Pomegranate Seed Oil,
Conjugated Fatty Acids
and CLA

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions -
Pomegranate Seed Oil, Conjugated Fatty Acids, and CLA

1. What is CLA?
   CLA is an abbreviation for Conjugated Linoleic Acid. CLA was discovered about 25 years ago in burned beef by researchers looking for the compounds that make burned beef carcinogenic (cancer-causing). CLA has been shown to one of the most powerful cancer protective compounds ever discovered in Nature.
2. Is CLA a pure chemical?
   No. Actually, CLA is a combination of different fatty acids, which all have in common the fact that they possess conjugated double bonds. This means that these fatty acids contain double bonds (more than one) that alternate, with single bonds in between.
3. Is CLA sold as a nutritional supplement?
   Yes, CLA, derived from the milk and meat of ruminant animals (animals which chew their cud) such as sheep and cows, is one of the most popular nutritional supplements sold in health food stores throughout the world.
4. What are the uses for CLA?
   CLA has been extensively studied throughout the world in over 100 investigative trials in both people and animals. It has been shown to powerfully eliminate or prevent atherosclerosis, to prevent cancers and to help the action of insulin in the body, leading to redistribution of body fat.
5. Can CLA lower blood sugar in diabetics?
   CLA has been shown in animal studies to be capable of lowering blood sugar in diabetic animals.
6. Is CLA also used externally?
   Yes, CLA is a popular cosmeceutical ingredient used in anti-aging preparations for the skin. It has an anti-inflammatory effect which is desirable in making the skin appear more youthful.
7. What is pomegranate seed oil and how is it similar to CLA?
   Pomegranate seed oil (PSO) is the oil which can be cold-pressed from dried, clean pomegranate seeds. PSO is comprised of 65% conjugated fatty acids that are technically a kind of CLA. It is one of the only plant sources of conjugated fatty acids. However, the conjugated fatty acids in PSO contain three double bonds, while the CLA's of animal origin contain only two double bonds.
8. How does PSO compare with animal-derived CLA in potency?
   A Japanese study in 2000 compared conjugated fatty acids possessing three double bonds (such as occur in pomegranate seed oil) with conjugated fatty acids with two double bonds (as from animal sources and which are currently sold in health food stores as CLA). The fatty acids with three conjugated double bonds were considerably more effective in killing leukemia cells than were the ordinary two double bond CLA's.
9. What other plants besides pomegranate contain conjugated fatty acids?
   There are only about ten species of plants worldwide, which contain conjugated fatty acids. One of the best known is the Chinese tung tree, whose nuts are rich in a three double bond conjugated fatty acid. The main use of tung oil throughout history has been as a preservative for wood and an ingredient in paints and varnishes. Another plant, which contains conjugated fatty acids, is the Chinese bitter cucumber (Trichosanthis sp), which has been shown to help in the treatment of AIDS.
10. Has pomegranate seed oil been studied by medical scientists?
    Yes, although the study of pomegranate seed oil by medicine is still in its infancy. One group found pomegranate seed oil to cause breast cancer cells to self-destruct (undergo "apoptosis"). This group compared pomegranate seed oil in this regard with pure chemicals such as a rare form of Vitamin E, delta tocopherol, which is known to cause apoptosis in breast cancer cells. Pomegranate seed oil outperformed the pure compounds. A more recent study showed that applying 5% pomegranate seed oil to the skin of mice prevent these mice from developing cancerous skin tumors.
11. Is PSO safe and are there any known contraindications?
    Pomegranate seed oil is a natural substance with no known side effects or toxicity. People have eaten pomegranates for thousands of years, often chewing and swallowing the seeds. If fresh pomegranates are consumed in this way, the eater will also get a good dose of pomegranate seed oil. However, because pomegranate seed oil also contains small amounts of natural estrogens, it is probably best to avoid consuming it on a daily basis during the first trimester of pregnancy. This is common sense for any medicinal substance.
12. How much PSO is contained in a normal pomegranate?
    In general, it takes about 500 kg of fresh pomegranates to produce 1 kg of pomegranate seed oil. A small 100 g pomegranate contains about 200 mg of oil.
13. How much PSO should a person take on a daily basis?
    Follow the example of eating one pomegranate a day. For an average 250 g pomegranate, the daily dose would be about 500 mg of oil per day. This comes out to about 7-8 drops of oil on a daily basis, more or less depending on body weight.
14. What is the relationship between PSO and pomegranate juice?
    Research with prostate cancer cells showed that the cancer-suppressive effects of PSO were considerably enhanced when used in combination with extracts from pomegranate fermented juice and pomegranate peels. It is likely that the flavonoids and other polyphenols in pomegranate juice synergistically augment the effects of PSO.
15. How could PSO and pomegranate juice help diabetes?
    In a 2003 study in diabetic "Zucker" rats, a Japanese research team showed CLA to help alleviate "insulin resistance," an important cause of adult diabetes. Further, the study suggested that this improvement could also help prevent hypertension and obesity in these animals.  Pomegranate juice contains antioxidants, which prevent glycosylation, the adherence of sugar to hemoglobin, and the start of many secondary effects of diabetes, such as eye problems. However, ordinary pomegranate juice or pomegranate juice concentrate itself contains much sugar, and is not recommended for diabetic patients. Only the de-alcoholized, fermented juice is completely sugar-free.
16. To review, what are the potential uses of PSO?
    PSO has only begun to be studied, so there is much we do not know. However, taking the experience with CLA as a guide, it is likely that PSO may be useful for prevention of atherosclerosis and cancer, for normalizing blood sugar and for improving the function of the immune system.