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Berry, berry good

Last Updated 18 July 2012, 15:14 IST

We all love fruits, but, when we think of fruits, we always tend to think only bananas, mangoes, apples, oranges, etc. Even our ‘over-caring’ mothers end up giving us such fruits only.


Except that all amongst these rather ‘common’ fruits, one that gets neglected is the berry - which is actually a nutritional powerhouse. Berries boasts of all kinds of nutrition whether they’re eaten fresh, frozen, dried, freeze-dried or in powdered form.
In general, berries are naturally high in antioxidants. The darker the berry, the greater its phytochemical content and more its health benefits.

Berries come in a great variety. In fact, there is at least one starting with every alphabet - in short ‘A’ to ‘Z’. Check this out: acaiberry; baneberry; blackberry; blueberry; chokeberry; cranberry; dewberry; elderberry; farkleberry; gooseberry; grape; holly berry; huckleberry; Indian plum; Juneberry; Logan berry; mistletoe berry; nannyberry; Oregon grape; pokeberry; raspberry, strawberry, sugarberry; thimbleberry, wineberry; yew berry; youngberry and Zew berry (forget that, we just made up the last one, but
all the others are real!!)

According to Shilpa Thakur, chief dietician with the Asian Institute of Medical Science berries are houses of the fruit world, “Berries are antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic which is an element for not re-occurrence of cancer cells. Berries are also called superfoods and deep col­o­u­r­ed berries are most the rich in nutrients.”

Blackberries grow wild but are also cultivated in temperate zones from the mid-south US to near-Arctic latitudes of northern Canada and mainly in northern US states, particularly Oregon and Washington State and southern British Columbia. Blackberries are grown  commercially on temperate continents, including Africa and Asia.

Berries can be consumed as snacks, in breakfast as they are high in Vitamin C, fibre and contain very few calories. Berries also slow down ageing of the brain and protect the eyes from cataract. Berries are also good for pregnant women. 

The most nutritious ones are the dark coloured berries. Blueberries improve insulin sensitivity in overweight men and women, and lower blood pressure levels in pre-diabetic men and women without raising blood sugars. The key may be the anthocyanins, which cause blood vessels to rel­ax and increase producti­on of nitric oxide that helps in maintaining normal blood pressure.


Also, a high-fibre powerhouse, raspberries also have calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, vitamin C and bone-building vitamin K. They also are a good source of several B vitamins, including folic acid and niacin.

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(Published 18 July 2012, 15:14 IST)

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