If you have had your eye on the supplement market, you have probably found yourself asking, “What is the acai berry?” Fortunately, you’re not alone. The acai (pronounced ah-sah-EE) berry has recently experienced a boom among consumers in no small part due to a plethora of media attention. But media attention alone isn’t the only qualification for a product to be worth buying. Your body is no testing ground for new products, so you have to make sure you know exactly what you are getting.
What on earth is this berry?
It is a grape-sized fruit found on acai palms throughout Central and South America. The fruit makes up no more than one quarter the volume of the berry. The rest of the berry is a large seed. There are two fruit crops produced each year and the crop can compromise almost half of the native diet due to its health properties. However, the fruit must be eaten quickly as it spoils within 24 hours. Because of this, many Americans have never seen it and so they are asking, what is the acai berry?
What makes it so good for you?
Acai berry has caught the attention of so many because of its perceived health properties. With the acai berry a major part of their food intake for years, native Brazilians swear to the acai’s health benefits, using it to alleviate a variety of illnesses from diarrhea to jaundice. Acai promoters these days claim that the acai’s high level of antioxidants has the potential to combat even the most serious diseases faced by society today including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, cancer, and even heart disease, a leading cause of death in the United States.
Are there any downsides?
The simple answer is no. Acai berry in itself shouldn’t give off any side effects as it simply is a fruit – and an extremely nutritious one at that. However, as acai comes to us not in the fresh from but as supplements, purees, or juices already, poorly-processed products may give acai a bad name. Some manufacturers use fillers, additives, sugars, and maltodextrin in the case of spray-dried products. These substances may have a negative effect on you, but they have nothing to do with the acai fruit.
This fruit is one of the healthiest foods you can get. While you may be disappointed that you can’t pop down to the local grocery store and pick up a bag of berries, you can still get all the benefits of the fruit in high-quality acai supplements. You just have to know what to look for. The amazing little fruit, if properly harvested and processed into high quality supplements, can be a tremendous source of nutrition. So if you’re asking what is the acai berry, it is quite simply one of the healthiest foods you can buy.
