Nopal: The Prickly Pear Medicinal Vegetable
by Jennifer Good

Herbs and medicinal plants have been a part of folk medicine and our culture for centuries. In our age of science and technology, it can be fascinating when old traditions can be proved valid through research. This is certainly the case with this week's featured natural healthy ingredient, nopal. Found in the southwestern desert regions of the United States and Mexico, nopal is known as Opuntia ficus-indica or more commonly, prickly pear cactus. It has been used as a medicinal plant and is a staple in the Latin American diet.

The benefits of this prickly vegetable are numerous and studies abound citing its benefits for everything from helping prevent ulcers to treatment of hangovers. However, what has many researches excited about are its possible healthy benefits for diabetes treatments.

According to a study published in the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology," nopal caused a significant decrease in blood glucose values by nearly 18 percent. It was also discovered by Calzada Tecnologico in Baja California that adding nopal to traditional high-carbohydrate Mexican meals among patients with Type 2 diabetes induced a reduction in glucose concentration after the meal.1

It has also been shown to have a significant impact on cholesterol levels. In studies published in the "Journal of Nutrition" led by Dr. Maria L. Fernandez in California, it was found that prickly pear pectin decreased LDL concentrations and led to a 28 percent drop in total cholesterol levels. In addition, Mexican researchers have found that animals fed raw nopal had lower weight gains and a 34 percent reduction in LDL cholesterol levels.1

What's most impressive about nopal, however, is its whole range of health benefits (all proven in numerous studies, both animal and human). To summarize Nopal's health benefits:

• Lower blood sugar levels by blocking absorption of sugar in the intestinal tract
• Lower overall cholesterol levels, improve the ratio of HDL to LDL cholesterol, and lower triglycerides by preventing the conversion of blood sugar into fat and by eliminating excess bile acids, which would ultimately be converted into cholesterol
• Lower blood pressure
• Induce weight-loss by curbing appetite and facilitating the breakdown and excretion of fat
• Prevent ulcers
• Support the liver and pancreas as demonstrated by improved liver function and increased insulin production over time
• Block the absorption of fat
• Cleanse the bladder and lymphatic systems

For an example of how you can use Nopal in a supplement formula for healthier blood sugar, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and overall life extension.

Diabetes, Cholesterol, Blood Pressure and Life Extension

Diabetes

For several years now, people have been begging me to specifically address the issue of “diabetes,” and I have consistently resisted. I fully understand that it is a serious problem. According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the incidence of diabetes leaped almost 50% in the last ten years, and the number of obese Americans has increased a startling 57%.

Diabetes is one of the fastest growing diseases in the developed world today, with something around 17 million sufferering with symptoms of diabetes in the United States alone, and with the incidence still accelerating – not to mention the millions more who are hypoglycemic and/or borderline diabetic.

But the problem is that diabetes is, for the most part, a self-inflicted disease – a disease that can be prevented and almost always reversed by following a program like the Baseline of Health®.

Knowing this, I was very reluctant to address the issue of “symptom management” – to, in effect, assist people in avoiding doing those things that they needed to do to truly reverse problems in their own bodies.

Last year, however, I became convinced that I needed to modify this rigid point of view. There were three primary reasons for this change.

1.In the United States, per capita sugar consumption now averages a mind-blowing 152 pounds per year per person. This is hardly surprising, though, when you consider that virtually every packaged food contains several kinds of sugar disguised in ingredient lists as sucrose, corn syrup, fructose, and even caramel color. The net result is that the CDC now refers to diabetes and obesity as an “unfolding epidemic.”

Probably the single most important step you could for diabetes prevention is to find a way to help people reduce the glycemic (blood sugar) index as much as possible with each meal. This would, of course, have life saving consequences for both diabetics and the obese, but would also be extremely important for the rapidly growing percentage of “ordinary” people who may unknowingly be in the early stages of diabetes caused by our modern diet of processed foods and hidden sugars.

2.I became convinced that most people were incapable of making the required changes to control their own diabetes. In other words, it became essential to find some way to assist this large number of people who were unable to assist themselves.

3.As I began to play with the idea, I became convinced that it would be possible to do more than just control blood sugar. I became convinced that it would be possible to develop a natural supplement that would not only help manage most of the symptoms associated with bad diet (blood sugar, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, and weight), but that could also help rebuild the very organs (such as the pancreas and liver) that had been damaged by poor diet and that were now instrumental in causing the symptoms that we were now dealing with. This was exciting.

Developing a Natural Formula For Diabetes

Once you begin to explore the world of herbs and supplements that relate to the symptoms of bad diet, you soon discover that there are literally dozens and dozens of them. But after experimenting for a number of months with all of them, I eventually began to focus on a combination of just four. The value of this particular combination lay in the fact that each of the ingredients addresses the key problems through entirely different mechanisms – thus not just reinforcing each other's benefits, but actually amplifying them. The bottom line is that it became quickly evident that the effect of this combination was far greater than the sum of its parts (as significant as that sum was).

 
Improving the Effect on Blood Sugar Levels

Unfortunately, figuring out what ratio to use when combining these ingredients was not easy since no one else had worked with this combination before, and there were no studies to base any decisions on. That left only one alternative – trial and error with multiple variations, combined with rigorous testing. After months of playing with the formula and months of tweaking, I was able to determine an optimum formulation of:

• Nopal cactus
• Konjac mannan
• Gymnema sylvestre
• High galactomannan fenugreek extract (galactomannan content of 60-80%)
Nopal Cactus

Nopal is native to the southwestern desert regions of the United States and Mexico, and has a whole range of health benefits (all proven in numerous studies, both animal and human). These include the ability to:

• Lower blood sugar levels by blocking absorption of sugar in the intestinal tract.
• Lower overall cholesterol levels, improve the ratio of HDL to LDL cholesterol, and lower triglycerides by preventing the conversion of blood sugar into fat and by eliminating excess bile acids, which would ultimately be converted into cholesterol.
• Lower blood pressure.
• Induce weight-loss by curbing appetite and facilitating the breakdown and excretion of fat.
• Prevent ulcers.
• Support the liver and pancreas as demonstrated by improved liver function and increased insulin production over time.
• Block the absorption of fat.
• Cleanse the bladder and lymphatic systems.

Konjac Mannan

Like nopal, konjac mannan benefits the human body in numerous ways. Studies have shown that it can:

• Lower blood sugar levels by ameliorating insulin resistance.
• Improve cholesterol profiles by binding to cholesterol and removing it as waste.
• Dramatically lower triglycerides.
• Lower blood pressure in a matter of weeks.
• Reduce constipation in as little as three days.
• Help people lose weight and then keep that weight off (significant weight-loss for about 10 weeks, followed by indefinite stabilization).

Fenugreek

As far back as ancient Egypt, fenugreek was prized for its healing properties. However, its strong bitter taste and its tendency to produce strong odors in sweat and urine made it less than optimal as a substantial component of any formula – until now. Recently, a tasteless, odorless fenugreek extract with a 60-80% galactomannan content was developed. This allows access to all of fenugreek's benefits, with none of the downside. Benefits include:

• Decreases the glycemic incidence of food. In studies, the unique galactomannan ratio of galactose and mannose in fenugreek reduced urinary sugar levels of participants by as much as 54%.
• Decreases insulin response to food and helps maintain normal serum glucose levels by slowing down the absorption rate of carbohydrates, thereby lowering the insulin requirement.
• Inhibits absorption of fats. (The steroidal saponins account for many of the beneficial effects of fenugreek, particularly the inhibition of cholesterol absorption and synthesis.)
• Aids in weight-loss by increasing the sense of fullness.

Gymnema sylvestre

Gymnema may be the classic “anti-sugar” herb. In India, its name literally means “The Sugar Destroyer.” Gymnema offers several unique benefits in this formula.

• It significantly reduces the metabolic effects of sugar by preventing the intestines from absorbing the sugar molecules during the process of digestion, and it accomplishes this through a different mechanism than any of the other ingredients. The active molecule in gymnema, called gymnemic acid, works by “filling” the sugar receptor sites in the intestine – making them unavailable to ingested sugars.
• It reduces the symptoms of glycosuria (sugar in the urine).
• It has been shown to regenerate the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas, especially the beta cells. In tests on diabetic rats, the pancreas doubled in size and grew new insulin-producing cells. This is very significant.
• It stimulates the insulin secretion of the pancreas.
• Over time, it reduces the taste for sugar in much the same way that it prevents absorption in the intestine. The gymnemic acid blocks the receptor sites of the taste buds. (In fact, put some on your tongue, and it will kill all taste for sugar for a couple of hours.)

Testing the Effect on Diabetes

Maybe the greatest advantage of the visibility I have received from Lessons from the Miracle Doctors is that there are now a number of medical doctors eager to test things for me. This greatly simplified the next step – testing the concept/supplement. And over a period of about 6 months now, we have done just that. The results have been nothing short of miraculous. (Note: all of the subjects continued to eat their normal diet during the course of the test.)

Blood Sugar

There are two things that are important to understand. First, without the rest of the Baseline of Health® program being utilized, we are merely managing the symptoms here. As long as this natural supplement is used, the symptoms are controlled. With that said, the results have been mind-boggling. Below is a graph showing the blood sugar levels of a typical participant in the study over a period of about six weeks.

The graph shows an astounding drop of almost 500 points in just two weeks. The little hiccup resulted from the individual not using the formula for a day while at the same time indulging in sweets. The next day, when the formula was resumed, the sugar levels once again returned to normal. Other examples include patients dropping from 387 to 82 and from 488 to the mid 80s.

The bottom line is that when used as directed, this natural formula absolutely dropped dangerous blood sugar levels into the normal range almost without fail.

There is also another test, the A1c test, which shows the average amount of sugar (glucose) that has been in your blood over the last 2 or 3 months. It does this by measuring the amount of glucose that's attached to your red blood cells. The higher the level of your blood sugar, the more sugar will be attached to your red blood cells.

The glucose stays attached to the hemoglobin for the life of the red blood cell, which is about 2 or 3 months. Therefore, A1c test results give a picture of how much glucose has been in your bloodstream during the past 2 or 3 months. On the formula, we watched people drop from severe diabetic (9.0) to totally non-diabetic (5.7) in under six weeks. This is unprecedented.

Cholesterol

Cholesterol is often overrated as a factor in heart disease. It's more like it's guilty by being found at the scene of the crime then actually committing the crime itself. (We'll talk more about that at another time.) However, it is an indicator of other problems in the body; and there is no question that it thickens the blood, which when combined with narrowed arteries, is a very real risk to the heart and brain.

The real problem is that standard prescription medications damage the one organ in the body, the liver, that's actually responsible for regulating cholesterol. To regulate cholesterol while truly supporting the liver would be a miracle.

On the supplement, we saw consistent downward trends in total overall cholesterol levels, and more importantly, consistent improvement in the LDL/HDL ratios (from 4 to 2.3 in just 3 weeks, for example) – all while helping rebuild the liver.

Triglycerides

We also saw consistent downward trends in triglyceride levels.

Blood Pressure

Blood pressure dropped enough for several patients to discontinue their blood pressure medication.

Weight

Weight-loss in the range of 5-8 lbs during the study. (Again, with no change in diet.)
Immune System

Although nothing in the formula directly affects the immune system, the formula will, nevertheless, profoundly benefit that system. Since the intake of large amounts of high-glycemic carbohydrates plays havoc with the immune system, preventing the absorption of those carbohydrates will dramatically enhance most people's natural immune functions.

Warning

After months of testing, the doctors involved issued two warnings.

1. Anyone under a doctor's care for diabetes, or high cholesterol, or high blood pressure must use this supplement with their doctor's permission and guidance since it is extremely likely that it will require a change in their medication.
2.It is essential that you use this supplement with food (ideally about 5-10 minutes before eating). If you do not eat when using the formula, you are liable to see your blood sugar levels plummet. I personally made this mistake when playing with the supplement. I took it without eating, and “crashed” like I've never experienced before. Understand; this really works. Within minutes after eating, I was back to normal again.

What Next

The key question now is, “What next?” We've got a supplement that works unbelievably well. It has only multiple-benefit side effects (other than a mild tendency to intestinal distress if people use too much too soon). We've got the doctors who tested it begging for a regular supply for their patients who received such extraordinary benefits. We've got a huge and growing demand from people who desperately need it.

But, if you manufacture it, how can you market it? You can't tell people what it does or how well it does it without running afoul of legal restrictions. And in fact, even if you say nothing about it, it works so well that the authorities might want to regulate it as a drug anyway. On the other hand, when all is said and done, what we're talking about here is merely a combination of four natural ingredients – unique in effectiveness only because no one else has ever combined these ingredients in this way before.

Addendum to the Original Article

Changes to the Formula

Given time, and the ability to test several hundred more variations, I have been able to make two additions to the formula that significantly enhance its effectiveness. The problem lies not just in finding new ingredients and adding them, but in finding the right sources of those ingredients and determining the exact amounts to add without diminishing the effectiveness of the original ingredients. You can't just slam it together based on something you read in an herb book and expect it to work.

1% Corisolic Acid from Banaba Leaf

The blood sugar regulating properties of corosolic acid, the active ingredient in banaba leaf, have been demonstrated in cell culture, animal and human studies. In isolated cells, it is known to stimulate glucose uptake. In diabetic mice, rats and rabbits, banaba feeding reduces elevated blood sugar and insulin levels to normal. In humans with type II diabetes, banaba extract, at a dose of 16-48 mg per day for 4-8 weeks, has been shown to be effective in reducing blood sugar levels (5%-30% reduction) and maintaining tighter control of blood sugar fluctuations. An interesting “side-effect” of tighter control of blood sugar and insulin levels is a significant tendency of banaba to promote weight loss (an average of 2-4 lbs. per month) – without significant dietary alterations. It is likely that modulation of glucose and insulin levels reduces total caloric intake somewhat and encourages moderate weight-loss.

Bitter Melon (Momordica Charantia)

At least three different groups of constituents in bitter melon have been reported to have blood-sugar lowering actions of potential benefit in diabetes mellitus. These include a mixture of steroidal saponins known as charantin, insulin-like peptides, and alkaloids. It is still unclear which of these is most effective, or if all three work together.

Already, some clinical trials have confirmed the benefit of bitter melon for people with diabetes. (Raman A, Lau C. Anti-diabetic properties and phytochemistry of Momordica charantia L (Curcurbitaceae). Phytomed 1996;2:349–62.)

Early studies suggest that one of the components of bitter melon extract may be effective in slowing the growth or spread of some types of cancer, particularly breast cancer. Cervical cancer patients (stage II or III) have shown some evidence of immune system response to bitter melon while undergoing radiotherapy.

Some studies suggest that a component of bitter melon seeds may provide benefits for HIV by preventing the virus from infecting human cells. However, these studies have been conducted only in laboratory settings, and no research has been done in humans.

Note: There is some evidence that couples looking to conceive should not use bitter melon. One study in particular showed that bitter melon may have antispermatogenic activity. The study is far from conclusive, and even if true, the results are temporary -- with speratogenic activity quickly returning to normal upon ceasing ingestion.

Cinnulin

A Cinnulin PF is a water soluble polyphenol Type A polymer that is the only cinnamon extract validated in studies by the USDA to:

• Improve your body's insulin response up to twentyfold
Cinnulin is up to 700% more effective than cinnamon itself and avoids the potentially harmful allergic side effects that can occur when using high doses of cinnamon.

Cinnulin also has been shown to lower LDL cholesterol. And Cinnulin can significantly lower blood serum triglycerides.

Life Extension

Of all the things one can do to increase longevity, only one has been proven to actually extend life across the board: caloric restriction (CR). Caloric restriction is the only means of retarding aging that is both well-researched and proven. (Note: CR is not the same as dieting or starvation. It entails the reduction of caloric intake while maintaining the optimal intake of essential nutrients, especially vitamins and minerals.)

What effects does CR have on the body that extend life? It appears that its effects are threefold:

1. Lowers body temperature.
2. Raises DHEA levels.
3. Lowers plasma insulin levels.

Interestingly enough, lowering plasma insulin levels also tends to lower body temperature and increase DHEA levels, indicating that insulin may be a prime factor in the aging process. And in fact, this was supported by studies that showed that the glucoregulatory agent, metformin, might be just as effect as CR in reversing aging and rejuvenating the elderly -- thereby resulting in studies indicating that regular use of metformin might be the "Most Significant Anti-Aging Discovery in Medical History," as reported in Life Extension Magazine.

So what's the reality?

• First, although, as far as drugs go, metformin is relatively benign, it is not totally without side effects. It occasionally causes death from lactic acidosis, for example, which is not insignificant for those who die.
• But more importantly, it is quite likely that some minor changes in lifestyle and the use of natural supplements (such as nopal, konjac mannan, fenugreek, gymnema sylvestre, corosolic acid, and bitter melon) can offer the same benefits with no negative side effects and at less cost.

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