Acai Health Watch

Ever wonder what MonaVie tastes like but aren’t ready to commit to buying a big bottle?  Here’s an interesting report on one person’s experience with MonaVie from a “layman’s” perspective.  He defines superfoods and explains how acai beverages like MonaVie provide health benefits.  There are several MonaVie acai juice formulas that promote different aspects of your health.  One called MonaVie Active enhances joint health.  Another, MonaVie Pulse, delivers heart health benefits.

“I tried it. It tastes good, like a fruity V8, but somehow cooler.  It’s not a “drink,” think about it like a liquid vitamin that you drink a little bit of every day. It comes in bottle form, a energy drink and a gel.  My favorite is the energy drink MonaVie EMV, it isn’t quite as thick as the traditional MonaVie bottled drinks and tastes great.  I would put up against Red Bull in a minute.  Not only does it taste great with Vodka, but apparently if you drink it with out the booze, it is actually much healthier for you than the every day energy drinks.”

Superfood, Super Tasty, Super Good For You. – Pace of Chicago.

Renowned dermatologist and scholar Nicolas Perricone is the father of the Inflammation Theory of Aging.  This theory concludes that inflammation is the the single greatest precipitator of aging and age-related diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, arthritis, certain forms of cancer, as well as wrinkled, sagging skin.

In this article from his blog, he discusses how acai can help fight inflammation:

“Acai’s ability to fight inflammation comes from two components: antioxidants and oleic acid. When anthocyanins fight damage from free radicals, it keeps cell DNA intact. Intact DNA signals correctly signals the apoptosis response and stops the inflammation. Oleic acid makes the cell walls more malleable, meaning that inflammatory toxins are able to leave the cell more readily. Also, blood is able to move through the cell walls more efficiently when inflammation does occur. Malleable cell membranes are better return to their normal state before inflammation can result in any long-term damage.”

Acai Health Benefits – Free Radicals & Inflammation.

Are you sometimes skeptical when you’re reading the health benefits of acai berry juice put forth by the juicemakers themselves?  You should be!  As you know, false claims (lose 10 pounds in 10 minutes!) abound when it comes to antioxidant-rich superfoods like the acai berry, pomegranates, mangosteens, etc.

Here’s a more impartial article from WebMD that gives it to you straight on the health benefits of the acai berry.

“Some studies show that acai fruit pulp has a very high antioxidant capacity with even more antioxidant content than cranberry, raspberry, blackberry, strawberry, or blueberry. Studies are ongoing, though, and the jury is still out.

People eat acai berries to address various health conditions. But so far, acai berries have no known health benefit that’s any different than that of other similar fruits.”

Acai Berries and Berry Juice — Are There Any Health Benefits?.

We strongly support of eating superfoods as part of a healthy diet.  Hardly any effort is needed to integrate superfoods like the acai berry into your daily routine.  Some foods you may not have thought of, like sweet potatoes, have significant health benefits.  You may already be eating many superfoods and not even realize it!

Here’s an excerpt from a helpful list of recognized superfoods:

Citrus Fruits. It’s a known fact that Vitamin C is a great help in building up our immune system. Grapefruits and oranges are only two of the citrus fruits that are rich in vitamin C and other nutrients, plus they’re fun to eat too.

Tomatoes. A rich source of lycopene and other health-giving nutrients, tomatoes are often used as sauces for pasta dishes and other recipes. They can be eaten raw too.

Avocados. Avocados by themselves provide more health benefits than other foods combined. They are one of the best sources of fiber, and contain 60% more potassium than bananas.

Brown Rice. More people may find white rice more palatable but when it comes to the health properties, brown rice has more to offer. That’s because white rice has been refined and tend to lose much of its nutrients in the process.

Salmon. Fish is a great protein for almost any dish and makes an excellent substitute for red meat. Aside from raising environmental concerns, farmed salmon tend to be fattier and contain less nutrition. Every list of top 10 superfoods should have a protein and fish is possibly the best for you.

Acai Berry. It’s relatively new to the food market and basically impossible to get in fruit form in the United States, but the nutritional value of the supplements you can find is undeniable. While you can’t use it as a primary food source like many native Brazilians, you can use it as a supplement to the rest of your diet.

Your Diet and the Top 10 Super Foods: the Key to a Healthier Lifestyle: Naturopath and Homeopath, Portland, Oregon.

There is a particularly high level of concern as we enter flu season this year because of the H1N1 influenza virus.  In addition to vaccines and handwashing, what can we do to protect ourselves?

Good nutrition is an essential part of maintaining immunity.  Consuming foods with high levels of antioxidants (aka superfoods) like the acai berry are said to somehow protect the immune system.  That is not exactly the case.

Foods such as acai berries, blueberries and pomegranates do help the immune system with their antioxidants.  However, it is still important to have at least 5 servings a day of both fruits and vegetables per day, in addition to acai juice or supplements.

It’s not that antioxidants won’t give you a little extra boost, experts say.

“Antioxidants as a class have specific effects in enhancing the immune system,” says professor Jeffrey Blumberg of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science at Tufts University. “But it’s a complex system. You also need a lot of other things to have good nutrition.”

“The bottom line is that to have good immunity, you have to eat a variety of foods,” says Sherry Mahoney, director of nutrition for the Mayo Clinic, Florida. “Chronic dieters who omit a food group omit needed vitamins and minerals.”

Antioxidants may help, but not by themselves – Diet & Nutrition – MiamiHerald.com.