Pomegranate Peel Extract

Punica granatum

Evidence: Emerging

Pomegranate peel is one of nature's richest sources of polyphenols, especially punicalagins. These compounds are not absorbed directly in large amounts. Instead, your gut bacteria transform them into ellagic acid and then into urolithins, a class of metabolites attracting intense scientific interest for their role in the gut and beyond. In this sense pomegranate is a true microbiome ingredient: its value is unlocked by your own bacteria.

Human research links pomegranate polyphenols to favourable shifts in the gut community, including more short-chain fatty acid producing bacteria, and to higher circulating levels of urolithin A. We include it as a polyphenol-rich complement to the fibres, feeding the microbiome a broader spectrum of compounds to work with.

PubMed indexes over 4,600 peer-reviewed papers on pomegranate.

Selected study 1 of 2

Yin Y, Martinez R, Zhang W, Estevez M. Crosstalk between dietary pomegranate and gut microbiota: evidence of health benefits. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. 2024;64(27):10009-10035. doi:10.1080/10408398.2023.2219763

Study summary

Study type: 2024 narrative review of animal and human studies on pomegranate and the microbiome.

Observed benefits:

  • Regular pomegranate intake is associated with higher levels of beneficial genera such as Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Akkermansia.
  • Greater production of urolithins and of short-chain fatty acid producing bacteria.

Mechanisms: Punicalagins act as a substrate that gut microbes convert into urolithins, while the polyphenols themselves shape microbial balance.

Safety: Good tolerability in human trials; only about a third to 40 percent of people are efficient urolithin producers, so responses vary.

Evidence strength: Supportive but early, drawn from small to moderate human studies.

Selected study 2 of 2

Sivamani RK, Chakkalakal M, Pan A, Nadora D, Min M, Dumont A, Burney WA, Chambers CJ. Prospective Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study of a Standardized Oral Pomegranate Extract on the Gut Microbiome and Short-Chain Fatty Acids. Foods. 2024;13(1):15. doi:10.3390/foods13010015

Study summary

Study type: Prospective, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot trial.

Participants: 28 healthy adults aged 25 to 55 randomised (14 extract, 14 placebo), with 18 completing per protocol. The extract was a standardised pomegranate extract at 250 mg/day (75 mg punicalagins) for four weeks.

Observed benefits:

  • Significant enrichment of short-chain fatty acid producing species, including Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Roseburia and Coprococcus.
  • Plasma propionate rose by 162 percent (p = 0.02), with an upward trend in acetate.
  • A greater rise in circulating urolithin A than placebo.

Mechanisms: Punicalagin reaches the colon and is converted by microbes into ellagic acid and urolithins, alongside expansion of bacteria that raise circulating short-chain fatty acids.

Safety: No supplement-related adverse events reported.

Evidence strength: Gold-standard blinding and placebo control, limited by a four-week duration, small sample, mostly female participants and sponsor funding.

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