Pycnogenol (Pine Bark Extract)

Antioxidant that may help provide protection from heart attacks and strokes
50 mg 60 Capsule, Code 7872

Standard Retail $44.00
Our Price $29.95

Dr. Lester Packer demonstrated that Pycnogenol from Pine Bark Extract is similar in composition to grape seed extract, "works better than aspirin in terms of controlling platelet aggregation, but without the unwanted side effects associated with aspirin. Pycnogenol reduced human smoking-induced platelet aggregation to the same extent as a five-time-higher dose of aspirin" (p. 127). This is a very dramatic finding, suggesting that cardiac patients especially should consider taking Pycnogenol or grape seed extract for preventive purposes.
Packer also reports the findings that Pycnogenol enhances the immune function, increasing the production of Interleukin 2 and stimulating natural killer cell activity. A healthy immune system is regarded as one the crucial factors in resistance to cancer.
Packer recommends using topical anitoxidants: creams containing vitamin C, vitamin E (including tocotrienols, which are readily taken up by the skin) and pycnogenol. Packer cites a colorful study that shows pycnogenol can indeed rejuvenate collagen

From LEF Magazine:
Pycnogenol seen as protection from heart attacks and strokes
A trademarked natural supplement derived from pine bark extract called Pycnogenol may help provide protection from heart attacks and strokes, according to a recently published study by a researcher at the University of Arizona College of Medicine.
Ronald Watson, Ph.D., professor of public health research at the Arizona Prevention Center at the UA College of Medicine, is one of the authors of the study published in Thrombosis Research (vol. 95, issue No. 4, pages 155-161, 1999). Titled, "Inhibition of Smoking-Induced Platelet Aggregation by Aspirin and Pycnogenol," the study involved 38 healthy smokers at the UA and at the University of Munster in Germany, the latter under the direction of Peter Rohdewald, PhD.
Pycnogenol significantly reduced platelet aggregation, a condition that occurs when the smallest blood cells stick together and form clumps in the blood. Clumped cells in an artery feeding a region of the brain can produce a stroke, while aggregated platelets in narrowed vessels feeding the heart can lead to a heart attack.
Study participants were given a single dose of 100-120 mg of Pycnogenol or 500 mg of aspirin. They then smoked to increase platelet aggregation prior to having their blood drawn. Within two hours after taking the supplement, participants were evaluated to measure the effects of Pycnogenol or aspirin in reducing smoking-induced platelet aggregation. The study focused on smokers because it is easier to measure their increased clumping of platelets. Results showed that both Pycnogenol and aspirin reduced platelet aggregation significantly. But a single, smaller dose of the natural supplement was as effective as five times as much aspirin.
October 22, 1999

Dosage and Use
As a dietary supplement, take 2 capsules 1 to 3 times daily Pycnogenol is a concentrated natural extract from the bark of French pine trees. It contains a number of unique beneficial flavonoid compounds (minimum 58% polyphenols). It has been shown to have more antioxidant activity than Vitamin C and Vitamin E in vitro studies.

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease