With the growing research and increasing product lines featuring the acai berry, many are beginning to take advantage of the health benefits of the powerful fruit for the first time. But as its use continues to be popularized more and more, it is important for consumers to consider which acai products offer the most nutritional value, and which products simply offer minimal benefits. In order to become a savvy shopper, it takes more than checking out the back label of an acai product - it takes a little knowledge of how the berry is transformed from its original state into its ingredient state.
Just as the different preparations for fruits and vegetables can change their nutritional value, so too do the different forms of acai berries give either the most or the least amount of the fruit’s impressive health offerings. Knowing the differences between the varied preparations enables the conscientious shopper choose the right acai berry product for their health needs.
Because an impressive amount of nutrients, vitamins and antioxidants are included in every acai berry, making it the most healthful fruit known to man, it is important to retain those benefits when preparing the fruit for consumption; the more they are broken down, the more the product begins resembling the goodness of any other fruit product, such as orange juice or mixed, dried fruit. What makes acai berries so special is that a single berry holds a lost list of vitamins, minerals and nutrients including omega fatty acids, iron, fiber, calcium, vitamin C, lipids, antioxidants, and vitamins B1 and B2. Products that retain as many and as much of these nutrients as possible are the best of the acai products, and these products are prepared in specific ways.
One of the first things to take into consideration is that the amount of acai berry within a product can be misleading. For instance, the more acai content does always correlate to a higher nutritional content. Even though a product may include a high percentage of acai, the fruit may have been broken down to the point that it has lost much of its original goodness, whereas another product may feature a smaller percentage yet a higher nutritional value. What is important is finding out how the product was made, and what parts of the berry was used in making it.
There are two ways of preparing acai berries that successfully retains most of their original nutritional value. The first method is by freezing the fruit pulp after the berries are harvested, and making the pulp into a product (juice, smoothie packet, capsule, etc.) with the least amount of additives as possible. That way, the product includes a high percentage of unadulterated fruit with the least amount of unnatural additives. The second method of making a product with the most benefits possible from the acai fruit is by processing the harvested berries into a freeze-dried powder. This method preserves both the long list of nutrients that the acai berries offer, as well as the high amounts of antioxidants that are present in the fruit.
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