Grape and Berry Juices: Elixers for Long Life?

Mar. 17, 2007 — -- Americans drink half the world's orange juice -- 21 quarts per person each year. Most of them do so because of reasons connected to taste and to the perceived health benefits of a glass of O.J. every day.

But that may change soon. According to a new study by scientists at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, purple grape juice is now your best bet for preventing heart disease, Alzheimer's disease and a host of other chronic ailments.

What's the secret ingredient that makes juice such a potent weapon against disease?

Well, all juices contain chemical compounds known as polyphenols -- a variety of antioxidant that, when consumed, helps to remove harmful free radicals from the body. Although exact information about how antioxidants combat illness is not forthcoming, a number of studies place them at the forefront of protecting the body from free radicals, molecules that destroy cells and allow diseases to develop.

The findings from the University of Glasgow come on the heels of the recent U.S.-based Kame project, which suggested that volunteers who drank three or more glasses of juice a week could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's by 76 percent, compared with those who drank juice less than once a week.

In the first comprehensive study of the antioxidant content of various juices, published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, researchers at the University of Glasgow examined 13 different brands of fruit juices from a local U.K. supermarket.

They measured the number as well as the levels of antioxidants in apple, orange, grapefruit, cranberry, pineapple, tomato and grape juice, and found that purple grape juice has the highest concentration of antioxidants among juices. In fact, the more popular orange juice or clear apple juice have the lowest antioxidant content.

When ABCNews.com interviewed Alan Crozier, professor of plant biochemistry and human nutrition, who led the study, he claimed that "there is absolutely no difference between juice made from concentrate and freshly-squeezed juice, as far as antioxidants are concerned."