The Real Truth About the Acai Berry

If you have even been close to a computer recently you have been buzzed with the wonders of a new found berry. The acai berry has invaded your inbox with its claims. But what exactly is this berry that so many are touting for its benefits to health.

So lets start out with what the fruit actually is. The actually Acai Berry fruit is small and round and is black purple, think grape with less pulp. Also the Acai Berry plant is actually a palm, a palm that is native to Central and South America. These berries are not only healthy but have also been used as a food source for thousands of years. But in the South American rain forest the Acai Palm, Euterpe oleracea, is quite common. The fruit is used mainly by poorer classes of people. It can be made into anything from a porridge to a popular drink. It is to be noted that traditional medicine of the Amazon people have used extracts of the juice from this berry to heal everything from jaundice to diarrhea.

The natives use this plant mainly for a highly popular drink in the rural regions made by smashing the fruit. Also the eat the palm heart as a food item as well. To harvest a palm heart they must cut down the palm itself. Once they have harvested the palm hearts sometimes they will urinate on the stump to attract a certain beetle. They then can harvest the grubs later for food.

The palm heart of this palm has also become the principal palm heart used for export. Once a close cousin of this palm that had a single trunk was used to harvest palm hearts. Unfortunately about 95% of the tree is not used at all and it takes a much longer time to recover than does the Acai.

Unfortunately the extraordinary claims of health benefits from this fruit are mostly a large ad campaign to sell more of this fruit. In its native range this is a poor mans drink and not the over priced health pills and drinks that are in the United States. In fact this fruit contains no novel or new chemicals for added health benefits. This fruit is largely a product of the United States appetite for anything that is perceived as healthy, but it can be a useful source of nutrition and is can be made into a legitimate drink.

Works Cited

Database entry for ACAI

rain-tree.com

http://www.rain-tree.com/acai.htm

Acai Berry

vitaminsdiary.com

http://www.vitaminsdiary.com/acai-berry.htm

Acai Berry Plant

crazyfortea.com

http://www.crazyfortea.com/acai-berry-plant.html

Acai Palm

wikipedia.com

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%C3%A7a%C3%AD_Palm