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By Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS, January 11, 2007, abstracted from “Antioxidant Capacity and Other Bioactivities of the Freeze-Dried Amazonian Palm Berry, Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (Acai)” in the November 2006 issue of the Journal of Agricultural Food and Chemistry
As natural byproducts of metabolism in the human body,1 free radicals are most commonly found as reactive oxygen or nitrogen species. The most common of these - superoxide radicals, hydroxyl radicals, and peroxyl radicals - have been associated with many chronic and degenerative diseases, including vascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, and overall aging.2
Because free radicals contribute so significantly to the onset of disease, dietary antioxidants are believed to be good external sources to counteract free radicals in the body. 3 Popular antioxidants include vitamin C, 4 Vitamin E, 5 and antioxidants in green tea6 and olive oil. 7 Now a new study 8 has found another powerful source of antioxidants in the form of a fruit called Acai.
This fruit is consumed in a variety of beverages and food preparations in Brazil, Colombia, and Suriname and used medicinally as an anti-diarrheal agent.9 It has gained much attention due to its antioxidant capacity and possible role as a "functional food" or food ingredient.10 Acai’s fruit pulp, called Euterpe oleraceae, has been reported to scavenge free radicals.11
In the current study, researchers conducted a superoxide scavenging (SOD) assay to measure antioxidant levels in Acai and found it to measure 1614 units/g. According to the researchers, this is “an extremely high scavenging capacity” and “by far the highest of any fruit or vegetable tested to date.”
In addition to citing previous research showing that acai fruit contributes to the cell death of leukemia cells in laboratory tests,12 the researchers concluded that “These findings may have significant value as to [Acai’s] antioxidant role in aging and disease.”
Reference:
1 Davies, K. J. A. Oxidative stress, antioxidant defenses, and damage removal, repair, and replacement systems. IUBMB Life 2000, 50, 279-289
2 Dröge, W. Free radicals in the physiological control of cell function. Physiol. Rev. 2002, 82, 47-95
3 Kapoor, H. C. Antioxidants in fruits and vegetables - the millennium's health. Int. J. Food Sci. Nutr. 2001, 36, 703-725
4 Sebastian J. Intravenously administered vitamin C as cancer therapy: three cases. CMAJ 2006 174: 937-942
5 Jan H Veldin., Vitamin E reduces the risk of developing ALS Intake of Polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin. doi:10.1136/jnnp.2005.083378 J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatry published online 28 Apr 2006
6 Shinichi Kuriyama S. Green tea consumption and cognitive function: a cross-sectional study from the Tsurugaya Project Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, Feb 2006; 83: 355 - 361
7 Machowetz A. Effect of olive oils on biomarkers of oxidative DNA stress in Northern and Southern Europeans. FASEB 2006; Published online before print November 16, 2006 as doi: 10.1096/fj.06-6328com
8 Schauss AG. Antioxidant Capacity and Other Bioactivities of the Freeze-Dried Amazonian Palm Berry, Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (Acai). Jou Agr Food Chem 2006; 54(22): 8604 – 8610
9 Sobel, G. L. Uses of Euterpe oleraceae Mart. in the Amazon estuary. Braz. Adv. Econ. Bot. 1988, 6, 225-253
10 Marx, F. Total oxidant scavenging capacities of Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (Acai) fruit. Int. J. Food Sci. Nutr. 2005, 56, 53-64
11 Lajolo, F. M. Antioxidant activity of dietary fruits, vegetables, and commercial frozen fruit pulps. J. Agric. Food Chem. 2005, 53, 2928-2935 12 Talcott, S. T. Acai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) polyphenolics in their glycoside and aglycones forms induce apoptosis of HL-60 leukemia cells. J. Agric. Food Chem. 2006, 54, 1222-1229
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