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Recently, in the science section of the NewYork Times (1) a story appeared, entitled "Clues to Benefits of Fruit and Vegetables," about a study by Dr James Lawrence and Dr John Paterson, on the beneficial effects of salicylic acid (SA), published in the July issue of the Journal of Clinical Pathology.
The study found that vegetarians have high blood levels of salicylic acid, the active ingredient in aspirin for treating inflammation. The authors suggest that this may help explain why people who have a diet rich in fruits and vegetables tend to have a lower incidence of heart disease and cancer.
Aspirin, which is acetylsalicylic acid, hydrolyzes to salicylic acid 20 minutes after entering the bloodstream. Salicylic acid, a compound that plays an important role in resisting pathogen infection in plants, is found in varying quantities in all fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices.
Fruits with a high salicylate content are raisins, prunes, raspberries, apricots, blackberries, blueberries, boysenberries, cantaloupe, cherries, cranberries, currants, dates, guava, grapes, loganberries, oranges, pineapples, plums, and strawberries.
Vegetables with a high salicylate content are broccoli, chili peppers, cucumber, okra, spinach, squash, sweet potato, canned tomatoes, tomato paste and sauce, green peppers, radishes and zucchini.
The highest concentrations of salicylic acid are found in herbs and spices. These include aniseed, canella powder, cayenne, celery powder, cinnamon, curry, dill powder, fenugreek powder, garam masala, mustard powder, oregano, paprika, rosemary, sage, tarragon, turmeric, thyme, mint, black pepper, bay leaves, basil, caraway, ginger root, and nutmeg (2). It is also found in honey and Worcestershire sauce.
John Paterson, one of the lead researchers involved in the study, works in the Department of Biochemistry at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary in southwest Scotland.
Paterson says that as far as he knows, he and Lawrence and another group working in Newcastle are the only ones in the world doing scientific research on natural salicylates and their relationship to disease. He believes the amount of salicylate one would get from synthetic salicylates is negligible, so his studies focus on the influence of natural salicylic acid.
He stumbled on the research quite by accident. "It was about 10 years ago that I was trying to use salicylic acid as a probe to measure free radicals," says Paterson....