Rosemary extract benefits
What is rosemary?
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a woody, perennial herbwith fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers, native to Asia, the Mediterranean and Europe region. Rosemary has strong vitality, can grow even in cold climates, and contains many minerals and vitamins, such as fiber, iron, calcium, potassium, folic acid and vitamins A, B6 & C. Rosemary extract benefits has been known for a long time, in addition to being commonly used as spices and essential oils, it has been widely used since ancient times because of its rich medicinal value.
In laboratory studies, rosemary essential oils shown good antifungal and anti-bacterial properties. Studies found that rosemary can hinder some food-borne infections, such as dysentery, nausea and vomiting caused by Bacillus cereus, Food poisoning caused by Staphylococcus aureus and so on. At present, rosemary is a spice that is often used in Western foods, especially widely used in steak and other grilled dishes , because it contains antibacterial properties that can fight harmful bacteria in the body.
Other Rosemary extract benefits
Rosemary for anti-cancer
Earlier researches showed that some compounds contained in rosemary are resistant to cancer. One animal experiment found that rosemary extract can inhibit the growth of skin tumors. Moreover, studies also shown that rosemary extract can inhibits the spread of ovarian cancer cells.
A study of rosemary was published in the magazine of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, researchers at the University of Pisa in Italy found rosemary contains sage phenol that can reactivate protein P53. The P53 protein is a very important tumor Suppressor protein that inhibits the development of 50 % of cancer cells in the human body and makes it inactive. This study was the first to confirm that rosemary’s salvia phenol inhibits cancer cells, which has important and substantial implications for molecular research at the health and pharmaceutical levels.
Rosemary for cognitive health
Cognitive health is extremely important for people, especially those with age-related degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. With the aging of Chinese society, cognitive impairment has become a universal social problem. Cognitive expert in Japan said that the smell of rosemary can effectively prevent the appearance of cognitive disease. Hippocampus, which is responsible for memory storage, is suppressed once the nerve cells in people with cognitive disorders become impaired. As the hippocampus is closely connected with the sensing olfactory nerve, the hippocampus can be activated by stimulating the smell to prevent cognitive disease.
Rosemary extract can not only repair pathological brain cells, but also improve traumatic brain injury (also known as brain trauma, is brain damage caused by trauma). In June 2016, researchers at Kunming Medical University in China found in a rat trial that, rosemary extract improved cognitive impairment associated with mild traumatic brain injury in rats. The mechanism of the results is that salvia acid contained in rosemary extract, can reduce the number of deformed nerve cells in the hippocampus of rats, which are mainly caused by traumatic brain damage. The hippocampus is the region responsible for learning and memory, and is also the site of mild traumatic brain damage.
The antioxidant properties of sage acid can induce the anti-inflammatory activity of the central nervous system and thus play a role in protecting the nerves. In addition, the antioxidant stress properties of rosemary extract can also play a neuroprotective role.
Rosemary for Stress relief
Rosemary has a unique scent, which has a certain relief for headaches. The dizziness caused by excessive stress in life can be relieved by Rosemary. Rosemary produces feelings of calmness and well-being, promoting relaxation and helping to alleviate symptoms of stress. Furthermore , rosemary tea is a good choice for reducing stress and can help relieve tension headaches or depression.
Rosemary extract for muscle mass and fat loss
Rosemary extract contains an amazing active ingredient: Ursolic acid.
Human and mouse studies have demonstrated that subjects taking Ursolic acid showed increased muscle gains from exercise vs those that were taking placebo.
In one study, 16 men were put on regular weight training routines for 8 weeks. The men who were given Ursolic Acid showed significant increase in muscle strength, IGF-1 and Irisin hormones (which increase muscle grownth), and decrease in body fat percentage.
16 male test subjects performed resistance training for eight weeks.Those randomly assigned to group that were given Ursolic acid exhibited significant decrease in Body fat percentage, increased IGF-1 and irisin, and increased muscle strength.
These findings suggest that ursolic acid may increase skeletal muscle strength
Promotes fat loss Test subjects given Ursolic acid became leaner, had less abdominal fat, lower blood glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol levels.
A significant decrease in ghrelin 4 was thought to be responsible for these results. Ghrelin is secreted in the stomach and has an appetite increasing and fat accumulation effect, so less ghrelin is a good thing. Thus, ursolic acid fights excess body by several methods.
Increased Energy Expenditure – Test subjects showed a significant increase in the hormones leptin.
Leptin is secreted from fat cells themselves and is important in regulating energy expenditure – more leptin signals the body to expend more energy.
