BERRY JUICE MAY BE HEART TONIC Scientists in India have developed a way to extract juice effectively for the first time from a berry which is thought to be good for the heart. Sea buckthorn is a known source of cholesterol-lowering compounds which could prevent clogging of the arteries. It is used in Tibet, Mongolia, China and Russia for health drinks. But the researchers, writing in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture,report current extraction methods produce juice of poor quality.A team at the Regional Research Laboratory in Trivandrum have solved the problem by developing an extraction technique which uses continuous high speed centrifugation to separate the juice from the solid sludge. The process was shown to retain a significant proportion of the key anti-oxidant chemicals which scientists believe can aid the circulatory system by blocking the action of harmful LDL cholesterol. When LDL cholesterol is oxidized, it sticks to the lining of blood vessels, causing them to clog up. Analysis showed that the extracted juice contained more than 40% of the original polyphenol content from the whole berry, along with 50% of the original flavonoids and 70% of the vitamin C.