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Thursday, October 1, 2009

Unearth The Healthy Benefits Of Acai Berries

By Wanda D Patterson

What if you could get a plethora of health advantages from one tiny little berry? Not only is this berry healthful, loaded with antioxidants, essential fatty acids and amino acids but this berry is also delicious, reputed to taste like berries dipped in dark chocolate or a cross between a blueberry, a raspberry and a grape.

The acai berry (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) that is only found in the Amazon rainforest fits all of these categories. It is extremely nutritious, boasting one of the highest antioxidant levels on the planet; it has a synergy of healthy fats and an almost perfect essential amino acid complex. All in all it is one of the healthiest nutritional discoveries of this century.

Antioxidants are molecules that are instrumental in slowing or preventing the oxidation of other molecules. Oxidation is imperative to life but in excess it can damage our cells which in turn leads to many diseases, premature aging and even being overweight. Nature has given us an abundance of nutritious foods that are packed with antioxidants. The acai berry has been proven to have one of the highest antioxidant levels of any food ever found.

The Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) is a method of measuring the antioxidant capacities of different foods. The acai berry has the highest ORAC of any berry, at 10 times higher than grapes, twice as high as blueberries and even 10 to 30 times higher than red wine.

Not only that the acai berry has a host of essential fatty acids. The fatty acid content in this berry is like that in olive oil, as it is high in monounsaturated oleic acid. Oleic acid makes the cell membranes more supple. By keeping the cell membrane supple, all hormones, neurotransmitter and insulin receptors function more efficiently. This is crucial because high insulin levels have been linked to numerous diseases, most notably diabetes, but also heart disease and metabolic syndrome, which is believed to be a contributor to many different afflictions, including obesity.

All of the research being done on acai berries point to the fact that this tiny little berry is a nutritional powerhouse. It has been dubbed a superfood. The term superfood is used to describe a food with a high phytonutrient content that is believed to confer health benefits as a result.

The acai berry definitely fits into the category of a superfood as it has been proven to be beneficial in the protection against diseases, weight loss and the prevention of decline associated with aging.

The acai berry is exceptionally perishable so it is not available throughout the world in its fresh form but only in its processed forms, like juice or supplements. - 17273

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