What is Santol?

Santol (Sandoricum koetjape) is a fruit used for antioxidant / free-radical scavenging (in vitro). NutriDex grades the human evidence as Preliminary. Santol (cotton fruit) is a Southeast Asian Meliaceae fruit eaten fresh, candied, or in preserves; the edible aril is low in calories and a useful source of potassium with modest vitamin C. Essentially all published bioactivity research is preclinical — in vitro assays, isolated-compound chemistry, and a handful of animal models — rather than human trials, so health claims remain hypotheses. The most-studied molecule is koetjapic acid, a seco-A-ring triterpene from the stem bark that induces apoptosis in colon-cancer cell lines and, as its water-soluble salt potassium koetjapate, inhibits tumor growth in mouse xenografts. Fruit-peel (exocarp) extracts rich in proanthocyanidins are antioxidant and antibacterial in vitro, and leaf cycloartane triterpenoids inhibit alpha-glucosidase more potently than acarbose in test tubes, while stem triterpenes blunt TPA-induced inflammation in mice. No randomized controlled trials in people exist for any of these endpoints; most active compounds come from bark or leaf rather than the edible flesh, and effective doses are far above what eating the fruit provides. Santol is best regarded as a nutritious tropical fruit with intriguing but unproven medicinal potential.

Purported Benefits

Dosing & Compounds

Safety & Cautions

Key Studies