Is mangosteen helpful for health against disease?

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Mangosteen: It is not the same as mango!

One of the most praised of tropical fruits by a whole variety of people, mangosteen is known by a variety of names in different cultures: Mangostan (Spanish); mangostanier, mangoustanier, mangouste or mangostier (French); mangostao, mangosta or mangusta (Portugese); manggis or manggistan (Dutch); mang cut (Vietnamese) etc.

Mangosteen and mango are not the same thing. The popular herb, St. John's wort is part of the former family of plants. Mangosteen has a number of compounds especially xanthones, a group of compounds that have antioxidant and many other physiological and perhaps pharmacolocal including antioxidant, antimicrobial,  anticaries, immunemodulatory, anticancer , anti-acne properties etc..

Medicinal uses in various cultures

1. Dysentery
2. Eczema and other skin disorders when applied as an ointment
3. Cystitis, gonorrhea
4. Chronic diarrhea
5. Thrush and its antifungal activity
6. Antiseptic
7. Chewsticks
8. Menstrual irregularities
9. Acne
10. Nervous system problems

Summary of research

Most of the research to date about mangosteen is based on laboratory studies and there is paucity of human data. Whether the favorable data about its effect especially against various cancers, including breast, lung, leukemia and liver is unknown.

Same thing could be said about its antioxidant, anti-bacterial MRSA, VRE , anti-fungal properties, antihistamine and anti-inflammatory activities when ingested as a supplement.

However, the data thus far is surely fascinating and requires human studies to validate the results seen in the laboratory. 

References: Pedraza-Chaverri J et al.: Medicinal properties of mangosteen. Food Chem Toxicol. 2008 Oct;46(10):3227-39.

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