You’ve probably heard of vitamin D, which we get from exposure to the sun, and vitamin C, from citrus fruits. We’d like to introduce you to another vitamin. Vitamin P, also known as rutin. That’s right. Way down the vitamin alphabet is this remarkable compound found in yaupon. And it works hard in your body with antioxidant, cytoprotective, vasoprotective, anticarcinogenic, neuroprotective, and cardioprotective abilities.
Rutin helps the body produce collagen and utilize vitamin C, major components of your skin. Collagen is the basis of the skin’s structure to give it strength and flexibility. Healthy levels of collagen helps keep your skin plump and wrinkle-free. Vitamin C aids in collagen production to maintain skin elasticity. Rutin gives both of these a healthy boost.
Just below the skin, rutin also affects your cardiovascular system. It has been shown to strengthen the blood vessel walls and increase their flexibility which is important to maintain healthy blood pressure. Healthy vessel walls keep the pressure strong enough throughout the body to move blood but not too strong so as to lose flexibility. Rutin can also decrease conditions that are caused by weak blood vessels—bruises, spider veins, and varicose veins.
Within the vessels, rutin helps moderate cholesterol levels, especially low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. LDLs are the basis of fatty build-ups in arteries. Rutin has double action when it comes to LDL cholesterol regulation. When free radicals interact with LDL, they can cause plaques within your blood vessels. As an antioxidant, rutin reduces the amount of free radicals in your body. Less LDL cholesterol and fewer free radicals decreases the chance of that dangerous plaques will develop in vessels.
Rutin is also an anti-inflammatory agent. Chronic inflammation can cause degeneration and cell damage across the body. It’s been shown to alleviate oxidative stress in arthritic patients caused by inflamed joints. In the brain, this anti-inflammatory action has helped reduce Alzheimer’s progression in rats. Studies of animals post-stroke episodes have shown that this anti-inflammatory ability can also aid in the recovery of sensorimotor skills after the stroke.
In a number of cancers, rutin has exhibited the ability to combat the damage of tumors. In leukemia, rutin helped reduce the size of the tumors. Rutin initiates spontaneous cell death in colorectal cancer, which decreases the number of cancer cells present. In pulmonary metastasis, it reduces the number of metastatic nodules and thereby reduces the spread of the disease.
A little known powerhouse, rutin works hard to maintain your body every day. Give your body a boost with each cup of yaupon, which has been shown to have four times the rutin as related plants. Let Vitamin P make your day better with every cup of yaupon.
