Blueberries, Health Benefits, Recipes, Blueberry Trade Info & more

Vision Food – Help You Keep An Eye On It All

admin — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:42:56 +0000

There is naturally no scientific proof that blueberries really help you keep an eye on everything. However: International studies indicate that there is a connection between blueberry consumption and an improvement in night vision. Signs of eye fatigue may also be reduced. Responsible for this effect are probably the anthocyans that also have a positive effect on fine capillaries as e. g. in brain and sense organs. Thus they activate the production of certain enzymes that are involved in energy metabolism in the retina and can therefore help the eyes adjust in changing light conditions. Besides it emerged that blueberries boost blood flow in the retina and help to reduce eye pressure.

McCaleb, R.: Bilberry: Herbal antioxidant ripe for the picking. In: Better Nutrition for Today’s Living November 1994; 56 (11): 56.

No blind flight

Pilots of Royal Air Force in the second world war allegedly already convinced of the power of the blue berries and ate a lot of blueberry jam to help their night vision. Today there are numerous dietary supplements for night sight on the market that contain blueberry extracts.

Blueberries In Space

admin — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:42:19 +0000

In space, astronauts are more intensively exposed to cosmic radiation, what accelerates the aging process and can lead to memory loss. In studies with mice, the American space agency NASA figured out that a blueberry rich diets can reduce these effects. After radiation, only animals fed with blueberries and strawberries could remember in which bowl the better feed was located. It cannot be excluded that berries are for astronauts in space, what lemons use to be for sailors at sea, commented director Marco Durante.

Anti Ageing Food – Keep Yourself Young!

admin — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:38:11 +0000

Nobody can promise eternal youth. But researchers from Boston, USA, believe that the antioxidants in blueberries can also prevent from age-related degeneration. Dr. James Joseph and his team on USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging in Boston found that a blueberry diet helps improve motor function and prevents age related short term memory loss like Alzheimer’s. Animal experiments showed that rats fed with blueberries had much better results in balance and coordination experiments than rats fed with strawberries and spinach. And they were the only group that demonstrated a slower aging process.

Quelle: Nutritional Neuroscience, 6:153-162, 2003; Journal of Neuroscience, September 15, 1999, 19(18); 8114-8121

Brainfood That Makes You Savvy

admin — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:35:12 +0000

Neurologists around the world are also researching to what positive effects regular consumption of blueberries has on the brain. Researchers of the University of Reading in Great Britain recently published a study which analyzed the effect of blueberry consumption on memory activity of elderly people. Patients who ate a diet containing blueberries for twelve weeks were found to have a better memory capacity. According to researchers, the memory performance improved after just three weeks of eating blueberries and continued to improve throughout the period of the study. The exact mechanism is not known to the researchers, but they assume that the flavonoids in blueberries improve the information exchange between the nerve cells, thus positively effecting the reaction and thinking processes.

Tip for poker players
The U.S. poker player Jamie Gold continuously ate blueberries on his way to victory in connection with the world’s biggest poker tournament. He was sure that they were his brain food and helped him win the tournament. At the end of the tournament, Gold is said to have won twelve million dollars.

Superfood that gives you the power of resistance

admin — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 08:41:34 +0000

“The magical power of the blueberries is primarily due to their unbelievably high antioxidant content“, says Steven Pratt. Blueberries contain anthocyans which are responsible for their high anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory effect. They belong to the flavonoid group and are among to the secondary plant compounds. These substances are predominantly in the berry’s peel that protect the fruit from the sun and the environment. Via ORAC laboratory test (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity), the USDA researcher Dr. Ronald Prior asserted that a portion of blueberries has a higher total antioxidant capacity, TAC, than other fruits.

Antioxidants protect the body from free radicals. These aggressive molecules are caused by external influences like UV radiation, cigarette smoke etc. Free oxygen radicals emerge even when cells use oxygen, which can damage cells. These speed up the aging process and can lead to cardio-vascular diseases, diabetes, senility, cancer or degenerative eye diseases.

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2004, 52: 4026-4037, USDA Database for the Proanthocyanidin Content of Selected Foods

Anthocyans (Greek: anthos = bud, flower; kyáneos = dark blue) are water-based plant pigments which give the berries their blue color. They belong to the flavonoid group and are among to the secondary plant compounds.

How do antioxidants work?
Cut an apple, pear or banana and after a while the are with the cut will turn brown when exposed to the air (oxygen). Free radicals attack cellular walls and destroy them. Sprinkling lemon juice (which contains Vitamin C – an affective antioxidant) on the cut area will help slow down the destruction process.