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Old 10-12-2020, 02:35 PM   #4
Ibby
erika
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: "the high up north"
Posts: 6,127
According to the National Institutes of Health:

Quote:
  • Some studies suggest that grape seed extract might help with symptoms of chronic venous insufficiency and with eye stress from glare, but the evidence isn’t strong.
  • Conflicting results have come from studies on grape seed extract’s effect on blood pressure. It’s possible that grape seed extract might help to slightly lower blood pressure in healthy people and those with high blood pressure, particularly in people who are obese or have metabolic syndrome. But people with high blood pressure should not take high doses of grape seed extract with vitamin C because the combination might worsen blood pressure.
  • A 2019 review of 15 studies involving 825 participants suggested that grape seed extract might help lower levels of LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein. The individual studies, however, were small in size, which could affect the interpretation of the results.
  • The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) is supporting research on how certain dietary supplements rich in polyphenols, including grape seed extract, help to reduce the effects of stress on the body and mind. (Polyphenols are substances that are found in many plants and have antioxidant activity.) This research is also looking at how the microbiome affects the absorption of the specific polyphenol components that are helpful.
That means that, according to all scientific studies reviewed by the part of the NIH that studies "complementary health products and practices" (i.e. "alternative medicine"), there might be a tiny bit of (very limited, so far) evidence that it can help with a few specific conditions - blood pressure, cholesterol, "stress", eye strain. That might be true! there isn't enough evidence yet to say conclusively, but it's not a huge stretch to think that, sure, maybe there are some minor benefits to certain conditions. a lot of chemicals and other "supplements" might have some, very minor, hard to prove benefits.
but to spread the idea that it will protect you from deadly plagues? that's extremely dangerous. there is absolutely no evidence of that, except from people trying to sell it.

obviously, you aren't going to trust anything the National Institutes of Health has to say. certainly there are reasons to think critically about what the government has to say on, well, anything. but if the best that the organization dedicated to vindicating alternative health care claims can come up with is "it might, maybe, sorta, help with blood pressure and eye strain", thats a really, really good reason to think very, very critically about the claims being made by the people who want to sell you more of this chemical.
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