Bioflavonoids inhibit estrogen?

I read this last year and ignored it, but it has surfaced again. Apparently, with all the great supplements I’ve been taking that have various indications that they inhibit uterine fibroid growth and/or shrink existing fibroids, I missed one very essential component: Bioflavonoids.

A bottle of Bioflavonoids cost a whoppin’ $7.85 at the health food store yesterday. I’m kicking myself. Why haven’t I been doing bioflavonoids all along?

Google on “bioflavonoids and estrogen” (here, I’ve already set up the search for you), and you will be astounded at how much medical research has been done indicating that bioflavonoids fight cancers and tumors and estrogen-related health problems.

Dr. Joel Furman gives a great explanation for what flavonoids and bioflavonoids are:

[They are] phytochemical compounds in plants that are absorbed by the body but then rapidly excreted as if they were a foreign substance, but without causing damage. Flavonoids do not function like conventional hydrogendonating antioxidants, but have an interesting hodgepodge of effects inside the cells. The hallmark of their unique properties is that they do not stay in the body very long and induce phase II detoxification enzymes in the liver, while at the same time attracting other toxins in the body to be expelled simultaneously. Flavonoids are like dust mops for toxins that get thrown out along with the dust that they collect.

By the way, he does counsel against too much of a good thing, like, don’t take too many flavonoids.

But I found a ton of articles, including comments from Dr. Furman, that say without question, low, reasonable doses of flavonoids interfere with the growth of tumors.

“At low concentrations, flavonoids help the body get rid of harmful free radicals and also promote the inhibition of enzymes like protein kinase, which is necessary in cell division. The effects of flavonoids are thought to be potentially anticarcinogenic because flavonoids can block and inhibit the excessive cell division characterized by cancer. Certain flavonoids can inhibit enzymes, such as protein kinases, that are involved in cellular proliferation and tumor progression. This is one reason flavonoids can be considered anticarcinogens.”

So there you have it. The missing link. … just kicking myself not to have done this sooner…

P.S.  I checked AllStarHealth, where I can usually find better prices than at the health food store, and they do have bioflavonoids ranging from about $3.99 for 100 capsules to $19.25 for 500 capsules.  So if you don’t have a health food store near you, they’re a pretty good resource.