Legendary Boost
The açaí berry is Amazonia’s latest contribution to well-being.

By Kelly Maguire

    According to Amazonian legend there once lived a woman named Iaca, whose father, Itaki, was the tribal chief. When food became scarce, Itaki decreed that all newborns must be killed—even Iaca’s child. Iaca mourned in her hut for days until one night she thought she heard a baby crying.
    Outside Iaca beheld her daughter near a beautiful palm tree covered in fruit; she ran to the baby and hugged her tightly. Iaca’s body was found holding the açaí tree, her dark eyes transforming into small black fruits. Itaki named the tree for his daughter (açaí is Iaca spelled backwards) and revoked the sacrifice of babies—and there was abundant food for all.

The Fruit of Life
    Long prized by the indigenous people of Brazil’s Northern Amazon, the açaí berry (pronounced AH-SIGH-EE) is only now being validated by modern science as a remarkable fruit. Known to Brazilians as the fruit of the “Tree of Life,” açaí is a tasty nutritional powerhouse with twice the antioxidants of blueberries, ten times that of grapes and cranberries, and up to 30 times the anthocyanins of red wine. Research has shown that in addition to anthocyanins and essential fatty acids, this fruit contains a healthy dose of plant sterols, which have been shown to reduce cholesterol, protect the immune system and relieve prostate enlargement. In one University of Florida study, açaí destroyed human cancer cells (Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2/22/08).
    “We are only just beginning to understand the complexity of the açaí berry and its health-promoting effects,” said Stephen Talcott, PhD, assistant professor with the school’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. “One reason so little is known about açaí berries is that they’re perishable...Products made with processed açaí berries have only been available for about five years, so researchers in many parts of the world have had little or no opportunity to study them.”

Small Fruit, Big Nutrition
    Açaí won’t hurt your waistline: 100 grams contain only 90 calories and deliver 3.5 grams of dietary fiber. Açaí also contains dozens of polyphenols, a class of powerful antioxidants that have been credited with the “French paradox”: Although the French eat a diet rich in fat, their lower rate of heart disease is thought to stem from the high amount of polyphenols in French wine.
    With an ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity, a measure of antioxidant value) rating higher than any other edible berry on the planet—a remarkable 1,026—açaí provides optimum defense against free radicals, rogue molecules thought to cause disease. Açaí’s antioxidants also help combat premature aging. Nicholas Perricone, MD, anti-aging authority and author of The Perricone Promise (Grand Central Publishing), has praised the açaí berry as the number one superfood in the world for “age-defying beauty.” Brazilian researchers have discovered that açaí extract can be used to fight infections caused by germs such as staph. It is also believed to improve blood circulation and sex drive.
    Enjoying an increase in popularity among the health-conscious, açaí is available in health food stores and gourmet markets, often in juice form and also as part of whole-food concentrates. Packed full of antioxidants, amino acids, phytonutrients and essential fatty acids, this exotic Brazilian berry is a good bet for a free radical fighter that gives you a big health boost.

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