Acai (ah-sigh-ee)
Description:
Acai (ah-sigh-ee) berry does have a scientific name and it is Euterpe Oleracea. The Acai fruit is a small purple berry that grows on slender palm trees. The Acai has been used for thousands of years by the indigenous tribes of the Brazilian rain forest. It has been used for its extraordinary nutritional healing and the Brazilians call it “Tree of Life.”
Acai fruit is highly nutritional serving as a traditional food for the native people living in the Amazon forest and although consumed for centuries as an essential food in South America, it was only at the turn of the twenty first century that it was introduced to the outside commercial world.
Some of the constituents in Acai include Anthocyanins, fiber, sterols, gallic acid, potassium, calcium, iron, protein, Omega-6 fatty acid, Omega-9 fatty acid, B vitamins and vitamins C and E.
Acai is set apart from other berry/fruit products because of its antioxidant content. Studies show that Acai has up to 33 times the antioxidant content as red wine grapes. On other berry or fruit product can come close to matching the nutritional and antioxidant content of Acai. Acai gives you the energy from your youth, with added vitality and increased stamina.
The highly potent antioxidant properties of pure Acai deliver a massive attack on vitality robbing and cancer causing free radicals. Each gram of Acai delivers an amazing 3800 Orac value, the highest occurring in any fruit in nature (Orac is the measuring strength of a fruit for potency.)
Based on the listed Orac Value the anti-oxidant strength is equivalent to about 7 servings of fruit. Research has shown that the antioxidants in the Acai Berry have aided in the fight to help support healthy cholesterol levels already within a normal range. Acai also contains two good fatty acids, Omega 6 (Linoleic acid) and Omega 9 (Oleic acid) each of which plays a large role in maintenance of your cardio vascular system. Acai has a high level of fibers that is good for elderly and for people who have problems with digestive organs.
A Brazilian berry popular in health food contains antioxidants that destroyed cultured human cancer cells in a recent University of Florida study, one of the first to investigate the fruit’s purported benefits. Published recently in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the study showed extracts from Acai berries triggered a self-destruct response in up to 86 percent of leukemia cells tested, said Stephen Talcott, an assistant professor with University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. “Acai berries are already considered one of the richest fruit sources of antioxidants,” Talcott said. “This study was an important step toward learning what people may gain from using beverages, dietary supplements or other products made with the berries.”