Tea and Heart Disease
This is an editorial that covers some of the metabolism that is involved with quercetin; don’t chew gum while trying to comprehend it. What this article does point out is that there are several factors that effect the bioavailability of the bioflavonoid quercetin. GI flora is important in activating the compound. And sex of the study participants also plays a major role, with women being able to produce a much higher bioavailabilty of the compound than men. Remember this the next time you see an article titled “natural substance X protects/doesn’t protect against disease Y.” Nature is not so simple. Tea and Coronary Heart Disease: the Flavonoid Quercetin Is More Bioavailable From Rutin in Women Than in Men