Blueberry Nutrition Quick Facts

Blueberries Contain

• Salicylic Acid
• Carotenoids
• Fiber
• Folate
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Potassium
• Manganese
• Magnesium
• Iron
• Riboflavin
• Niacin
• Low Calories

Try to eat 1 to 2 cups daily for better health.

The Great News About Blueberries!

Blueberries have long been recognized as a healthy addition to the diet. They are a good source of vitamin C and manganese as well as fiber. But it is their antioxidant activity that gets this Nutritionist excited!!

What initially sparked my interest in the subject of antioxidants was the evidence collected from studie3s showing that a diet rich in produce reduces the risk of many chronic and degenerative diseases. Blueberries and other blue, red, and purple fruits and veggies rank among the highest in antioxidant activity. The major compounds in blueberries contributing to this high antioxidant capacity are the polyphenols-particularly the anthocyanins that give the berries their beautiful blue color.

Of interest to women is that as in cranberries, another compound in blueberries, the proanthocyanidins can inhibit the adhesion of bacteria to the lining of the urinary tract preventing urinary tract infections.

In recent studies, blueberry juice was found to strongly inhibit the growth of breast cancer and cervical cancer cells.

More information about the health benefits of blueberries along with recipes can be found at the US Blueberry Council website www.blueberry.org

Article by Cyndi Catts a registered diatition in private practice in Aiken, SC.

The Benefits of Blueberries

The health benefits of blueberries are truly impressive. For many years, researchers paid little attention to the fruit because they knew that its vitamin C levels were relatively low compared with other fruits and it didn't seem to offer any other impressive benefits. But gradually, as the power of the antioxidants and in particular flavonoids ( a class of polyphenols ) was discovered, blueberries gained more and more attention.

The research that really put blueberries on the health map because it gained so much national attention had to do what the exciting news that the berries seemed to slow and even reverse many of the degenerative diseases associated with an aging brain. As we're now facing a ballooning population of aging adults (by the year 2050 more than 30% of Americans will be over age 65) any positive news that relates to preventing diseases like Alzheimer's or dementia is greeted with tremendous enthusiasm.

This particular berry/brain research was conducted at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, at Tufts University. Dr. James Joseph director of the study supplemented the diets of aging rats (comparable to a 65 to 70 year old human) with the equivalent of ½ to 1 cup of blueberries, a pint of strawberries, or one large spinach salad. The blueberry supplemented group not only performed better than the others on the various rat brainteasers, they also showed actual improvements in coordination and balance. This was very impressive new indeed, as previously it was thought that degeneration due to aging was virtually irreversible. Dr. Joseph's continuing research has confirmed that blueberries have a functional antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect on brain and muscle tissue.

How exactly did the blueberries (in an amount that would be the equivalent of a human serving of 1 cup of blueberries a day) accomplished this dramatic improvement? Three factors seem to distinguish the blueberry-fed rats: their brain cells seemed to communicate better, their brains seemed to have fewer damaged proteins than would be expected and, finally and most encouraging, their brains actually developed new brain cells. Studies are currently under way to see if these extremely impressive results can be duplicated in humans. Preliminary studies show that people who consumed a cup of blueberries daily have performed 5 to 6 percent better on tests of motor skills than a group of people with multiple sclerosis. This isn't surprising because the nutrients in blueberries have an affinity for the areas of the brain that control movement.

While the brain researched is perhaps the newest and most positive news about the power of blueberries, there are other equally impressive data on their health-promoting abilities. In addition to the brain-boosting anthocyanins, blueberries provide another antioxidant knows as ellagic acid. Research suggests that antioxidant blocks the metabolic pathways that can promote cancer. Various studies have demonstrated that people who consume fruits with the most ellagic acid were three times less likely to develop cancer than those who consumed little or no dietary ellagic acid.

American Indians were right about the blueberry's ability to promote digestive health: rich in pectin, a soluble fiber, blueberries work to relieve both diarrhea and constipation. Moreover, the tannins in blueberries reduce inflammation in the digestive system, and polyphenols have also been shown to have antibacterial properties.

Like cranberries, blueberries are a plus for urinary-tract health. Components in blueberries reduce the ability of E. coli, a bacterium that commonly causes urinary tract infections, to adhere to the mucosal lining of the urethra and bladder.

Source: Super Foods written by Steven Pratt, M.D and Kathy Matthews