Acai fruits are frequently used in various juice blends

What makes Acai so special?

While Acai may be small in size, it packs a nutritional punch unlike any other food in the world. While we get more into the specific benefits of Acai in our Acai health benefits article, here are a few highlights to wet your appetite:

* Dr. Perricone, in his bestseller – “The Perricone Promise” picks Acai fruit as the #1 Super Food in the world.

* In 2005, Oprah name Acai the #1 Super Food, saying “This little berry is one of the most nutritious and powerful foods in the world.”.

* “Rich in antioxidants and amino acids, a�a� is thought to be one of the most nutritional fruits of the Amazon basin.” New York Times, 8/4/2004

* Acai has 10 Times the antioxidant power of red grapes and twice that of blueberries

While other sites make claims about Acai curing every disease known to man, we would never make those claims. What is clear is that Acai has tremendous health properties and may be one of the best possible foods you can eat to stay healthy. In our article – Nutritional make up of Acai – we get into more specifics of what makes Acai so healthy.

The worlds best antioxident

A comparative analysis reported that açaí had intermediate antioxidant potency among a variety of frozen juice pulps tested. Antioxidant potency was: acerola > mango > strawberry > grapes > açaí > guava > mulberry > graviola > passion fruit > cupuaçu > pineapple.[5]

A powdered preparation of freeze-dried açaí fruit pulp and skin was shown to contain anthocyanins (3.19 mg/g), including cyanidin 3-glucoside and cyanidin 3-rutinoside,[2] yet the contribution of anthocyanins to overall antioxidant capacity of açaí is only about 10%.[6] The powdered preparation was also reported to contain twelve flavonoid-like compounds, including homoorientin, orientin, taxifolin deoxyhexose, isovitexin, scoparin, as well as proanthocyanidins (12.89 mg/g), and low levels of resveratrol (1.1 μg/g).[2]

In a study of different açaí varieties for their antioxidant capacity, a white species displayed no antioxidant activity against different oxygen radicals, whereas the purple variety most often used commercially was excellent against peroxyl radicals, good against peroxynitrite and poor against hydroxyl radicals.[6]

Freeze-dried açaí powder was found to have high antioxidant activity against superoxide (1614 units/g) and peroxyl radicals (1027 μmol TE/g) and milder activity for peroxynitrite and hydroxyl radicals.[7] The powder was reported to inhibit hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidation in neutrophils, and to have a slight stimulatory effect on nitric oxide production by lipopolysaccharide-stimulated macrophages in vitro.[7]

Extracts of açaí seeds were reported to have antioxidant capacity against peroxyl radicals, similar to the capacity of the pulp, with higher antioxidant capacity against peroxynitrite and hydroxyl radicals.[8]

Acai, the wonder berry

The fruit, a small, round, black-purple drupe about 1 inch (25 mm) in diameter, similar in appearance and size to a grape but with less pulp, is produced in branched panicles of 700 to 900 fruits. Two crops of fruit are produced each year. The fruit has a single large seed about 0.25–0.40 inches (7–10 mm) in diameter. The exocarp of the ripe fruits is a deep purple color, or green, depending on the kind of açaí and its maturity. The mesocarp is pulpy and thin, with a consistent thickness of 1 mm or less. It surrounds the voluminous and hard endocarp which contains a seed with a diminutive embryo and abundant endosperm.[citation needed] The seed makes up about 80% of the fruit (Schauss, 2006c).

The berries are harvested as food. In a study of three traditional Caboclo populations in the Amazon region of Brazil, açaí palm was described as the most important plant species because the fruit makes up such a major component of diet (up to 42% of the total food intake by weight) and is economically valuable in the region (Murrieta et al., 1999).

The juice and pulp of açaí fruits (Euterpe oleracea) are frequently used in various juice blends, smoothies, sodas, and other beverages. In northern Brazil, açaí (or jussara, which is one of the fruit’s common folk names) is traditionally served in gourds called “cuias” with tapioca and, depending on the local preference, can be consumed either salty or sweet (sugar, rapadura and honey are known to be used in the mix). Açaí has become popular in southern Brazil where it is consumed cold as açaí na tigela (”açaí in the bowl”), mostly mixed with granola — a fad in which açai is considered an energizer. Açaí is also widely consumed in Brazil as an ice cream flavor or juice.

As the high fat content of açaí (Nutritional content, below) indicates it would deteriorate rapidly after harvest, its raw material is generally available outside the immediate growing region only as juice or fruit pulp that has been frozen or processed as a pulp powder or freeze-dried powder. Several companies now manufacture juices, health drinks, yoghurts, and sorbets made from açaí berries, often in combination with other fruits.