Did you know …..  Eating Healthy Magazine proclaimed blueberries to be the “Fruit of the year” for 1998!!

Blueberries named “miracle berry” by Prevention Magazine

(This article appeared in The Packer newspaper, Vol. 102, No. 27, July 5, 1999)

In the June 1999 issue of Prevention magazine, blueberries take center state as the “miracle berry.”  Blueberries have risen to stardom because of recent research findings pointing to possible health and nutritional benefits.

            Ranked No. 1 among fruits and vegetables in antioxidant power, researchers are taking a closer look at blueberries for their remarkable anti-aging potential.

            “If you add one food to your diet this year, make it blueberries,” says Prevention Nutrition Editor Holly McCord, a registered dietitian author of “The Miracle Berry.”  According to McCord, blueberries are the “… single most ferocious food in the supermarket at halting the forces that age you.”

            Prevention’s focus on blueberries is well timed, according to John Sauve, executive director of the Wild Blueberry Association of North America.  “Consumer interest in eating foods that help prevent disease is at an all-time high.  Blueberries are now in the spotlight as a ‘good for you’ food,” says Sauve.

Anti-aging properties explored

            Dr. James Joseph, chief of the neuroscience laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Center on Aging at Tufts University, is working with blueberries to examine their effect on memory and motor skills.  Preliminary research suggests that blueberries protect against the effects of age-related deterioration of the brain, such as short-term memory loss.

            “The blueberry has emerged as a very powerful food in the aging battle,” said Joseph.  “Given the possibility that blueberries may reverse short-term memory loss and forestall other effects of aging, their potential may be very great.”

            In the Tufts trials, Joseph and his colleagues fed aged rats a blueberry extract for two months and saw improved navigation skills in mazes as well as improvements in balance, coordination and running speed.

            According to Joseph, as rats age, they typically forget how to maneuver through mazes that they previously had learned to navigate.

            Ongoing research will focus on identifying the specific compounds responsible for blueberries’ beneficial effects.

Nature’s antioxidant powerhouse

            Studies conducted by Ronald L. Prior at the USDA nutrition center on aging ranked blueberries first in antioxidant activity when compared with 40 other commercially available fruits and vegetables.

            Antioxidants are natural substances found in fruits and vegetables which neutralize free radicals – unstable oxygen molecules associated with caner, heart disease and the effects of aging.

            Scientists attribute these benefits to anthocyanins and other natural compounds found in wild blueberries.

            Anthocyanins (from two Greek words meaning “plant” and “blue”) are responsible for the intense blue and red pigments of fruits like wild blueberries.

            “One-half cup of blueberries delivers as much antioxidant power as five servings of other fruits and vegetables – such as peas, carrots, apples, squash and broccoli,” said Prior.

5 A Day to fight disease

            To help consumers prevent cancer and other diseases associated with aging, the national 5 A Day program recommends eating a minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables every day.

            According to WBANNA’s Sauve, one half cup of wild blueberries equals one serving under the 5 A Day guidelines.

            “Eating wild blueberries is an easy and tasty way to meet the 5 A Day goal for healthy eating,” says Sauve.  “For great taste and convenience, we encourage consumers to … get their daily dose of blue.”

Did you know that…  Governor James B. Hunt Jr. proclaimed June 1999 as “Blueberry Month” in North Carolina.

“Say Farewell To UTI’S”

(From First for women, 08/23/99 issue)

Blueberries ward off bacterial infection:

You’ve heard that cranberries can stave off urinary tract infections, but did you know that blueberries can too?  A substance in the berries prevents infection-causing bacteria from building up.  Try to eat ½ cup a day!

The Night Before…. A Blueberry Grower’s Perspective

‘Tis the night before picking, when all thru the fields

Not a grower is sleeping as the excitement builds;

The clamshells and boxes are assembled with care,

In the hopes that the berries soon will be there;

The children are nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of blueberry cobbler dance in their heads;

And the ladies in their flannels, and the men in their caps,

Dream of acres of blue fruit while taking their naps.

“Now, Croatan! Now, Rabbit-Eye! Now, Premier and Tif Blue!

On, O’Neall! On Murphys! On, Revelie and Powder Blue!

To the top of the hopper! To the top of the blower!

Let’s keep that quality up so the prices don’t go lower!

Trivia:  Did you know blueberries are in the same family as Azaleas and Rhododendrons?!?!?!?!?!