Blueberry Health Benefits: From research labs all across the country and the world, there is growing evidence that blueberries could be powerful little disease fighters.

[Guest guest]

Blueberry Health Benefits: From research labs all across the country and the

world, there is growing evidence that blueberries could be powerful little

disease fighters.

http://www.rawfoodinfo.com/home/home_a.html

 

Here is what we have learned so far. (summary)

Antioxidants

Anti-Aging

Disease Prevention

Urinary Tract Infections

Eyesight

 

 

 

Antioxidants: Researchers at the USDA Human Nutrition Center (HNRCA) have found

that blueberries rank #1 in antioxidant activity when compared to 40 other fresh

fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants help neutralize harmful by-products of

metabolism called " free radicals " that can lead to cancer and other age related

diseases. Anthocyanin -- the pigment that makes the blueberries blue -- is

thought to be responsible for this major health benefit. (reference) More on

antioxidants: (antioxidants)

 

 

 

Anti-Aging. In another USDA Human Nutrition Center (HNRCA) lab, neuroscientists

discovered that feeding blueberries to laboratory rats slowed age-related loss

in their mental capacity, a finding that has important implications for humans.

Again, the high antioxidant activity of blueberries probably played a role.

(reference)

 

 

 

Disease Prevention - Blueberries may reduce the build up of so called " bad "

cholesterol that contributes to cardiovascular disease and stroke, according to

scientists at the University of California at Davis. Antioxidants are believed

to be the active component. (reference)

 

 

 

Prevention of Urinary Tract Infections - Researchers at Rutgers University in

New Jersey have identified a compound in blueberries that promotes urinary tract

health and reduces the risk of infection. It appears to work by preventing

bacteria from adhering to the cells that line the walls of the urinary tract.

(reference)

 

 

 

Blueberries and Eyesight - A number of studies in Europe have documented the

relationship between bilberries, the European cousin of blueberries and improved

eyesight. This is thought to occur because of the anthocyanin in the blue

pigment which is also available in the blueberry. One study in Japan documented

that blueberries helped ease eye fatigue. (reference)

 

 

 

New Research

 

(Under Construction) Around the world, blueberries are being studied in health

and medicinal studies. Here we will post details on some of the more promising

studies underway.

 

Eating blueberries may help you remember where you placed your car

keys—important findings if you’d like to keep Alzheimer’s and heart disease at

bay.

The research was presented Monday, August 19, at the ACS national meeting in

Boston.

 

In one study, Jim Joseph, director of the neuroscience laboratory in the USDA

Human Nutrition Center (HNRCA), fed blueberry extractions—the equivalent of a

human eating one cup of blueberries a day—to mice and then ran them through a

series of motor skills tests.

 

He found that the blueberry-fed mice performed better than their control group

counterparts in motor behavioral learning and memory, and he noticed an increase

in exploratory behavior. When he examined their brains, he found a marked

decrease in oxidative stress in two regions of the brain and better retention of

signal-transmitting neurons compared with the control mice.

 

The chemical that appears responsible for this neuron protection, anthocyanin

also gives blueberries their color and might be the key component of the

blueberry’s antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Blueberries, along

with other colorful fruits and vegetables, test high in their ability to subdue

oxygen free radicals. These oxygen radicals, which can damage cell membranes and

DNA through a process known as oxidative stress, are blamed for many of the

dysfunctions and diseases associated with aging.

 

These findings could become increasingly important as the U.S. population ages.

It is projected that by 2050, more than 30% of Americans will be over 65 and

will have the decreased cognitive and motor function that accompanies advanced

age. Joseph is currently testing the effects of blueberries on humans.

Preliminary results show that people who ate a cup of blueberries a day have

performed 5–6% better on motor skills tests than the control group.

 

 

 

 

Ethnobotany and Blueberries: Blueberries have been associated with positive

physiological and cosmetic benefits for centuries. Here we list non scientific

information which although not endorsed by the USHBC, may be of interest to

researchers as a direction for further research.

 

Blueberry Health and Nutrition traditions in China. (under construction)

Native American and First Nations of Canada blueberry health and medicinal

traditions. (under construction)

Blueberry health and nutrition in Russia and Central European Traditions. (under

construction)

 

 

 

Bibliography:

 

Prior, RL, et. al. J of Agric. Food Chem. 1998, 46:2686-2693

Bickford, P.C. et. al. Society for Neuroscience Abs. 1998, 24: 2157

Heinenen, L.M. et al. J. Agric. Food Chem. 1998, 46:4107-4112

Howell, A.B. and V. Nicholi. New Engl. J. Med 1998, 339: 1085-1086

 

Nutrition Summary

 

The following summarizes some of the published research in the area of

nutraceuticals and health.

 

 

The belief that food products have medicinal properties has been celebrated in

folk medicine for centuries. Today food properties are being explored by the

medical and scientific fields. Some cultures have long valued many naturally

occurring substances believed to have preventative and therapeutic value. In the

United States, nutraceuticals are part of a rapidly expanding area of biomedical

research, generating considerable interest among consumers, manufacturers, and

regulators alike. This is a progressive area; the field is continually

conducting studies and discovering possible benefits.

 

Though blueberries themselves are not a cure-all, they contain a number of

substances which are thought to have health benefits. These substances include,

but are not limited to fructose, fiber, vitamins and antioxidants. Antioxidants

thus far, seem to have the most conclusive role in the prevention/ delaying of

such diseases as cancer, heart disease and the aging process however, a limited

number of studies, especially long term and on human beings, are not available

at this time.

 

 

What is a Nutraceutical?

 

Nutraceutical- Any substance that may be considered a food or part of a food

that provides health benefits, including the prevention or treatment of disease.

They range from isolated nutrients to genetically engineered " designer foods " .

 

The term " nutraceutical " was coined by The Foundation for Innovation in Medicine

in 1989 to provide a name for this area of biomedical research, and has since

become part of the standard lexicon in both the medical - scientific community

and in the food and drug industries (The Foundation for Innovation in Medicine,

1991). The wide acceptance of this term itself provides ample testimony that a

new product category is ready to be born. Largely based on their cultural and

historical beliefs, Japan and many European countries hold established places in

the international marketplace for nutraceuticals. They have long valued many

natural substances that hold preventative and therapeutic values, and have a

rapidly expanding body of research to back them up. The United States, however,

is at the beginning of this process. Nutraceuticals have become a focal point

for updating the U.S. economic and regulatory system in response to worldwide

medical and scientific trends.

 

 

 

Free Radicals - Antioxidants:

 

Antioxidants are thought to help protect the body against the damaging effects

of free radicals and the chronic diseases associated with the aging process

(Ames, 1993). Fresh fruits (blueberries) and vegetables contain many of these

naturally occurring antioxidants such as vitamins A, C and E.

 

Blueberries contain 0.04 mg of beta-carotene, 13 mg of vitamin C and 1 mg

vitamin E per 100 g of blueberries. Blueberries contain 10 RE (Retinol

Equivalents, a unit of vitamin A) of vitamin A per 100 grams of blueberries. The

RDA for vitamin A is 1000 RE for men and 800 RE for women. In addition,

blueberries contain anthocyanins and phenolics that can also act as

antioxidants.

 

 

Ellagic and Folic Acid:

 

Although their modes of action is still poorly understood, it appears that these

acids may inhibit cancer initiation. Ellagic acid (in its most biologically

active form, ellagitannin) is found in blueberries and some other berries.

(Stoner, 1989).

 

Folic acid may help guard against cervical cancer (Toufexis, 1992), and may

benefit the fetus during pregnancy. Blueberries contain 6 ug./ 100g of folic

acid. The RDA for women is 180 ug.

 

 

Other Substances: Antibacterial Agents

 

In Sweden, dried blueberries are used to treat childhood diarrhea (Kowalchuk,

1976). This use is attributed to anthocyanosides, a natural substance found in

blueberries which is believed to be " lethal " to E. Coli (a bacteria sometimes

linked to the infection).

 

 

Fiber: Multiple Health Benefits

 

Considerable evidence collected over the last 20 years has proven the numerous

advantages of high fiber diets (Potter, 1986). Blueberries are a source of

dietary fibers: 2.7g/100g. A diet containing 25g. of dietary fiber per day is

generally recommended.

 

Blueberries contain a variety of compounds. These include: antioxidants,

anthocyanosides, bacterial inhibitors, folic acid, vitamins A and C,

carotenoids, ellagic acid, folic acid, and dietary fibers. The significance of

their presence and modes of action remain largely unexplored.

 

 

Sources:

 

The Foundation for Innovative Medicine, The Nutraceutical Initiative: A Proposal

for Economic and Regulatory Reform. December1991

Kowalchuk J. Antiviral Activity of Fruit Extracts. J Food Science. 41:

1013-1017, 1976

Potter N. Food Science 4th ed. Conn: A VI 1986

Potter N. Do Functional Foods Raise the Health Threshold. The World of

Ingredients. Oct.-Nov. 54-55, 1994

Stoner G.. Ellagic acid: A Naturally Occurring Inhibitor of Chemically-Induced

Cancer. 1989

Toufexis A. The New Scoop on Vitamins. Time 139(14). 1992

Ames BN, Shigenaga MK, Hagen TM. Oxidants antioxidants, and the degenerative

diseases of aging. Proc. Natl. Acid. Sci. USA 90:7915-7922, 1993.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning Center: Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Database, USDA,

Agricultural Research Service. A searchable database on hundreds of plant

substances including blueberries. http://www.ars-grin.gov/duke/plants.html

_________________

JoAnn Guest

mrsjoguest

DietaryTipsForHBP

www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Genes

 

 

 

 

AIM Barleygreen

" Wisdom of the Past, Food of the Future "

 

http://www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Diets.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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