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Eating pomegranates and walnuts may reverse some of the life-threatening damage caused by catastrophic heart failure, a new study has found.

Research shows that consuming these foods causes the body to produce a natural compound called urolithin A, which has been linked to anti-ageing.

Now, UK scientists have found that animals given urolithin A saw their heart function boosted by as much as 80 per cent. The researchers, at King's College London, argue that urolithin A helps relaxes the heart muscles and also prevents scarring.

Experts say that the compound could eventually be turned into a treatment for an increasingly common form of heart failure.

They add that the findings may also suggest that heart failure patients could benefit from a urolithin A-rich diet.

Heart failure affects about 920,000 Britons. Around 50 per cent of sufferers have a form called heart failure with preserved ejection fraction – where the organ becomes stiff, meaning it cannot fill with blood.

There are few effective treatments, and more than half of sufferers will die within five years of diagnosis.

However, the new study claims urolithin A could be the answer. It is produced when gut bacteria break down foods that contain polyphenols – a plant compound found in pomegranates, walnuts and berries.

Berries and nuts may reverse life-threatening damage caused by heart failure, a new study has found (stock image)

King's College London researchers injected animals suffering from heart failure with urolithin A and found their heart function drastically improved.

The compound was then tested on human heart tissue in a laboratory, which the scientists say also had a positive effect.

Experts say the next step will be to develop a drug that contains urolithin A, but added that patients should consider boosting their polyphenol intake.

Dr Joseph Burgoyne, senior author of the study, said: 'While there isn't enough evidence to suggest that people should eat pomegranates to treat heart failure, these findings raise the possibility that diets that enhance urolithin A production may help alleviate this condition.'