Acai (pronounced "ah-sah-ee") berries come from a slender palm tree native to tropical South American lowland rainforests. The Latin name is Euterpe oleracea, and it is currently being cultivated in Hawaii. The edible berries are covered in a fibrous skin, with little flesh and lots of seed, and can be eaten fresh, made into juice or dried in the manner of fates or figs which also come from palm trees. Once considered traditional medicine in Brazil, the berries and derivative supplements have gained popularity for their nutritional content.
Beneficial Fatty Acids
In 2006, a study published in the Archivos Latinoamericanos de Nutrición, revealed that acai berries, or manaca, as they are known in South America, have a high fatty acid content, of which 71 percent is oleic acid (named so for the fatty acid in olive oil) which is a heart-healthy lipid known to contribute to cardiovascular health. Its fatty acids make it an effective vasodilator, and therefore might be useful in treating high cholesterol which can lead to heart disease.
Antioxidant
Acai is high in polyphenols (beneficial plant compounds) and a promising antioxidant. And according to a USDA review, has "significantly high antioxidant capacity and, therefore, may have possible health benefits." The polyphenols in acai berries are significantly useful in scavenging free radicals, their "procyanidins contribute substantially to the overall antioxidant capacity." These benfits were confirmed by an Ohio State study in 2008, in which lauded the free-radical scavenging, and cytoprotective (cell-protecting) ability of these compounds.
Anti-Aging Research
Antioxidant properties are useful in protecting cardiovascular health, but also in protecting the nervous system and its components. The beneficial effects of acai have warranted funding for a currently ongoing USDA study on acai's ability to influence the "neuronal function in aging" for the better.
Possible Anti-Cancer Abilities
Perhaps the most interesting properties of the acai berry is its ability to kill cancer cells. A University of Florida study found "compounds that show good activity against cancer cells in a model system are most likely to have beneficial effects in our bodies." While the study authors are hesitant about making claims that would give false hope, they definitely see evidence to justify further scientific interest.
References
- "Archivos Latinoamericanos de Nutrición"; Characterization of the acai or manaca (Euterpe oleracea Mart.): a fruit of the Amazon; Neida S, Elba S.;2007. (Venezuela)
- USDA study Research Project: The Effects of Acai Berry Extracts and Its Components on Behavior and Neuronal Function in Aging
- "Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry"; Total oxidant scavenging capacity of Euterpe oleracea Mart. (açaí) seeds and identification of their polyphenolic compounds; Rodrigues RB, Lichtenthäler R, Zimmermann BF, Papagiannopoulos M, Fabricius H, Marx F, Maia JG, Almeida O.; 2006.
- "Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry"; Lignans and Other Constituents of the Fruits of Euterpe oleracea (Aai) with Antioxidant and Cytoprotective Activities; Young-Won Chin, Hee-Byung Chai, William J. Keller and A. Douglas Kinghorn; (Ohio State);2008.
- "Vascular Pharmacology"; Endothelium-dependent vasodilator effect of Euterpe oleracea Mart. (Açaí) extracts in mesenteric vascular bed of the rat; Rocha AP, Carvalho LC, Sousa MA, Madeira SV, Sousa PJ, Tano T, Schini-Kerth VB, Resende AC, Soares de Moura R.; 2007. (Department of Pharmacology and Psychobiology, IBRAG, UERJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.)
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