Bioavailability of multiple components following acute ingestion of a polyphenol-rich juice drink

A healthy diet involves eating fruit and vegetables on a daily basis, the benefits of which are in part linked to the ingestion of bioactive compounds including polyphenols. As a convenient means of delivering additional polyphenols to the diet, a polyphenol-rich (P-R) juice drink was prepared and the bioavailability of its diverse spectrum of constituents investigated. Ten human volunteers followed a low-flavonoid diet for 2 days before drinking 350 mL of the P-R beverage. Plasma and urine were collected for 24 h and analyzed by HPLC-PDA-MS. The plasma pharmacokinetics and recoveries of urinary metabolites of flavan-3-ols, flavanones, dihydrochalcones and 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid, both in terms of their identity and quantity, were, in most instances, not markedly different to those reported in other feeding studies with green tea, orange juice, apple cider and coffee. This indicates that the combination of polyphenolic compounds in the P-R beverage are absorbed and excreted to a similar extent whether fed individually or together in a single beverage. It is concluded that the P-R beverage can deliver the intended blend of bioavailable polyphenols, which would normally require consumption of several different plant-derived foods.