CELERY SEED EXTRACT

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D .M
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Celery Seed Extract
URRAY

written by Dr. Michael T. Murray

Celery Extract
Celery is a member of the Umbelliferous family along with carrots, parsley, and fennel. The modern celery
originated from wild celery native to the Mediterranean where its seeds were once highly valued as a medicine.
Like many other folk medicines, modern research is upholding the medicinal value of this common plant. In par-
ticular, scientists are evaluating the most powerful of the healing factors of celery, a compound known as 3-n-
butylphthalide or 3nB for short.

What is 3nB?
3nB is a compound that is unique to celery and is responsible for the characteristic flavor and odor
Michael T. Murray, ND is of celery. 3nb was discovered as the active component of celery in response to investigations by
researchers seeking to explain some of the medicinal effects of celery including the lowering of blood pressure and
widely regarded as one of the relief of arthritis. 3nB first drew significant scientific attention when researchers at the University of Chicago
the world’s leading authorities Medical Center identified it as the factor in celery responsible for the blood pressure lowering effect of celery.1
The research was prompted by one of the researcher's father, who after eating a quarter-pound of celery every day
on natural medicine. He is a for one week observed his blood pressure dropped from 158 over 96 to a normal reading of 118 over 82.
Subsequent animal studies found that a very small amount of 3nB lowered blood pressure by 12 to 14% and also
graduate and faculty member lowered cholesterol by about 7%.
of Bastyr University in Seattle,
How does 3nB lower blood pressure?
Washington, and also serves The blood pressure lowering effect of 3nB appears to be a result of several effects. First of all, let me
there on the Board of explain exactly what blood pressure refers to. It refers to the force with which your blood flows
through the vessels. High blood pressure is usually the result of too much fluid there is in your blood and how
Trustees. Dr. Murray is an flexible or resistant your blood vessels are. Retention of sodium (salt) leads to increase fluid volume in the blood
accomplished writer, educator while hardening of the arteries and the hormones released during stress lead to loss of flexibility or constriction of
blood flow. If you put your thumb over a garden hose, the pressure against your thumb and the resultant pres-
and lecturer. He is the author sure of the flow of water out of the hose can be reduced by either turning down the faucet (reducing the fluid
volume) or by letting more water flow out the end of the hose (dilating the vessel). In treating high blood pres-
of over 20 books, including sure, doctors usually prescribed diuretics (water pills) to reduce the fluid volume and vasodilators to relax the
co-author of How to Prevent arteries to reduce the resistance of blood flow or beta-blockers to turn down the pumping action of the heart.
3nB appears to help lower blood pressure by both acting as a diuretic and vasodilator through impacting the pro-
and Treat Cancer with duction of prostaglandins (discussed below) as well as acting in a similar manner to drugs known as calcium-
channel blockers.2 3nB has also been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels and reduce the formation of arterial
Natural Medicine and is the plaque in experimental studies (animal and test tube studies).3,4 This effect may increase the elasticity of the
Director of Product blood vessels and also lead to lower blood pressure readings. 3nB also appears to promote some effects on areas
and systems of the brain that control vascular resistance.
Development and Education The benefit of celery extract in high blood pressure is its apparent safety and the fact that it has a very unusu-
for Natural Factors. al mechanism of action as a diuretic. Most diuretics change the ratio of sodium to potassium in the blood and as
a result dangerous side effects can occur as a result of either too much potassium or sodium. In contrast, celery
extract acts as a diuretic but does not alter the ratio of sodium to potassium in the blood.
The research on the blood pressure lowering effect of celery and celery extracts is quite preliminary, but I
think it is certainly worth the effort to give it a try as some people have noted significant reductions. What
research will probably show is that some people with high blood pressure will respond to celery extract while oth-
ers will not. This occurrence is not unusual as physicians treating high blood pressure will tell you that there is a
similar phenomena with conventional drugs used in high blood pressure.
Another real advantage of celery extract over conventional drugs used in high blood pressure is that the drugs
lower blood flow to the brain. While this effect is helpful in reducing the likelihood of stroke, it often leaves peo-
ple taking these drugs feeling tired, depressed, dizzy, and forgetful. Celery extract on the other hand has actually
been shown to not only help prevent stroke in animal studies, but also improve blood flow as well and act to pro-
tect the brain and enhance energy production with the brain in a similar manner to Ginkgo biloba extract.5-8 It
has produced dramatic recovery in neurological and brain function in animals in studies that simulate a stroke.6-
10 It has also been shown to significantly increase lifespan in animal studies.11
 What other effects What is the proper Can I take celery
have been noted with dosage and are their extract with conven-
3nB? any side effects? tional anti-inflamma-
3nB has shown tremendous promise as an anti- Over 100,000 people in Australia have now tory drugs?
cancer phytonutrient and detoxification aid in an used this proprietary celery seed extract standard- Yes. There does not seem to be any adverse
experimental animal model,12 but it is its use as a ized at 85% phthalides without any reports of side interactions with conventional drugs.
pain reliever in arthritis, fibromyalgia, and gout effects. The current recommendations for joint and
that is getting most of the attention. muscle complaints based on the information now Are there any con-
A celery extract standardized to contain 85% available from trials as well as clinical experience traindications?
3nB and other celery phthalides has been evaluated are the following (based upon using a celery seed Since the effects of celery extract have
in the treatment of "rheumatism" – the general extract standardized to contain 85% 3nB and other not been evaluated for safety in pregnancy, it is
term used for arthritic and muscular aches and phthalides): generally recommended that it not be used during
pain.13,14 In these studies efficacy was evaluated by • For the relief of join and muscle pain (includ pregnancy or lactation. No other contraindications
well-established clinical protocols used to measure ing pain due to osteoarthritis, rheumatoid are presently known. I would advise individuals
the effectiveness of conventional drugs used in arthritis, and fibromyalgia): one tablet two to taking the drug Coumadin (warfarin) to be closely
arthritis and muscular pain. This protocol allows three times daily.
monitored by their physician when starting to use
objective measures of clinical pain that can be • For gout: two tablets twice daily. NOTE: The celery extract. It is just a precautionary recommen-
assessed statistically and for individual compar- initial blood uric acid measurements may dation.
isons. Due to the chronic, fluctuating nature of increase in people with gout as uric acid crys-
tals begin to dissolve.
rheumatism, the design of the study was a longitu- How does 3nB work
dinal study. This sort of study compares the results to produce all of
achieved when using the active substance to a time Do you have to take
when it is not used. the celery extract con- these benefits?
tinuously to maintain Based upon al of the existing research it is clear
During the active phase of the 12-week study,
benefits in relieving that 3nB exerts a profound effect on many of the
the 15 subjects suffering from either osteoarthritis,
joint and muscle pain? body’s control systems. Chief among them the
osteoporosis or gout received 34 mg of a propri-
prostaglandin system. Prostaglandins are chemicals
etary celery extract standardized to contain 85% Yes. Results from the studies conducted to date that mediate or control many important body
phthalides twice daily. The pain had been present indicate that as long as the celery extract is used it processes including regulating inflammation, pain,
for approximately 10 years in a remittent or con- keeps pain at bay. But, if it is stopped the pain and swelling; blood pressure; and heart, digestive,
tinual form and it led to a lack of joint mobility tends to recur. and kidney function as well. Some of the effects
and pain that prevented the carrying out of house-
noted for 3nB on the prostaglandin system are
hold duties, hobbies and activities involved in How much celery or quite unique and novel. Rather than simply
employment of these subjects. The results of the celery extract should I inhibiting the production of prostaglandins by
study were extremely positive and quite statistically take for high blood blocking enzymes that produce them like aspirin or
significant. The chance that such a positive effect
in reducing pain in these subjects was a placebo
pressure? even the more expensive and selective Cox-2
My recommendation is to either consume 8 inhibitors, 3nB appears to help restore balance in
effect was less than 1 in 1000. Subjects experienced
ribs of celery per day or take a celery extract stan- the prostaglandin system.16 Exactly how it accom-
significant pain relief after 3 weeks of use with the
dardized to contain 85% 3nB and other celery plishes this effect is still a mystery. Drug companies
average reduction in pain scores of 68% and some
phthalides at a dosage of 75 to 150 mg twice daily. are researching the unique effects of 3nB in order
subjects experiencing complete 100% relief from
to develop drugs that can be patented and sold for
pain. Most subjects achieved maximum benefit
a huge profit. It does not look like that line of
after six weeks of use although some did notice
research is necessary, however.
improvements the longer the extract was used.
Detailed blood chemistry as well as clinical evalua- References:
tion in these test subjects did not turn up any side 1. Le QT and Elliott WJ: Hypotensive and hypocholesterolemic effects of celery oil may be due to BuPh. Clin Res 1991;39:173A.
effects. Many subjects noticed a diuretic effect, but 2. Tsi D and Tan BKH: Cardiovascular pharmacology of 3-n-butylphthalide in spontaneously hypertensive rats. Phytotherapy Research 1997;11:576-82.

no changes were noted in the sodium and potassi- 3. Le QT and Elliott WJ: Dose-response relationship of blood pressure and serum cholesterol to 3-n-butylphthalide, a component of celery oil. Clin Res 1991;39:750A.
4. Mimura Y, Kobayashi S, Naitoh T, Kimura I and Kimura M: The structure-activity relationship between synthetic butylidenephthalide derivatives regarding the competence and progres-
um balance (the significance of this effect was dis- sion of inhibition in primary cultures proliferation of mouse aorta smooth muscle cells. Biol Pharm Bull 1995;18:1203-6.

cussed above). 5. Yu SR, Gao NN, Li LL, Wang ZY, Chen Y and Wang WN: The protective effect of 3-butyl phthalide on rat brain cells.Yao Hsueh Hsueh Pao 1988;23:656-61.
6. Chong ZZ and Feng YP: dl-3-n-butylphthalide improves regional cerebral blood flow after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats. Chung Kuo Yao Li Hsueh Pao 1999;20:509-
Based on the positive results in this small pilot 12.

study, a larger 70 patient study was conducted. Test 7. Chong ZZ and Feng YP: dl-3-n-butylphthalide attenuates reperfusion-induced blood-brain barrier damage after focal cerebral ischemia in rats. Chung Kuo Yao Li Hsueh Pao
1999;20:696-700.
subjects received 75 mg of the celery extract twice 8. Yan CH, Feng YP and Zhang JT: Effects of dl-3-n-butylphthalide on regional cerebral blood flow in right middle cerebral artery occlusion rats. Chung Kuo Yao Li Hsueh Pao
1998;19:117-20.
daily for three weeks. At this higher dosage, sub- 9. Lin JF and Feng YP: Effect of dl-3-n-butylphthalide on delayed neuronal damage after focal cerebral ischemia and intrasynaptosomes calcium in rats.Yao Hsueh Hsueh Pao
jects reported even better results than in the pilot 1996;31:166-70.
10. Liu XG and Feng YP: Protective effect of dl-3-n-butylphthalide on ischemic neurological damage and abnormal behavior in rats subjected to focal ischemia.Yao Hsueh Hsueh Pao
study. Statistically and clinically significant reduc- 1995;30:896-903.
tions were noted in pain scores, mobility, and qual- 11. Zhang LY and Feng YP: Effect of dl-3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) on life span and neurological deficit in SHRsp rats.Yao Hsueh Hsueh Pao 1996;31:18-23.

ity of life. Again no side effects were noted other 12. Zheng G, Kenney PM, Zhang J and Lam KT: Chemoprevention of benzopyrene-induced forestomach cancer in mice by natural phthalides from celery oil. Nutr Cancer 1993;19:77-86.
13. Soundararajan S and Daunter B: Ajvine: Pilot biomedical study for pain relief in rheumatic pain. School of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 1991-
than the diuretic effect with no changes in the 92.

sodium and potassium balance. It appears to be 14. Venkat S, Soundararajan S, Daunter B and Madhusudhan S. Use of Ayurvedic medicine in the treatment of rheumatic illness. Department of Orthopaedics, Kovai Medical Center and
Hospitals, Coimbatore, India, 1995.
particularly helpful for sufferers of gout as 3nB 15. Hu D, Huang XX and Feng YP: Effect of dl-3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) on purine metabolites in striatum extracellular fluid in four-vessel occlusion rats.Yao Hsueh Hsueh Pao
appears to lower the production of uric acid by 1996;31:13-7
16. Chong ZZ and Feng YP: Effects of dl-3-n-butylphthalide on production of TXB2 and 6-keto-PGF1 alpha in rat brain during focal cerebral ischemia and reperfusion. Chung Kuo Yao Li
inhibiting the enzyme xanthine oxidase.15 Hsueh Pao 1997;18:505-8.

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