Pistachios
Compared to other nuts, pistachios have a lower fat and caloric content, higher levels of fiber-containing 10% by weight of insoluble forms, and 0·3% of soluble forms and antioxidant compounds. Divergent antioxidants are found in pistachio seeds: anthocyanins, carotenoids, flavonoids, isoflavones, tocopherols, proanthocyanidins, and resveratrol. These antioxidants can communicate in different ways and play a critical role in the biological antioxidant network and anti-inflammatory actions. Pistachios are the top fifty foods with high antioxidant potential. Pistachios are a good source of vegetable protein, which contains about 20% of total weight, with nearly 2% L- arginine. This amino acid, also present in other nuts, is a precursor to the endogenous vasodilator Nitric oxide (NO), an important molecule involved in the cardiovascular system as a critical regulator of vascular tone. Among nuts, pistachios are rich in several minerals such as K, Mg, Ca, Cu, Mn, and also stand out for high vitamin K content, with approximately 13·2 mg/100 g. Pistachios could play a useful role in blood pressure (BP) regulation or bone-related diseases because of their mineral profile. Pistachios have the highest phytosterol content, with 214 mg/100 g. Several studies have shown a dose-response decline of cholesterol mediated by phytosterols, even in plant-based diets with pistachios. The levels of phytosterols in pistachio nuts may be enough to play a synergistic role with unsaturated fatty acids and the low saturated fatty acids levels in helping to keep healthy cholesterol levels.
Ingredients
Pistachio Milk
Benefits of raw materials
Pistachio Milk
Nutrition Information
Pistachio Milk
Benefits of Collagen peptides
Pistachio Milk
What are collagens?
Collagen accounts for 25–35% of all vertebrate body proteins. Collagen is vital to maintain the healthy structure and strength of connective tissue, such as skin, blood vessels, cartilage, and bones. Collagens interact with cells via several receptor families and control their proliferation, differentiation, and migration. It is formed by the three primary amino acid glycine (GLY) (33%), proline (PRO), and hydroxyproline (HYP) (22%) in three separate polypeptide chain that winds around each other to produce a triplex helix. Therefore, collagen is shaped into long bars and packaged into tight fibers to do its job of build-up cartilage, bone, and skin to maintain body form. The helical region of collagen comprises the repeat of GLY–X–Y, where PRO can be in the X or Y position, and HYP occurs only in the Y position. Therefore, GLY-PRO-Y, GLY-X-HYP, and GLY-PRO-HYP are essential for the stabilization of the collagen structure. HYP is a derivative formed by hydroxylation of the amino acid PRO which requires vitamin C as a co-factor. Vitamin C deficiency decreases the conversion of PRO to HYP, which leads to reduced collagen stability. Thus HYP is a significant component of the protein collagen and plays a crucial role in the balance of the collagen triple helix and its use as a criterion to determine the amount of collagen. The collagen family comprises 29 types that have been identified. MaxGrainta chooses collagen type I from the freshwater fish skin of Tilapia (Oreophromis spp) Japan. Collagen type I is the most abundant found in skin, bone, teeth, tendon, vascular ligature, ligaments, and organs. The three main reasons we choose to use collagen from freshwater Tilapia as raw materials instead of collagen from cows and pigs are; first, cows are carriers of mad cow disease, and swine is a carrier of swine flu. The second reason is for people who are allergic to seafood, and the third reason is religion.
What are collagen peptides?
Heat-denatured collagen forms a substance called soluble gelatin. Enzymatic hydrolysate at a specific incubation temperature of gelatin is more soluble than gelatin. Then it is called to as collagen hydrolysate or collagen peptide. Collagen peptides are a bioavailable form of collagens. Enzymatic hydrolysis treatment breaks the bonds in the polypeptide chain to get a large number of peptides. The molecular weight of collagen peptides earned from hydrolysis is small (0.3–8 KDa) compared to that of its native collagen (285–300 KDa). This treatment affects not only the size of the peptides but also physicochemical and biological properties. The lower molecular weight shows very low viscosity, highly soluble in water, and allows collagen peptides to be readily digestible and easily absorbed in the digestive tract. Due to the rich content of specific amino acids and critical di-peptides of hydroxyproline-proline and hydroxyproline-glycine to enhance skin, joint, and bone health. These typical features, coupled with the unique GLY-X-Y motif, confer collagen peptides with all-around functionalities and applications as food supplements and ingredients in the form of powders and drinks.
What are the beneficial potentials of collagen peptides for health?
In recent years, an increasing number of research findings have indicated a diversity of bioactivities for collagen hydrolysates or peptides. Moreover, the bioactivities of some collagen peptides have been confirmed by in vivo animal models and human clinical trials.
1. Bone and joint health
Scientific evidence suggests that collagen peptides exert a positive therapeutic effect on osteoarthritis. In vitro cell studies have revealed that collagen hydrolysates/peptides stimulate the synthesis of proteoglycans and collagen in human chondrocytes. Meantime, the clinical studies have shown that intake of collagen peptides (5 g/day for 12 weeks) can lead to the relief of joint pain and stimulate reconstruction of type II collagen and the biosynthesis of proteoglycans in cartilage tissue osteoarthritis patients.
2. Skin health
Collagen peptides can stimulate proliferation and motility of fibroblasts, increase the density and diameter of collagen fibers, promote the production of hyaluronic acid, elevate the expression of type I and IV collagen. Several controlled clinical trials have indicated the benefits of collagen peptides on skin properties, including hydration, skin elasticity, and the decline of wrinkles.
3. Protein source
Collagen peptides are fat- and carbohydrate-free protein source with unique nutritional and amino acid profiles to help stimulate collagen synthesis in humans. Furthermore, protein supplementation has become more crucial to diets, especially for older people with low food intake.
4. Antihypertensive and Angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity
Hypertension represents one of the significant risk factors for developing cardiovascular diseases. Angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) plays an essential physiological role in the regulation of blood pressure and electrolyte homeostasis. Thus, effective inhibition of ACE has been considered the primary target for the treatment of hypertension. Many identified collagen peptides with ACE-inhibitory activities are mainly extracted from fish skins. The ACE-inhibitory properties of collagen peptides are closely related to their unique amino acid compositions. Collagen peptides also appear to promote elasticity of the blood vessel endothelium.