Wild & Natural Herbs
from the Amazon Rainforest
Independent Associate Website

AÇAI berries
South American uses

     Acai grows on palm trees and looks like a blueberry. In the Amazon, it is beaten, diluted in water and eaten with manioc, meat, fish or dried shrimp.

     The pulp provides more protein in relation to its weight than eggs and milk, and has high levels of anthocyanin, an antioxidant, as well as vitamins E and B1, potassium, iron and calcium, according to Embrapa. Embrapa coordinates the National Agricultural Research System, which includes most public and private entities involved in agricultural research in Brazil.

     The Para government (Para is one of Brazil's biggest states) recommends its consumption. The berry is popularly associated with bone and muscular strength, longevity and a healthy immune system, said Lucival Cardoso, the state’s chief health inspector.

     “We encourage families to give acai to children as young as 6 months,” Cardoso said. “It’s also very filling; that’s why it’s traditionally associated with low-income family diets."

     According to the study Absorption and biological activity of phytochemical-rich extracts from açai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) pulp and oil in vitro, J Agric Food Chem. 2008 May 28, "in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that acai has antiinflammatory, antioxidant, and apoptotic effects."