October 2/London/Hindustan Times -- Scientists believe that pomegranate juice can help shift middle-age spread, claiming it has the power to reduce the fat stored round the stomach.

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh found that after just one month, volunteers who consumed a bottle of pomegranate juice every day were found to be less likely to develop fatty cells around their abdomen.

They also had much lower blood pressure, therefore reducing their risk of heart attacks, strokes and kidney disease.

It may lower the amount of fatty acid in the blood, known as nonesterified fatty acid or NEFA, they said.

"We believe that these initial findings deserve more detailed study. The subjects in our latest study had a healthy body mass index, making the impact more difficult to observe," the Daily Mail quoted Dr. Emad Aldujaili as saying.

"In future research, we will investigate the effect on overweight or obese subjects in whom the effect may be more evident," he added. 

From the October 18, 2010, Prepared Foods E-dition