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Blueberry Health Benefits
Did you know that blueberries are…
…low in calories and require little sweetening
…virtually fat
free and contain no cholesterol
…high in calcium and vitamins A
and C
…high in dietary fibre and contain more antioxidants than
most other fruit and vegetables
The medicinal properties of wild blueberries and related species have been known for centuries to the American Indians and the peoples of Northern and Eastern Europe. Early last century, Scandinavians found that eating blueberries improved night vision, while more recently they showed that the fruit help eyes adjust to bright light. Blueberries are also known as “vision fruits” in Japan because they help reduce eye strain and this finding has lead to the recent explosion there in consumption.
For decades North Americans have relied heavily on cultivated blueberries, and the related cranberries, to control urinary tract infections. Studies by the Blueberry and Cranberry Research Centre in New Jersey found that these fruits contained condensed tannins which prevent bacteria attaching to the bladder wall. Many East Europeans use wild blueberries for controlling gastric and intestinal conditions and to reduce their need for expensive antibiotics.
The pectin in fruit fibre has been shown to reduce cholesterol in the bloodstream. It is thought that the pectin binds on to the cholesterol in the digestive tract, thus preventing it getting into the vascular system. Ohio State University has shown the blueberry to be very high in pectin, with it constituting up to 30% of the fruit’s fibre content.
However, blueberries got their greatest health boost in 1998 with the revelation that anthocyanins, the pigments that make the berries blue, help prevent cancer and slow the ageing process, because these anthocyanins contain massive amounts of antioxidants. It appears that the antioxidants remove the free-radicals that can help initiate cancer sites. They also slow down inward effects of ageing such as joint and vascular disorders, and outward effects such as skin wrinkling, bruising, varicose veins and sight reduction.
Researchers have since looked more closely at fruit and vegetables in search of natural antioxidants. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that blueberries and cranberries contain 50% more antioxidants than strawberries, 100% more than oranges and 400% more than broccoli and spinach. Indeed it seems that no other readily available fresh fruits or vegetables are higher than blueberries in antioxidants - only prunes and raisins can top them. The Head of the Department’s Phytochemical Laboratory states that “with half a cup of blueberries you can just about double the amount of antioxidants most Americans get in one day”.
This information was abstracted from reports supplied by the North American Blueberry Council and from other sources, and compiled by John Seager, Ireland’s No.1 blueberry expert and enthusiast.
For additional information about the health benefits of blueberries, a good place to start is the website of the US Highbush Blueberry Council at www.blueberry.org
