Can you think of another naturally BLUE food?

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Can you think of another naturally BLUE food?

18. December 2009 by Elizabeth Redmond, PhD, MMSc 2 Comments

Blueberries are finally beginning to achieve the reputation they deserve. One of the most studied fruits, blueberries are at the top of the list for containing a myriad of healthful phytochemicals that possess many beneficial properties. Some of these important substances include anthocyanins, proanthocyanins, and bioflavonoids. Raw blueberries relieve diarrhea, infection, fatigue, joint pain and memory loss.

Things you may not know about blueberries:

Only 3 fruits are known to be native to North America—blueberries, cranberries, and Concord grapes!
Botanists believe that blueberries have been around for more than 13,000 years.
Some blueberry bushes can grow as high as 12 feet.

Blueberry Facts:

Blueberry-fed mice performed better than their control group counterparts in motor behavioral learning and memory, showed an increase in exploratory behavior; a marked decrease in oxidative stress in two regions of the brain and better retention of signal-transmitting neurons compared with the control mice. USDA Human Nutrition Research Center study.
Blueberries ranked in the top quartile of foods tested for oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), particularly hydrophilic. J Agric & Food Chem, 2004.
Of all juices tested, juice of Elliot blueberries ranked highest in antioxidant capacity against superoxide radicals, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radicals, and singlet oxygen. J Agric & Food Chem, 2000.
Wild blueberries are the leader in antioxidants. See wildblueberries.com.

Blueberries are a great source of beta-carotene, vitamin K, and minerals—including manganese. Fresh blueberries contain a good amount of vitamin C, which is lost when they’re frozen or canned.

Blueberries are easy as pie to use. Fresh is best, but frozen will work really well, if the berries are frozen unwashed! The water will toughen the skin, so rinse after removing from the freezer instead of before freezing.

Toss blueberries into any fruit salad. They mingle exceptionally well with nectarines, peaches, lemons, oranges, bananas, pineapple, all other berries—you name the fruit! Add blueberries to oatmeal, cook with cranberries for a purple yummy cranberry sauce, or add to pancake batter. They handsomely top off cold cereal, ice cream, or cheesecake. For more ways to use these beauties, go to www.blueberry.org.

Recipe to Try:

Blueberry Peanut Butter Smoothie

1 cup frozen blueberries (or half and half with strawberries or raspberries)
4 ounces low-fat blueberry yogurt 1 tablespoon smooth peanut butter (for heartiness and a mild peanut flavor)
1/4 cup low fat milk (rice, almond or soy milk works great)
1/4 cup orange juice 2 or 3 ice cubes
Mix all ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth. For a thicker smoothie, add more ice and blend again.

Enjoy!

Comments (2) -

Susan Wolcott

6/6/2011 2:23:39 PM #

I am concerned about supplements that contain blueberries which are then eaten on a daily basis since blueberries contain thiaminase, which destroys B1. Can you comment on this? We are told to take B vitamins more than once per day -- could this be the reason B1 does not persist? Green tea also contains thiaminase. On a related topic, many supplements now contain green tea, but studies have shown that the mechanism by which it prevents cancer growth is by disrupting folate metabolism (which prevents cell dividion) and that it in fact causes birth defects if consumed while pregnant. A disruption of folate metabolism causes insufficient SAMe for methylation and thus cancer, depression, neuropathy, and a host of other problems. Any comments on this? Thank you.

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Elizabeth Redmond

6/7/2011 12:25:08 PM #

Anti-Thiamin factors including thiaminases are found in raw fish, certain polyphenols (such as tannic and caffeic acids found in blueberries and brussel sprouts) and alcohol. Thiaminases are enzymes, that when ingested permanently split thiamin. Ingestion of significant amounts of thiaminases can induce a thiamin deficiency even in someone who gets an adequate amount of thiamin in their diet. Though thiaminases are denatured by heat, so cooking will render them inactive. For most people consuming 'normal' amounts of thiaminases containing foods does not lead to issues. The majority of reports of intakes leading to deficiency are on ruminant animals (since bacteria are a source of thiaminases), impaired populations, or extreme cases. An interesting case was published in 2011 of a mother who took high doses of horse tail (a thiaminase) while pregnant. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/.../?tool=pubmed

I don’t believe that green tea’s effects are solely due to disrupting folate metabolism. Both inadequate and excess folate has been associated with health problems. Cancer can be an issue of both over and under methylation. A limited number of chemoprevention trials of green tea or green tea catechins have been conducted and have found potential preventive activity for oral, prostate, and colorectal cancer. Emerging data from multiple ongoing intervention trials will help define the cancer preventive activity of green tea or green tea catechins.

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