More About Graviola (Soursop)           Annona muricata

The Graviola tree is a small tree, about 9 to 18 feet tall, that grows only in tropical climates. Graviola also called Soursop is a cancer alternative remedy which medicinal properties have been recognized for centuries by the native population of the Amazon. Research has been ongoing on graviola since 1940s, and still several pharmaceutical industries and universities are continuing to explore the hidden healing powers of this herb.


Anti-cancerous effects of graviola have been demonstrated in various vitro studies, and because of its traditional usage it is touted as cancer fighting herbal supplement. Graviola's leaves, bark, seeds and fruit possess various health promoting properties that can be helpful for variety of health concerns.

Graviola contains many active compounds and chemicals which have numerous healing properties; one of them is natural phytochemicals known as annonaceous acetogenins which is the main focus of researchers. Some researches have confirmed that annonaceous acetogenins has potent anti-tumor properties and exhibit selective toxic properties against tumor cells. Other clinical studies also demonstrated the powerful anticancerous, antitumorous, and antiviral properties of annonaceous acetogenins.


Recent studies have found that natural compounds of graviola, acetogenins have superb properties to inhibit the enzyme processes that are specifically present in membrane of cancerous cells. Through this mechanism of action they are toxic for cancerous cells and don't create toxicity in healthy cells.


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Purdue University published a promising news article in 1997, that Annonaceous acetogenins are not only effective in destroying tumor cells but also have ability to show resistance to anti-cancer agents and appear to have a unique affinity for such resistant cells.

 


The National Cancer Institute has also explored the toxic effects of Graviola against cancerous cells in its plant screening program in 1976. In this plant screening program, it is illustrated that graviola stem and leaves demonstrated active toxic effects against cancer cells. In various vitro clinical trials, it has been studied that specific phytochemical acetogenins that are found in Graviola herb, has shown their selective toxic effects against various cancerous cells like lung carcinoma cell lines, prostate adenocarcinoma, breast tumor lines, liver cancer cell lines, pancreatic carcinoma cell lines, colon adenocarcinoma cell lines and multi-drug resistant breast adenocarcinoma.


Other clinical findings conducted by scientists of Taiwan suggested that at very low dosages, annonaceous acetogenins of graviola exhibited highly toxic effects particularly to ovarian, breast, cervical, bladder and skin cancer cell lines.



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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jenifer_Jones

Fresh Graviola(soursop) Health Benefits

Anticancerous - Treat malignant colon, breast, lung,  ovarian, prostate, lymphoma, pancreatic, cervical and all kinds of cancer.

Treat infections:

Bacterial infections
Parasitic infections - including leishmaniasis, a disease caused by parasites transmitted through the bite of sand fleas

Coughs
Inflammation of the nose and throat
Herpes
Causing relaxation - helps you sleep
Emptying the bowels

Hypotensive - lowers blood pressure