What is OPC?

OPC's brief history and what it is

Proanthocyanidins are a class of flavanols. One was isolated in 1948 by Professor Jaques Masquelier and called vitamin P. Masquelier developed techniques for the extraction of OPCs from certain plants.

OPC has been used as a nutritional and therapeutic supplement in Europe since the 1980s while the introduction to the Unites States has been relatively recent.

OPC and healthspan
 

It is the right life style that keeps people healthy. The duration of years that a person stays healthy has come to be referred to as “healthspan”.

While the average lifespan in the United States has almost doubled to approximately eighty years of age since a little over a century ago, healthspan has changed little. At around the age forty most people begin to experience the onset of degenerative diseases, including cardiovascular disease, arthritis, cancer, macular degeneration and adult-onset diabetes. And though sufferers from these conditions may in fact live into old age, their quality of life is compromised as their bodies self-destruct and their health deteriorates.

A plant derived substance of the type known as polyphenols, called oligomeric proanthocyanidins – OPC for short – is a powerful antioxidant that is reported to deliver an amazing, perhaps unequaled, range of health benefits. OPC does so much to maintain the functions of the body that it has the potential to revolutionize our experience of health and is therefore regarded by many who have studied it as a nutritional miracle which can double our healthspan.
 
Brief history of discovering OPC 
 

In 1928, vitamin C was discovered as a very important step in fighting scurvy. But as important as the discovery of vitamin C was, scientific studies conducted on animals showed that pure, synthetic vitamin C was less effective in treating scurvy than vitamin C contained in foods (oranges, rose hips, etc.). This suggested the presence of other factors co-occurring with vitamin C that worked in synergy with the vitamin itself.

OPC was discovered by Jaques Masquelier in the inner skin of peanuts which was available in peanut oil producing companies in France. He first discovered that OPC possessed a significant vasoprotective potential. Therefore OPC is also called “vitamin P” – referring to its action upon vascular permeability. Later Masquelier also found OPC in the bark of the Landes pine trees and then also in grape seeds. Today grape seeds are the primary source for OPC extraction. Decades of research have confirmed what Masquelier initially suspected: That OPC performs many of the essential functions required to successfully combat scurvy. It furthermore acts synergistically with vitamin C while being distributed even faster and more efficiently throughout the body than vitamin C.

Today OPC is mainly known for its powerful antioxidant capacity that is used most effectively in anti-aging medicine.

OPC – What is it exactly?

Orange juice is not vitamin C; nor is the extract of grape seeds OPC…

Pure vitamin C is a specific, beneficial nutrient which is manufactured by exacting means. The same is true with a properly produced OPC.

OPCs are dimers and trimers of (+) catechin or (-) epicatechin.

Catechin and epicatechin molecules look the same with the only difference that they are the reflection of each other.

This is for example, how an epicatechin molecule looks like:
 

 

A dimer procyanidin, the Procyanidin B-2, looks like this:



It consists of two epicatechin molecules.

Overview of OPC’s health benefits

OPC adjusts the blood count

Inhibits swelling (edema) and inflammation

Strengthens and rejuvenates the immune system

Acts as a superior antioxidant, protecting cells in the body against destruction by free radicals

Increases the strength and elasticity of blood vessels and conjunctive tissue by enhancing the ability of collagen to repair itself, thereby protecting against age-related and degenerative processes

Improves skin health by reducing damage, increasing nutrient supply and improving elasticity

Improves mental ability

OPC safety and dosage

For general health and well-being, a daily intake of 200 to 350 milligrams of OPC is suggested. If a significant improvement of physical shape is needed, a dosage of up to 600 milligrams of OPC can be required.

OPC of Masquelier

Today there is especially one name connected with OPC, it is the name Masquelier. That is why we are going to briefly explain how Masquelier’s OPC is isolated.

By definite methods a grape seed extract and a pine bark extract are produced. Then they are mixed together in certain proportions. This resulting mixture contains 85% OPC. That means that the OPC-extract of Masquelier contains the dimers and trimers of (+) catechin and (-) epicatechin in an amount of 85%.

It should be noted that OPC-extracts in general get their health-promoting activity only through the appropriate dosage of the definite OPC quality.

This means that:

1. OPC must indeed be referred to as the di- and trimers of (+) catechin and (-) epicatechin.

2. An appropriate dosage of OPC is suggested. Germany’s confederation for food law and food science (www.bll.de) recommends the daily intake of 100 milligrams to 600 milligrams of OPC for adults. Lower dosages are considered to have no effect.

This is how Erika Denning’s OPC-Naturdrink is produced and applied:

By definitive methods a grape seed extract and a rose hip extract are produced and then mixed together in certain proportions. Honey and malt dextrin are added.

As a result, one measuring spoon of Erika Denning’s OPC-Naturdrink contains 167 milligrams of real OPC from grape seed extract, 150 milligrams of natural vitamin C from rosehip extract, and in addition also numerous other micronutrients from grape seeds and rose hips.

With three glasses of Erika Denning’s OPC-Naturdrink you receive 500 milligrams of real OPC (dimers and trimers) and 450 milligrams of natural vitamin C, imbedded in an herbal matrix which offers a high amount of additional essential nutrients such as bioflavonoids, carotinoids, polyphenols and galactolipids. The galactolipids from rose hip extract are also highly effective against inflammation.

Erika Denning’s OPC-Naturdrink comes in 60g OPC powder containers that provide the recommended monthly 60 glasses of OPC drinks for one adult. The included measuring spoon holds the size of 1g of OPC powder. In some situations, nutritionists recommend 3 servings per day. To obtain proper dilution, pour the OPC powder with the measuring spoon into a dry glass, then pour in water, cold black tea or orange juice. Stir the contents of the glass and Erika Denning's Naturdrink is ready to be consumed. Many people also enjoy taking OPC-Naturdrink with pineapple juice, grape juice or banana juice. Please note that apple juice and Roibos teas are not recommended for consumption with OPC-Naturdrink due to their acidic structures.

Fort optimal results, taking OPC-Naturdrink before noontime along with bread and/or fruits is suggested. Avoid ingesting dairy products or meat before or within an hour after taking OPC-Naturdrink, since calcium contained in milk, and collagen contained in meat would combine with the OPC that is already being digested in the stomach, rendering the OPC ineffective. OPC + calcium as well as OPC + collagen form antisoluble complexes which are indigestible and leave the body the natural way, thus depriving the body of the ingested OPC. Juices taken together with OPC-Naturdrink shouldn’t contain additional calcium.

When the OPC-Naturdrink is taken separately from calcium and collagen, it is digested within 40 minutes and reaches every body cell within an hour, where it works with the body's own calcium and collagen - strengthening joints and connective tissue.

Find out why people are raving about Erika Denning's OPC-Naturdrink here.