Bergamot juice and herb
November 22 2016

I have not come across much human research on bergamot herb. Citrus bergamia Risso, grows in the Ionic coast of Southern Calabria Italy. The active compounds in Citrus Bergamot have been identified as naringin, neoeriocitrin, and neohesperidin. These compounds have been shown in research for effective healthy cholesterol and blood glucose control.

Cancer prevention
Fitoterapia. 2014.  Effect of Citrus bergamia juice on human neuroblastoma cells in vitro and in metastatic xenograft models. Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial pediatric solid tumor with poor prognosis in children with disseminated stage of disease. A number of studies show that molecules largely distributed in commonly consumed fruits and vegetables may have anti-tumor activity. In this study we evaluate the effect of Citrus bergamia (bergamot) juice (BJ) in vitro and in a spontaneous metastatic neuroblastoma SCID mouse model. Qualitative and quantitative characterizations of BJ flavonoid fractions were performed by RP-HPLC/PDA/MS. We show that BJ significantly affects SK-N-SH and LAN-1 cell proliferation in vitro, but fails to reduce primary tumor weight in vivo. Moreover, BJ reduced cell adhesiveness and invasion of LAN-1 and SK-N-SH cells in vitro and the number of pulmonary metastases under consideration of the number of tumor cells in the blood in mice inoculated with LAN-1 cells in vivo. These effects without any apparent sign of systemic toxicity confirm the potential clinical interest of BJ and lay the basis for further investigation in cancer.

Cholesterol lowering
Mini Rev Med Chem. 2016. Bergamot (Citrus bergamia Risso) Flavonoids and Their Potential Benefits in Human Hyperlipidemia and Atherosclerosis: an Overview. Elevated serum cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL levels are often associated with an increased incidence of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. The most effective therapeutic strategy against these diseases is based on statins administration, nevertheless some patients, especially those with metabolic syndrome fail to achieve their recommended LDL targets with statin therapy, moreover, it may induce many serious side effects. Several scientific studies have highlighted a strong correlation between diets rich in flavonoids and cardiovascular risk reduction. In particular, Citrus bergamia Risso, also known as bergamot, has shown a significant degree of cholesterol lowering and antioxidant/radical scavenging activities. In addition, this fruit has attracted considerable attention due to its peculiar flavonoid composition, since it contains some flavanones that can act as natural statins.

Fitoterapia. 2011. Hypolipemic and hypoglycaemic activity of bergamot polyphenols: from animal models to human studies. Bergamot juice produces hypolipemic activity in rats though the mechanism remains unclear. Here we investigated on the effect of bergamot extract (BPF) in diet-induced hyperlipemia in Wistar rats and in 237 patients suffering from hyperlipemia either associated or not with hyperglycaemia. BPF, given orally for 30 days to both rats and patients, reduces total and LDL cholesterol levels (an effect accompanied by elevation of cHDL), triglyceride levels and by a significant decrease in blood glucose. Moreover, BPF inhibited HMG-CoA reductase activity and enhanced reactive vasodilation thus representing an efficient phytotherapeutic approach in combating hyperlipemic and hyperglycaemic disorders.

Benefits, email received
We have completed a human clinical with 192 patients on the Bergamot juice. In addition, the human clinical research for Bergamonte extract has expanded to 238 patients, divided in 4 categories of patients. Attached is a preliminary draft that have been submitted to Journal of Nutrition. The final draft is still being finalized. I have also updated a new power point presentation and brochure to include the new science and research. Bergamot is truly an anti-aging, metabolic syndrome solution as it manage cholesterol, blood glucose, as well as weight loss. On average, the patients lost 2kg (4.4lb) over the 30 days period, without going on diet or exercise as this is a cholesterol study.