Flavay® scores the highest both as an antioxidant and as a free radical scavenger. This is precisely the free radical scavenging effect that Dr. Masquelier described in his U.S. Patent 4,698,360.
Independent Comparative Analysis of
Flavay® vs. Grape Seed and Pine Bark Extracts
PHOTO: Dr. Jack Masquelier (Bordeaux, France), inventor of FLAVAY® and many U.S. and int'l patents in regard to the isolation, identification and application of OPCs.
Flavay® is the authentic, standardized and isolated, singular polyphenol complex defined, patented and perfected by Dr. Jack Masquelier; proven safe and effective by numerous human studies and used worldwide since 1950.
Dr. Masquelier's 1948 French Patent described a method to extract the active principles in Flavay® from the bark of the pinus Maritima. His 1970 French Patent described an even more efficient extraction method of the active principles from the seeds of the vitis vinifera grapes. On October 6, 1987 Dr. Masquelier was awarded U.S. Patent No. 4,698,360 to describe the proanthocyanidins in Flavay® for use as a powerful antioxidant, "which has a radical scavenger effect."
However, consumers need to know that the marketplace is full of imitations, various “extracts” and derivative forms of Dr. Masquelier’s scientifically proven and patented complex. Unfortunately, many have used Dr. Masquelier’s name and research in unauthorized ways to promote a myriad of derivations. In fact, the other "leading brand" pine bark extract, compared to Flavay® below, is an offshoot derived from Dr. Masquelier's authentic work and products. But, independent comparative testing demonstrates that the initial qualifying research conducted on the authentic products may not be automatically transferred to other commercial products. As demonstrated below, Flavay® remains unsurpassed when compared to other leading brands.
Independent Lab Report Results and Conclusions
A highly qualified independent U.S. Laboratory performed five analytical methods to put in qualitative perspective the differences between Flavay® (extracted from grape seeds and pine bark) and ten "grape seed extracts" currently on the market. Later, a new study was performed to include the leading pine bark extract (sample #14). Below are the results of these studies.
Electrochemical Antioxidant Activity (ECA) Test:
The below ECA chromatograms represent a comparison of the pine bark materials in Flavay® vs. the other leading brand pine bark product. Test conditions and amounts of samples were identical. Results are displayed on the same scale. Both samples exhibit comparable positions in the peaks, confirming that both samples originate from similar source plant materials.
However, note below, the other leading brand pine bark has significantly lower amounts of antioxidant compounds per unit weight. The rest of the sample is likely to be non-antioxidant inert material.
Antioxidant Capacity (ACAP) Test:
The below ACAP-Trolox test was performed in addition to the ECA test to establish a more balanced and certain assessment. For the most reliable impression of the antioxidant capacity of the products, two reproducible and controllable tests were used to evaluate the antioxidant character of the samples. The fluorescein-derivative antioxidant comparison with Trolox shows that the tested leading brand pine bark-based extract (#14) has little more than half the antioxidant capacity (55%) of the pine bark materials in Flavay® (#6).
| Relative
values of 10 grape seed samples compared with Flavay® and another leading pine bark-based product. Highest Values Reached = 100% (1) |
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Product
extracts vs. Flavay®Samples |
Antioxidant Capacity (ACAP) Trolox Equivalent |
Electrochemical Antioxidant Activity (ECA) Antioxidant "Versatility" |
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SCIENTIFIC YARDSTICKS: ElectroChemical Activity (ECA) represents the versatility and capacity of a substance to "communicate" with another molecule by means of exchanging electrons. Antioxidant Capacity (ACAP) is measured by testing the material's capacity to neutralize the peroxyl radical. The measurement is expressed in equivalents of a substance called "Trolox," a soluble analogue of vitamin E. The other leading pine bark extract (sample #14) is only 30% as electrochemically active (ECA) as Flavay® pine bark material. The pine bark-based sample #14 is only 23-26% as electrochemically active as Flavay® grape seed material. The ACAP-Trolox test indicates that the pine bark-based sample #14 has only 55% of the antioxidant capacity of Flavay® pine bark material.
Quality and Purity Test
When dissolved in water or other specific test-liquids, the limpidity (clearness, transparency) of the solutions provides a simple and good, easy to check indicator of quality and purity. Insolubles are an indicator of low quality and/or production problems.
| Percentages
of INSOLUBLES Low quality "OPC" materials only partially dissolve, indicating lack of quality and purity. |
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| Quantity of sample | branded pine bark sample #14 |
Flavay® pine bark |
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| 2% in methanol | 0% | 0% |
| 1% in propanol-2 | 32.6% | 0% |
| 1% in ethanol | 2.7% | 0% |
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Thus, Flavay® contains no insolubles. Each batch of Flavay® materials, from pinus Maritima and vitis vinifera, is tested by mixing a sample with methanol, propanol-2 and ethanol, to check for insolubles in as broad range as possible. As you can see from the chart above, pine bark sample #14 shows high amounts of insolubles. Probably due to it's different extraction process, pine bark sample #14 fails to measure up to the quality and purity of Flavay®, which remains perfectly soluble and limpid.
All of this confirms that the leading pine bark-based product is in the mediocre grape seed extract category—both for poor antioxidant performance and lack of purity.
Authentic vs. "Borrowed" Science
Flavay®
is precisely the same powerful antioxidant used by Dr. Jack Masquelier
in the actual experiments by which he established and patented the
radical scavenger effect.
Consumers need to know that the marketplace is full of imitations, offshoots and derivatives of scientifically proven and patented natural products. Those who are looking for a product that will produce the proven results and not just the "claimed" or "implied" results, want the authentic product that was used in the actual scientific research. This is especially important when you buy a product in the "grape seed extract" and "pine bark extract" product category. It is practically impossible for retailers and consumers to distinguish inferior products from quality ones. As shown above, an independent test found that no active OPCs could be detected in one leading American brand of grape seed extract even though it's labeled and aggressively marketed as a branded OPC product. All of this proves that consumers cannot be assured of the quality, bioavailability and safety of the product.
Flavay® is the name you can trust for the precisely defined active polyphenol complex patented and perfected by the inventor, Dr. Jack Masquelier, validated by the French Ministry of Health and documented by a library of research consisting of many patents and hundreds of scientific papers, articles, doctorate theses, lectures and presentations. For quality, consistency, bioavailablity and safety, consumers may rely upon Flavay®.
WHAT FLAVAY® CUSTOMERS SAY
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