Yesterday my 3-year-old daughter and I spent the day at our local Pick-Your-Own Strawberry Farm. (I plan to detail our adventures in an upcoming Travel blog.) She had an incredible time and we left with six pounds of plump, juicy strawberries. That’s not counting the extra pound my berry-loving tot downed in the field. Forget about covering them with whipped cream or masking them under a mound of ice-cream… my daughter practically swallows them whole. We are fortunate to live 10 miles south of a gigantic strawberry farm and 25 miles east of a fabulous blueberry farm. Perhaps, that’s why my daughter enjoys eating berries so much.
Summertime is the best time of the year to enjoy berries because they are at their peak in both taste and nutritional value. Nutritionists consider berries one of the healthiest fruits available. Studies show berries contain compounds that can reduce aging, heart disease and cancer. Recently, researchers at the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University measured the oxygen radical absorbance capacity of fruits and vegetables to determine the total antioxidant potency (antioxidants help prevent cellular damage), and berries were among the foods that scored the highest.
Besides containing large doses of Vitamin C, berries also contain Folate, Potassium, Fiber, Flavonoids, Ellagic acid, and anthyocanins. However, it is important to note that different types of berries offer different health benefits. For example, strawberries and raspberries have proven to improve memory and motor skills, reduce inflammation, reduce cancer risk and reduce birth defects. While studies show blueberries improve night vision, reduce liver cancer and reduce urinary tract infections.
Researchers at Tufts also found berries help prevent some middle age memory loss. According to nutritionists, the ellagic acid in berries help fight cancer (raspberries and strawberries are particularly rich in ellagic acid).
So how many berries do you need to eat to experience the health benefits? Nutritionists say eating 8 to 9 medium-size strawberries a day will promote heart and circulatory health and reduce artery-damaging inflammation. As for blueberries, according to researchers, a half a cup provides as much antioxidant activity as five typical servings of fruits and vegetables (peas, carrots, apples, squash and broccoli).
The good news: Fresh, frozen, canned and dried berries all provide similar benefits.
The bad news: the average American only eats about 2½ cups of blueberries during an entire year.
Are you a berry lover?
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