Information on Acai

Having made an appearance on the "Oprah Winfrey Show," the acai berry is now famous. Available in health food stores and on the Internet, you can purchase acai juice, pulp, extract and capsules. The fresh berries are too perishable to be sold in the United States. For optimal antioxidant content, consumers should read the label and purchase only 100 percent pure acai products.

Identification

Euterpe oleraceae, a native palm tree in the Amazon Rainforest, bears the acai fruit. Looking much like a common purple grape and about the size of a blueberry, it comes from the same tree that produces edible hearts of palm. Indigenous people used acai berries in folk medicine to relieve the symptoms of digestive problems and skin ailments.

Eco-friendly

If you are eco-conscious and concerned about purchasing rainforest products, have no fear when buying an acai supplement. Clusters of acai berries are sustainably harvested from a mature palm tree. The production of this highly touted superfood does not promote clear-cutting and other rainforest deforestation practices. In fact, a report published by the Social Enterprise Program at Columbia Business School states that, "locals could earn more harvesting Acai than clear-cutting the forest" and acai could be used "as a vehicle to promote and further sustainability."

Misconceptions

Many over-the-counter products containing acai claim to help you lose weight. The Connecticut Attorney General's Office announced in a press release that, "There is no competent scientific research that demonstrates any of the claimed effects of Acai berry, including weight loss." In fact, the only way to lose unwanted pounds is to use more calories than you consume.

Benefits

Acai berry is scientifically proven to be absorbed by the body when ingested as juice or fruit pulp, according to a study conducted by Texas AgriLife research scientists and published in the "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry." Dr. Susanne Talcott, assistant professor with the Texas A&M University's Nutrition and Food Science department, says that this study proves the antioxidants in the acai fruit can be absorbed by humans.

Potential

A study conducted by the University of Florida and published in the "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry" reports that "extracts from acai...berries triggered a self-destruct response in up to 86 percent of leukemia cells tested." This successful study is one of the first to take place outside Brazil. Several different extracts of varying concentrations were created from the pulp of the acai fruit and applied to leukemia cells for 24 hours. According to the results of the study, "anywhere from about 35 percent to 86 percent of the (leukemia) cells died."