Rutin is a bioflavonoid found in buckwheat, black tea, citrus fruits, and apple peels. The name comes from the herb rue, but it is actually a complex sugar found in foods.  In the 1940s, it was called vitamin P, even though it’s not a vitamin.  One of its main health roles is to help the body utilize Vitamin C more efficiently, as well as help produce collagen, which helps give our skin strength and elasticity. Rutin also has a long history of medicinal use. In fact, as of 2013, there are over 130 registered therapeutic medicinal preparations containing rutin in their formulations.

Rutin for Varicose Vein Relief

One key benefit of rutin is its ability to strengthen the lining of the blood vessels throughout the body to reduce bleeding and prevent them from collapsing.  One way it accomplishes this is through oxerutins, which are a group of flavonoid chemicals derived from naturally occurring rutin and which have been used in European supplements since the 1960s for treating and preventing varicose veins and leg ulcers.  According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, “A number of studies have shown that flavonoids that come from rutin relieve swelling, aching, and pain from varicose veins.”  Because rutin strengthens arteries and veins, it is also used to help treat hemorrhoids, internal bleeding, and to help prevent hemorrhagic strokes.

Rutin for Blood Clot Prevention

What’s more, studies show that rutin may also be able to stop the formation of dangerous blood clots (thrombosis) altogether. This would be quite a health benefit, as thrombosis is one of the leading causes of death in the US. Not only can such blood clots cause heart attacks and strokes, but deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolisms as well.  Rutin is proving to be very effective with blood clots because it helps treat and prevent clots in both arteries and veins.  Clots in arteries are platelet-rich and clots in veins are fibrin-rich.  A study published in the Harvard Gazette suggests that this could be a safe alternative to aspirin, Plavix, and warfarin (Coumadin).  The authors add that even while on these drugs, each year there are approximately 400,000 recurrent episodes among patients who previously experienced a stroke or heart attack.  “Rutin proved to be the most potently anti-thrombotic compound that we ever tested,” said Robert Flaumenhaft, an investigator in the Division of Hemostasis and Thrombosis at BIDMC and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. This is one of the reasons you will find it in Jon Barron’s pHi-Zymes® formula.

Rutin as an Antioxidant

In addition to these health benefits, rutin is also considered an antioxidant, meaning that it binds to free radicals in the body and neutralizes them. This ability to protect the body from disease as well as fight off any free radicals that accumulate offers other benefits as well. Since free radicals turn LDL cholesterol into plaques, blocking arteries and preventing normal blood flow (atherosclerosis), rutin may help reduce arterial blockage and high blood pressure, possibly decreasing the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Rutin for Osteoarthritis

Another new area of investigation for rutin is in treating osteoarthritis, a disease in which cartilage gradually wears away in the joints, making movement difficult and painful.  Scientists at the Nestle Research Center in Lausanne, Switzerland, found that rutin inhibited the enzyme Coll2-1, a marker for osteoarthritis.  Other research is being done to combine rutin with bromelain, a compound found in pineapples, and trypsin, a digestive enzyme.  Since bromelain and trypsin also reduce inflammation, combining all three is being considered as a powerful treatment for osteoarthritis.  Note that bromelain and trypsin (as part of the Fungal Pancreatin ingredient)  are also found in Jon Barron’s pHi-Zymes® formula.

More Health Benefits of Rutin

Other benefits include:

• Increases the elasticity of the arterial walls, which, in turn, promotes greater blood flow and improved vascular health.
• Works as an anti-inflammatory.
• Used to prevent a side effect of cancer treatment called mucositis (a painful condition marked by swelling and ulcer formation in the mouth or lining of the digestive tract).
• Used to treat Meniere’s disease (a condition that causes ringing in the ears, dizziness and intermittent hearing loss).

How to Take Rutin

As mentioned before, rutin can be found in a number of fruits, vegetables, and plants but to get the true health benefits, it should never be taken with food.  This is why you will find it in Jon Barron’s pHi-Zymes® formula, which is also designed to be taken between meals, on an empty stomach.

Dosage: you can take up to 500 mg of rutin per day, or much higher for special circumstances.  There are no side effects, even when pregnant, but note that some antioxidants can interfere with chemotherapy or radiation for cancer.  If you choose to undergo these treatments for cancer, you need to talk to your doctor to see if you should avoid all antioxidant supplements during the weeks you take radiation or chemo or whether taking rutin would be advisable to prevent mucositis.  However, you can continue taking selected antioxidants after a treatment to help you recover from the side effects.