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Acai Berry Drink -- What are the Health Benefits?

I wonder if you have you heard all about this acai berry drink? Would you like to know more about these health benefits of acai berry drink and berry juice? Acai berries have been highly touted by natural medicine authorities who claim that the acai drink is one of those elite superfoods that has anti-aging and also weight loss benefits. But do scientific studies support these claims of acai benefits?

What exactly is this acai berry drink?
The natural acai berry is a one inch-long reddish- purplish fruit. It comes from the acai palm tree found chiefly in Central and South America. It is a relative of the blueberry, cranberry, and other dark purple fruits.

Research on the acai berry has focused on its possible antioxidant activity. Theoretically, that activity may help prevent diseases caused by oxidative stress such as heart disease and cancer. Here is some of the preliminary findings concerning the benefits of acai drinks and other products produced by the acai berry palm tree.

Are the acai berry and acai drink healthy for us overall?

Acai drink and acai berry contain several nutrients called anthocyanins and flavonoids.

The actual word anthocyanin comes from two Greek words meaning blue and plant. Anthocyanins are responsible for the red, purple, and blue hues in many fruits, vegetables, and flowers. Some foods that are richest in anthocyanins -- such as blueberries, red grapes, red wine, and acai berry and acai drink -- are very strongly colored, ranging from deep purple to black.

Anthocyanins and flavonoids are both powerful antioxidants that help defend the body against stressors. What are Stressors? Here is the Wikipedia definition

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Stressor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


A definition for a stressor is:

An event or context that elevates adrenaline and triggers the stress response because it throws the body out of balance and forces it to respond; for example:

* environmental stressors (elevated sound levels, over-illumination, overcrowding)
* daily stress events (e.g. traffic, lost keys)
* life changes (e.g. divorce, bereavement)
* Workplace stressors (e.g. role strain, lack of control)

A stressor can also be an event that provokes stress.

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Acai Berry Drink and Cell Protection

As mentioned above, acai berries and acai berry drinks contain certain antioxidants and these can contribute to the body's cell protection system. Free radicals are harmful byproducts produced by the body. Studies have shown that eating a diet rich in antioxidants may interfere with aging and the disease process by neutralizing free radicals.

By reducing the destructive power of free radicals, antioxidants may help reduce the risk of some diseases, such as heart disease and cancer.
Are there known health benefits of acai berries?

Some acai berry drink studies show that acai fruit pulp has a very high antioxidant capacity with even more antioxidant content than other fruits such as cranberry, raspberry, blackberry, strawberry, or blueberry. Studies continue however, and the final word has not been delivered yet.

People eat acai berries and take acai berry drink to address various health conditions. But so far, acai berries have no known health benefit aside from it's unusually high concentration of certain substances that have proven to be essential toward good health. In other words, acai berries in their natural form and acai berry drink contain nutrients that have shown to be beneficial but there has not been a conclusive study linking the acai berry drink directly to these health benefits.

Can acai berries or acai berry drink help with weight loss?

Researchers are still learning more about the functional powers of acai drink and other superfoods. Although acai is touted in some weight loss products, few studies have actually conducted conclusive tests regarding the benefit of acai drinks in promoting weight loss.

However, there is still plenty of acai berry research which supports eating a diet high in antioxidants, such as acai drink products. There’s no doubt that berries and other fruits are a key part of any healthy diet promoting weight loss. Do not limit yourself to the acai drink products, there are other powerful fruit drinks that also contain high degrees of antioxidants. The jury’s still out on whether there is something special about acai’s ability to shed excess pounds.

Do acai berries and acai drinks have any side effects?

Some doctors suggest that if you have allergies to certain pollens or have a known hypersensitivity to acai berries or acai drinks or similar fruit, you may want to avoid this fruit. When consumed in moderate amounts, though, acai is most likely safe to take.

In conclusion, the acai berry and the acai berry drinks have been shown to contain some beneficial nutrients such as antioxidants. These substances have demonstrated healthy benefits for the human body but there has not yet been a conclusive study linking the benefits of the acai berry drink directly to the properties known to exist within acai berries anc acai drinks to the health benefits of the substances themselves.