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Acai berries are the reddish, purple fruit of the acai palm tree (Euterpe oleracea), which grows in South and Central America. The acai berries are rich sources of antioxidants called anthocyanins and flavonoids, which fight free radicals associated with aging and disease.
Acai also contains plant sterols, fiber, amino acids, various vitamins and minerals, and polyphenols. Studies show that acai berries have a higher antioxidant capacity than do other berries, such as cranberries, blackberries, and blueberries.
According to the ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) values, which is a measure of antioxidant power developed by the National Institute on Aging in the National Institutes of Health, acai fruit pulp/skin powder has the highest ORAC value (102,700) of any fruit or vegetable.
Although many health claims are made about acai berries, not all of them are backed up by scientific evidence. There are anecdotal claims, for example, that acai berries can help with BPH because they contain plant sterols (e.g., beta-sitosterol), which have been shown to benefit men with BPH. However, there are no studies to support a link between acai and BPH.
Here are some claims that are supported by scientific studies.
Acai Berries and Health Benefits
A pilot study explored the effect of acai fruit pulp on risk factors for metabolic disorders in overweight people. Ten overweight adults were assigned to take 100 mg acai pulp twice daily for one month. Researchers measured levels of fasting plasma glucose, insulin, cholesterol, triglycerides, nitric oxide metabolites (in exhaled breath), and high sensitivity C-reactive protein.
Compared to baseline, the participants had reductions in levels of fasting glucose, insulin, and total cholesterol by the end of the study. Borderline significant reductions in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and the ratio of total cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol were also recorded. The study’s authors concluded that “consumption of acai fruit pulp reduced levels of selected markers of metabolic disease risk in overweight adults, indicating that further studies are warranted.” (Udani 2011)
A study published in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry reported on the antioxidant capacity of acai berries. Researchers used freeze-dried acai fruit pulp/skin powder and evaluated it using various tests and free radical sources. They discovered acai had exceptional activity against superoxide; in fact, it had the highest of any food reported to date (2006) against superoxide using the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay with fluorescein. Other tests showed acai was able to “enter human cells in a fully functional form and to perform an oxygen quenching function at very low doses.” Acai also demonstrated potential to inhibit the inflammatory factors cyclooxygenase (COX)-1 and COX-2. (Schauss 2006)
In Brazil, researchers explored the antioxidant potential and cholesterol-lowering effects of acai pulp in rats fed a standard (control) diet or a high cholesterol diet supplemented with acai pulp (2%) for six weeks. At the end of the six weeks, the blood and livers of the rats were examined for signs of oxidative stress (protein carbonyl and sulfhydryl groups, superoxide dismutase and paraoxonase activity) and lipid profiles.
Investigators found increased levels of total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and decreased levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol in rats that consumed the high cholesterol diet. However, supplementing the high-cholesterol diet with acai reduced total and LDL cholesterol levels. Levels of protein carbonyl and sulfhydryl groups were also lowered by acai in animals that received the control or high-cholesterol diet. Acai consumption was associated with a significant reduction in superoxide dismutase activity only in the rats on a high-cholesterol diet. According to the study’s authors this finding indicated “an association between diet and acai treatment.” (de Souza 2010)
Acai berries have also demonstrated an ability to inhibit tumor progression in rats with esophageal cancer. Rats were treated with the cancer-causing agent N-nitrosomethylbenzylamine for 5 weeks, then were placed on diets that contained 5 percent of one of the following berries until the end of the study: acai, black raspberries, blueberries, noni, red raspberries, strawberries, or wolfberries.
All the berries were about equally effective in inhibiting progression of esophageal tumors despite differences in the levels of anthocyanins and ellagitannins in the different berries. (Stoner 2010)
How To Take Acai
Acai is available as pills, capsules, powder, juice/puree, and frozen. If possible, buy organic acai products and only buy from reputable companies. Consult your healthcare provider about proper dosing of acai.
References
De Souza MO et al. Diet supplementation with acai (Euterpe oleracea mart) pulp improves biomarkers of oxidative stress and the serum lipid profile in rats. Nutrition 2010 Jul-Aug; 26(7-8): 804-10
ORAC values: http://oracvalues.com/
Schauss AG et al. Antioxidant capacity and other bioactivities of the freeze-dried Amazonian palm berry, Euterpe oleraceae mart. (acai). J Agric Food Chem 2006 Nov 1; 54(22): 8604-10
Stoner GD et al. Multiple berry types prevent N-nitrosomethylbenzylamine-induced esophageal cancer in rats. Pharm Res 2010 Jun; 27(6): 1138-45
Udani JK et al. Effects of acai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) berry preparation on metabolic parameters in a healthy overweight population: a pilot study. Nutr J 2011 May 12; 10(1): 45
