Understanding Acai Juice And Other Superfoods
There is something strange going on in the world of nutrition. While millions live at starvation levels there are pre-teen children in the first world that weigh more than 200 pounds and full adult super models and actresses that weigh half that. It is clear that some people need to be rescued – but is acai berry juice and other so called super foods really an answer?
This media label, which covers exotic fruits including the acai berry, the pomegranate, the goji berry, and, to a lesser extent, the kimchi, hypes up these nutritionally rich foods that help us feel healthier and even grow older at a gentler pace. So we have moved on from simply eating and drinking them to even including them in various skincare products.
But what makes a food ’super’? Well different varieties grow in different parts of the World such as the acai berry in the Amazon river basin of Brazil, or the goji or wolfberries, which are grown in China and Mongolia, but they all have high levels of 6 beneficial substances. These are the magic ingredients of the super foods and they are…
1) Amino acids: the body’s “building blocks” that make up proteins. They keep our skins smooth and strengthen it at the same time. Can you possibly get enough of these?
2) Antioxidants: naturally occurring ingredients including vitamins A, C and E that prey on ‘free radicals’. These unstable molecules are created by our metabolism but also occur in the environment (pollution, UV rays and sunlight etc.). They damage cells and are the equivalent of rusting metal. They lead to premature ageing and, at worst, cancer.
3) Flavonoids: another group of potent antioxidants valued for their anti-aging benefits.
4) Lipids: fats within the skin that keep it supple and are abundant in fruit.
5) Peptides: chains of amino acids which make up collagen in our skin.
6) Polyphenols: a potent group of antioxidants found in fruits and super fruits, valued for their protective benefits as well as their ability to “zap” free radicals.
Acai berries juice and pulp contains twice as many antioxidants as blueberries. ‘Super food’ hardly seems to do it justice. There are many new types of berry on the market at the moment and they come in all kinds of different products. Many people and celebrities are jumping on the super food bandwagon. You can’t find fresh anywhere but in Brazil. However you can get frozen pulp added to yogurts, ice cream and smoothies as well as the powdered form or in capsule supplements.
However, it pays to be skeptical of claims that these new superfoods are any better for us than homegrown fruit and vegetables. it seems their exoticism gives them a charisma and a price beyond their true value. Like all other foods, acai berries have long lasting nutritional benefits only as part of a balanced diet.
1 comment December 3rd, 2008