Additionally, garlic inhibits the formation of both nitrosamines (potent carcinogens) and DNA adducts.

Various studies have shown that garlic can slow the development of bladder, skin, stomach, and colon cancers. In the United States, the Iowa Women's Health Study--an ongoing Iowa State University diet and health study of nearly 35,000 women aged 55 to 69--found that people who eat garlic at least once a week have a significantly lower risk of colon cancer.

Recent studies have also shown that garlic destroys H. pylori, the bacteria believed to cause some stomach ulcers and a suspected culprit in stomach cancer. Population studies in China and Italy found that the incidence of stomach cancer is lower in people who eat lots of garlic.

Cilantro and Cancer

In that detoxification is considered important for cancer prevention, cilantro being such a good detoxifier should be part of any cancer prevention therapy program.