Phytol: A chlorophyll component with anti-inflammatory and metabolic properties

Abstract

The naturally occurring dipterpene molecule Phytol is an alcohol that can be extracted from the chlorophyll of green plants. Phytol has been studied for decades and has been suggested to have both metabolic properties as well as potent anti-inflammatory effects. Phytol represents a molecule derived by nature with lipid regulating properties, in line with today’s need for new drugs to control for diseases that follow the westernized diet and life style. The beneficial effects of phytol on health is in this chapter presented as one interesting naturally derived component in new natural remedies and functional food products to tackle the rapidly increasing global health problems caused by cardiovascular and chronic inflammatory diseases