These Facts Flavonoids You Need To Know

Do you know what flavonoids are? Flavonoids are a group of bioactive compounds that are found in foods derived from plants. Flavonoids are similar to antioxidants, which have a variety of benefits for your body, such as being able to repair cells damaged by free radicals. Flavonoid supplements are also thought to reduce the risk of cancer, hypertension, and diabetes. Fruits and vegetables are good food sources for you. That is because, both vegetables and fruits are rich in flavonoid content.

This is a Food Source that Contains Flavonoids

You probably already know the benefits of antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta carotene that are good for your body, right? Just like antioxidants, flavonoids have benefits and a big role for the health of your body. Then, what food sources that contain lots of these flavonoid compounds? Some foods and drinks that are believed to contain this extraordinary compound, such as:

• Rosella

Roselle extract is believed to be good for treating high cholesterol, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes. However, the use of this herb as a treatment still needs to be further investigated because there have not been sufficient studies in humans to assess its safety, effective dosage, and side effects for health.

• Apple

In the apple contained a flavonoid called quercetin. The content of this compound allows you to not often visit the doctor for treatment. The Quercetin is said to prevent heart attacks, prevent cataracts, control asthma, and speed up the healing of your acid reflux. But this research is still limited to animals. The effect of quercetin compounds on heart health in humans has not been studied and still needs further study.

• Red wine

Red wine or red wine is apparently rich in flavonoids that can reduce the risk of heart disease. If indeed you are not a drinker, you can get this benefit by drinking purple grape juice. The content of flavonoids is found in red wine skin color.

• Soursop

Fruit that grows in many tropical regions contains antioxidants such as phenols (a type of flavonoids), potassium, vitamin C, E. This content is said to be efficacious for treating several diseases such as cancer and hypertension. Antioxidants in soursop can also help reduce free radicals. Although considered good, further studies are still needed to ascertain the effects of treatment, effective doses, and side effects of using this supplement in humans.

• Starfruit

The fruit named Latin Averrhoa Bilimbi is high in Vitamin C, oxalic acid, tannin, amino acids, and antioxidants such as flavonoids. This traditional plant is believed to be useful for treating hypertension, high cholesterol, cancer, and diabetes. But this effect is still limited to animal studies. Therefore, further studies are needed to determine the effective dose and side effects of its use in humans. In addition, this fruit contains a lot of oxalic acid which if consumed in excess can aggravate the condition of acute kidney failure.

• Soybeans

One source of high flavonoids is found in soybeans. Some recent research states that soybeans are thought to have benefits in preventing breast cancer, help reduce blood sugar levels in diabetes, reduce cholesterol, and help reduce symptoms of menopause. But this fact still needs to be further investigated.

In addition, flavonoids are also found in other food or beverage sources such as green tea, oranges, bitter melons, spices, and seeds. Certain herbs, like rodent tubers, also contain lots of flavonoids.

Benefits and Risks of Flavonoids for You

Bioflavonoids or flavonoids which belong to this type of polyphenol have a variety of amazing benefits for your body. Some of these benefits include:

• As an aid to enhance the effects of vitamin C and antioxidants which are very good for the body.
• Can help treat allergies, viral infections, arthritis, and certain inflammatory conditions.
• Can repair cells damaged by free radicals.
• Allegedly able to improve your mood caused by mood disorders, irritability, and several things that indicate depression.
• Based on available data, consuming flavonoids is thought to reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease, but this still requires further research.
• Studies on the benefits of flavonoids so far are still limited to studies of animals. Data from research shows that this supplement might reduce the risk of getting cancer, heart disease, asthma and also stroke. But this data still needs to be supported by further research in humans.

Although it has benefits for the body, it is better to consume flavonoid supplements in consultation with your doctor first if someone has certain medical conditions such as; you are allergic to the content of flavonoid supplement products, or you are taking certain drugs because the effects of drug interactions are not yet known. Until now there has also been no research that guarantees the safe use of flavonoid supplements in infants, children, and pregnant or nursing mothers. Therefore, it is important to consult a doctor before taking flavonoid supplements. In addition to providing benefits, apparently flavonoid compounds also have risks, such as:

• The content of flavonoid compounds can apparently interact with several types of drugs prescribed by doctors, this can be dangerous for your health. For example, the content of naringenin flavonoids that can be found in grapefruit, proven to interfere with drug performance. It is not recommended to take medicines that are accompanied by grapefruit juice without the advice of a doctor.
• Don't just take supplements that contain flavonoids, without consuming vegetables and fruits that contain other nutrients that are good for your body, such as vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
• Supplements that contain flavonoids may have higher doses of flavonoids than flavonoids contained in vegetables and fruits. It's a good idea to get flavonoids by eating fruits and vegetables directly.
• Excessive consumption of flavonoid supplements is apparently not recommended. High doses of flavonoids that enter your body are dangerous, and the bad effects are more likely to occur than the benefits. Flavonoid compounds can also penetrate the placenta so this substance has the potential to have an impact on the fetus. Be sure to follow the dosage and usage rules for taking flavonoid supplements.

If you are interested in taking supplements that contain flavonoids, make sure the product is suitable for consumption and has been registered with the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM). If you have doubts about the benefits and risks of flavonoid supplements for your health, do not hesitate to always consult your doctor for the best advice.