Flavanones
Polyphenols
Hesperidin and naringin: the polyphenols specific to citrus fruits, and to them alone.
They are mostly in the white pith and the membranes — the part we throw away.
Effects and benefits
The molecules of citrus, and of citrus alone. Attached to a sugar we cannot cut off, they wait for the bacteria of the colon to reach the blood. In one trial, the hesperidin in orange juice lowered diastolic pressure within four weeks.
The hesperidin of orange and the naringin of grapefruit are bound to a sugar, rutinose. Our enzymes cannot detach it, only colon bacteria can: that is why the peak in the blood comes five to seven hours after a glass of juice, and why it varies so much from one person to another.
In a four-week trial, 500 mL of orange juice a day, or a drink providing the same hesperidin, lowered the diastolic pressure of overweight men; the juice also improved the reactivity of small vessels after a meal (Morand et al., 2011).
Not to be confused: grapefruit changes the effect of many medicines, but it is mainly its furanocoumarins that are responsible, not its flavanones (Bailey et al., 2013). If you are on treatment, the leaflet or the pharmacist will say so.
Sources: Morand et al., AJCN, 2011 · Bailey et al., CMAJ, 2013
Where to find it (13)
- Bergamot
- Citron
- Citrus zest
- Clementine
- Dried orange peel
- Grapefruit
- Kaffir lime
- Kumquat
- Lemon
- Lime
- Mandarin
- Orange
- Yuzu