Modified Citrus Pectin - modified how? why? does it matter? a capsule? or a scoop?

...a scoop. Pectin is a fiber which makes it a macronutrient - bulky, not a tiny capsule micronutrient.

Citrus peel has many benefits, many healthy components. The pectin is just one, and Modified Citrus Pectin, is not really magically better than fresh pith, it is just more saleable, shelf stable, and more of an isolate of fiber, so less medically powerful than the fresh pith. Bitter tasting phytonutrients give citrus zest the POW! and also medicinal functions throughout the body at bitter taste receptors that do functional things for us in addition to tasting bitter tastes on the tongue.

Additionally, this post by Repurposed Drugs: Powers & Possibilities was mentioned in the comments here, thanks! My short answer - YES, pectin can really help, but in macronutrient amounts, spoonfuls, not just a capsule product. While I was ill with untested Feb 20 exposure to a Detroit hospital illness, I got quite sick and it was heading into asthma which I had in the past so knew I needed an inhaler soon or I would be in trouble, and I found research pointing at citrus peel, so I ate some and it helped a lot.

(This post from 2020 is still accurate - "neohesperidoside, and neohesperidin are very bitter, whereas hesperidin is tasteless" → suggesting that the inner pith is still potent from hesperidin content while being milder tasting than the outer zest layer. (Drewnowski and Gomez-Carneros, 2000) More details on citrus peel benefits follow.

Preventing Cancers, Dementia, and Spike Protein Disease with MCP

The science research about bitter taste receptors tends to focus on them being primarily to protect us against bitter tasting toxins in foods - which they do. But they can also guide us towards the bitter taste that is medicinally helpful for a certain symptom. If something is really satisfying then we are going to remember that and associate the feeling with the food. If something was eaten at the same time that something bad happened, then a negative memory might be set up about that food and avoidance in the future might occur instead of seeking it out.

Search ‘galectin’ or ‘galectin-3’ in my archives for a variety on the topic including that fascinating title “Bioweapons a bore? I don’t think so.”

The pectin itself is beneficial against galectin-3, which is inflammatory and may be part of chimeric spike negative effects. Pectin can block the galectin-3. BUT pectin is a macronutrient, not a capsule product.

Orange peel math:

The citrus peel may contain 64 milligrams of quercetin and 5120 milligrams of hesperidin in the whole peel - the original measurements were of whole citrus peel (1) so it is unknown how much the white pith contains in comparison to the orange zest layer which likely contains more of the bitter tasting phytonutrients. Hesperidin was reported as being most prevalent of flavonoids being measured and equivalent across thin and thick-skinned citrus species suggesting that more is in the thin zest layer (the flavedo) than the thick white pith layer (the albedo). (1, 4)

The white pith layer would likely contain a majority of the beneficial fiber and pectin, which makes up 64% of the whole peel of oranges, (1), or at least 21 grams of the yield of white pith or the orange zest in this example would be fiber/pectin. The jam in the last post had thickened even without the added pectin which led to it being too firm of a gel. *Excerpt, more math-y details in this post:

Twenty-one grams, 3/4 of an ounce, is a macronutrient. That is not a capsule product. It is a scoop product, if “modified” into a dried and powdered shelf stable item sold in plastic at a great cost, compared to buying a Navel orange. Choosing organically grown citrus would be preferred.

The white pith layer is almost sweet and mild flavored compared to the zest layer. The pith alone is almost bread-like in texture/taste. I even tried a piece of it with some almond butter - it was not bad. Orange marmalade sandwich, hold the bread and sugar and jam making process.

My positive experience with citrus peel for ending the respiratory/asthma like symptoms of untested March 2020 illness, led to a flurry of jam making or thicker chutney style savory condiments, chocolate citrus pear ganache, and a violet pomegranate jelly.

Several citrus peel and pomegranate peel jam recipes are in this post:

I Tweeted the good news about citrus peel, daily for over a year. This information is suppressed information, or ridiculed, or an ineffective but expensive facsimile is being promoted: “Wow, great news! Buy this tiny capsule product, as it shows it may have benefit!”

Or for less money, eat the inner pith with some orange slices and breath clearly for about 6 hours. Save the outer zest to use in one teaspoon amounts and one large orange may last for two weeks of clear breathing - or better blood sugar control and reduced Metabolic Syndrome issues, or better weight control.

What does “Modified” mean in food processing?

It might mean: Drying and powdering something so that it is shelf stable and now able to be sold in containers and dissolved in liquids more easily than a hunk of fresh peel can be. Cooking is a form of food modification. Chewing is a form of food modification that is designed by nature to add dietary enzymes, and increase our electrical flow as teeth seem to be mini antennae for us.

Baby food is soft but never really existed in nature. Mothers would feed baby a bit of food that she had pre-chewed a bit. (random aside) “Smoothies” are a step backward, not a step forward in health giving benefits of eating. Toddlers like to chew food - that is a goal of early childhood education - teaching the basic skills of life.

Apples are also pectin delivery units, no plastic bottle or capsule needed. Photo by Isabella Fischer on Unsplash

Is the dried and powdered fiber a bit more concentrated, refined, isolated, shortened maybe? Yes. The bitter phytonutrients likely were mostly reduced so it is more of just a fiber supplement and no longer going to be as helpful or helpful at all as an asthma reducer, blood sugar or weight loss aid. It is the bitter tasting phytonutrients in citrus peel or other functional foods which provide those medicinal effects.

Pectin itself has anti-inflammatory benefits against galectin-3, which chimeric spike may be increasing effects of or adding to with a sequence like it.

From my Protocol Collation document, with some additions:

Citrus Peel / Chen Pi - tangerine peel - Traditional Chinese Medicine, TCM

• Citrus peel is a rich source of pectin and other potent bioflavonoids and the fragrant citrus aroma is from limonene, a terpene found in the oil extract. Bioflavonoids are water soluble and would be present in a water extract - gently steeped tea in other words. If more peel is used and it is steeped longer, the extract will be stronger and can be used by spoonfuls added to other foods or beverages. Just a few pieces of peel is enough to make a flavorful pot or cup of tea.

• The addition of other tea or ingredients can add more/other flavor and can add other healing phytonutrients. A tiny piece or two of Star Anise has potency against microbes, is soothing to the throat, and will flavor a pot of tea. It is a bark like seed pod with a pretty star shape. I used that in my tea while sick with March 2020 untested illness.

• Pomegranate peel in tea adds some tang but doesn’t add much flavor. Dried or fresh mango peel or persimmon peel adds fruity flavor and antimicrobial benefits. Papaya peel or the peppery seeds have medicinal benefits.

• Review of health benefits and phytonutrients found in citrus peel. The phytonutrient content varies somewhat by type of fruit. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1658077X16300960

• Citrus peel is a very potent decongestant and anti-asthmatic. For acute needs it is helpful to have more every 4-8 hours for ongoing symptom control. Symptom relief is fairly quick, within 20 minutes breathing can become cleared/more clear, but the efficacy fades in about 6 hours in my patient experience and I needed another ‘dose’, the other half orange, in the evening.

While sick I found eating the white pith along with Navel orange slices, to be a good dose. I would have half of the orange in the morning and half in the evening but I would trim the zest layer off first using a sharp paring knife. The outer colorful layer is more potent in the bitter tasting phytonutrients that cause the thinning of mucus and opening of airways.

A medicinal serving of the zest layer is only about 1-2 teaspoons minced fresh, compared to the approximately 1/4 cup of inner pith layer that surrounds the orange slices of a Navel orange. Tangerines have more zest and little of the white pith. The minced zest layer or tangerine peel can be sprinkled fresh or dried on soup or salad at the table or it can be added in the last few minutes of cooking. Do not overheat for the best medicinal value of the bioflavonoids. Tea, a water extract, will retain the desired water-soluble phytonutrients if not overheated.

Grapefruit juice or peel - may interfere with some groups of medications, increasing their potency and risk of excess.

Grapefruit fruit, juice, or peel has some specific phytonutrients not found in other citrus fruits, and which can interfere with the breakdown of some medications and would need to be avoided if using those meds.The medication might accumulate to dangerous levels. Two statin drugs and some other frequently used meds are mentioned in an FDA guidance article with the point that it is not all drugs in each category, just some specific ones.

Here are examples of some types of drugs that grapefruit juice can cause problems (interact) with:

• Some statin drugs to lower cholesterol, such as Zocor (simvastatin) and Lipitor (atorvastatin).

• Some drugs that treat high blood pressure, such as Procardia and Adalat CC (both nifedipine).

• Some organ-transplant rejection drugs, such as Neoral and Sandimmune capsule or oral solution (both cyclosporine).

• Some anti-anxiety drugs, such as BuSpar (buspirone).

• Some corticosteroids that treat Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, such as Entocort EC and Uceris tablet (both budesonide).

• Some drugs that treat abnormal heart rhythms, such as Pacerone and Cordarone tablet (both amiodarone).

• Some antihistamines, such as Allegra (fexofenadine).: https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/grapefruit-juice-and-some-drugs-dont-mix Other citrus could still be used though.

That looks like a long and thorough list, thanks FDA, and yet as a dietitian I immediately see that it does not include the one that we were trained to be aware of when I went to school - edit, add: “Some anticoagulants, like warfarin”. If warfarin accumulates to greater levels, then it can cause increased bleeding risk. If grapefruit juice is a frequent choice for a patient on the blood thinner med then it may interfere with a liver enzyme that normally would break down warfarin and certain other chemicals included in the FDA list and lead to a bleeding risk.

“Do not drink grapefruit juice if you're taking warfarin. It can increase the effect of warfarin on your blood, making you bleed more easily. It's safer to drink grapefruit juice if you're taking the newer anticoagulants rivaroxaban, dabigatran, apixaban or edoxaban.” - Does grapefruit affect my medicine? - NHS. This reference has a more specific medication list than the FDA article, and also mentions statins: https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/medicines/does-grapefruit-affect-my-medicine/

The link is NHS.uk, so thanks FDA for informing us in the US of some risks but not informing us of a potentially deadly one at the same time makes it a dangerous piece of misinformation - the article seems authoritative, yet it is missing critical information.

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Disclaimer: I have other things to do, search my archives for Citrus Peel and a variety should surface. This information is being provided in hopes that more people will realized that nature provides healing without plastic bottles being needed or chemists or doctors or advertisements, and is being provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use and is not intended to provide individual health care guidance - such as AVOID CITRUS PRODUCTS IF HISTAMINE EXCESS IS A PROBLEM INDIVIDUALLY FOR YOU.

Banana peel…. plantains, also good! Buy organic preferably. Photo by Blake Weyland on Unsplash