Pine Bark Seems To Improve Male Fertility

Pine Bark Seems To Improve Male Fertility

WEST ORANGE, N.J.--An extract from French maritimepine bark may have application in male reproductive health, according toresearch printed in the October issue of the Journal of Reproductive Medicine(47, 10:821-4, 2002) (www.reproductivemedicine.com).Scott Roseff, M.D., director of the West Essex Center for Advanced ReproductiveEndocrinology, involved 19 sub-fertile men in the study. The men received 200mg/d of French maritime pine bark extract for 90 days, after which time theyexhibited a mean 38-percent improvement in sperm quality and a mean 19-percentimprovement in sperm function. Roseff suggested the results were perhaps due tothe extract's antioxidant properties. According to Roseff, this conclusion wasdrawn because seminal fluid is normally rich in antioxidants to protect spermfrom oxidative damage; however, in sub-fertile men, this fluid may not be asprotected from oxidative damage.

The pine bark extract used in this study, Pycnogenol, isdistributed in North America by Hillside, N.J.-based Natural Health Science. Thestudy was supported by Horphag Research, the original developers of Pycnogenol.

For more information, visit Natural Health Science at www.pycnogenol.comor Booth #1586-1588 at SupplySide West.