Camu camu: An incredible source of vitamin C and flavonoids
Camu camu, also called camocamo and cacari, is a small tree that grows alongside rivers in the central and western Amazon basin in South America. It bears purple, cherry-sized berries which, due to their extreme acidity, are typically sweetened into jams, jellies, and juices rather than eaten raw. The berries have been utilized for medicinal purposes by Amazonian Indians for centuries, and were often made into hair tonics.
Although they are not well-known fruits in the West, camu camu berries rival some of the best fruits and vegetables in the nutrition department. Let's take a look at the benefits of camu camu and find out why the reputation of this exotic superfruit is ever-increasing.
Camu camu, also called camocamo and cacari, is a small tree that grows alongside rivers in the central and western Amazon basin in South America. It bears purple, cherry-sized berries which, due to their extreme acidity, are typically sweetened into jams, jellies, and juices rather than eaten raw. The berries have been utilized for medicinal purposes by Amazonian Indians for centuries, and were often made into hair tonics.
Although they are not well-known fruits in the West, camu camu berries rival some of the best fruits and vegetables in the nutrition department. Let's take a look at the benefits of camu camu and find out why the reputation of this exotic superfruit is ever-increasing.
Health Benefits
High concentration of vitamin C - Studies show that camu camu berries contain between a 2-3
percent concentration of vitamin C (approximately 3000 milligrams per 100 grams
of pulp), which is the highest known of any fruit excluding the Australian
kakadu plum. Indeed, it is this ultra-high vitamin C content that gives the
berry its sour taste. Although vitamin C - also called ascorbate - is
best-known for its ability to strengthen the immune system, it also supports
the beneficial bacteria in our digestive tract and helps to remove heavy metal
particles from our system.
Anti-inflammatory properties - According to a 2008 study published in the Journal of Cardiology, camu camu berry extracts were shown to reduce the levels of oxidative stress markers like urinary 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine, thereby improving the inflammation and oxidative stress levels of the participants. Since chronic inflammation can lead to a number of serious diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and even cancer, it is important that we incorporate more antioxidant-rich fruits like camu camu into our diets as a preventative measure.
Diabetes prevention - According to a 2010 study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, camu camu berries contain high amounts of ellagic acid, a flavonoid that is proven to contain anti-diabetic effects. This fact, coupled with the fruit's low glycemic index score (meaning it has little effect on blood sugar levels), makes camu camu a safe and even desirable fruit for diabetic and pre-diabetic individuals.
Rich in flavonoids - Aside from ellagic acid, camu camu berries also contain high amounts of other flavonoids including catechins, rutin, anthocyanins, flavonols, flavanols, delphinidin 3-glucoside, and cyanidin 3-glucoside. Like vitamin C, flavonoids (of which there are over 4,000 known to science) are antioxidants that scavenge cell-damaging free radicals and metallic ions, thereby providing us with anti-aging benefits, memory-enhancing properties, and a lowered risk of cancer, asthma, heart disease, and strokes.
Weight loss properties - Like most fruits, camu camu berries are low in calories, rich in dietary fiber, and contain almost no fat. Consequently, you won't ever need to worry about weight gain when eating camu camu products, and they can be incorporated into a healthy eating plan. Due to the sizable amounts of natural energy they provide, camu camu berry products are best consumed during breakfast or before a workout.
One-hundred grams of camu camu berries also provide us with 1.55 grams of protein, various B-vitamins (including B1, B2, and niacin), and trace minerals such as potassium, calcium, phosphorous, and iron. The fruit is also known to improve blood circulation, lower blood pressure, and increase serotonin levels, which in turn improves mood.
My Comment:
Anti-inflammatory properties - According to a 2008 study published in the Journal of Cardiology, camu camu berry extracts were shown to reduce the levels of oxidative stress markers like urinary 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine, thereby improving the inflammation and oxidative stress levels of the participants. Since chronic inflammation can lead to a number of serious diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and even cancer, it is important that we incorporate more antioxidant-rich fruits like camu camu into our diets as a preventative measure.
Diabetes prevention - According to a 2010 study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, camu camu berries contain high amounts of ellagic acid, a flavonoid that is proven to contain anti-diabetic effects. This fact, coupled with the fruit's low glycemic index score (meaning it has little effect on blood sugar levels), makes camu camu a safe and even desirable fruit for diabetic and pre-diabetic individuals.
Rich in flavonoids - Aside from ellagic acid, camu camu berries also contain high amounts of other flavonoids including catechins, rutin, anthocyanins, flavonols, flavanols, delphinidin 3-glucoside, and cyanidin 3-glucoside. Like vitamin C, flavonoids (of which there are over 4,000 known to science) are antioxidants that scavenge cell-damaging free radicals and metallic ions, thereby providing us with anti-aging benefits, memory-enhancing properties, and a lowered risk of cancer, asthma, heart disease, and strokes.
Weight loss properties - Like most fruits, camu camu berries are low in calories, rich in dietary fiber, and contain almost no fat. Consequently, you won't ever need to worry about weight gain when eating camu camu products, and they can be incorporated into a healthy eating plan. Due to the sizable amounts of natural energy they provide, camu camu berry products are best consumed during breakfast or before a workout.
One-hundred grams of camu camu berries also provide us with 1.55 grams of protein, various B-vitamins (including B1, B2, and niacin), and trace minerals such as potassium, calcium, phosphorous, and iron. The fruit is also known to improve blood circulation, lower blood pressure, and increase serotonin levels, which in turn improves mood.
My Comment:
This is a great
item to add to your daily routine. The vitamin C in Camu camu is the "whole natural" nutrient which is far more effective than the Ascorbic Acid version found in almost ALL store bought multi vitamins and Vitamin C suuplements. Camu
camu is available as a supplement and it is very inexpensive. I highy recommend it. Look online at
www.SwansonVitamins.com
Avoid Low Fat Milk
What all
those people ordering skinny lattes at Starbucks don't realize is that their
non-fat choice is actually less healthy -- and MORE likely to cause weight
gain.
Mainstream nutritionists believe that skim milk equals skinny. End of discussion.
Even the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says parents should give kids low-fat milk, beginning at age two, to prevent weight gain.
Well, they can cling to that myth all they like. But it won't make it right.
A new study of more than 10,500 U.S. pre-school kids shows the exact opposite is true. In this study, there is a clear (and significant) link between drinking skim milk and higher body weight. And it held up across all racial, ethnic, and economic groups.
Researchers are mystified. But that just means they haven't read the literature. Previous research has produced similar results.
NPR talked to a pediatrician who's a member of the AAP Committee on Nutrition. Of course, he's not letting go of the advice about switching kids to low-fat milk at age two. No way. He claims that the results of the new study don't make sense "from a biological perspective."
Really? Well here are some biology fun facts I've been talking about for 10 years...
One: calcium intake helps kids lose weight. This isn't a surprise. Calcium does the same thing for adults. But Dr. Spreen has two important points to add... 1) The milk skimming process strips away nutrients, such as calcium. 2) Your body absorbs calcium better when you consume the mineral with ---- milk fat.
Your body absorbs milk sugars slower when they're consumed with milk fat. Take away the milk fat, and your body absorbs the sugars rapidly and turns them into fat. That's why low-fat milk has a HIGHER Glycemic Index rating than whole milk.
Wow! Who knew?
Well... We knew. These aren't secrets we've been hiding from mainstream nutritionists. It's more like those nutritionists are stubbornly hiding from any details that will shatter their "fats are bad" myth.
Mainstream nutritionists believe that skim milk equals skinny. End of discussion.
Even the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says parents should give kids low-fat milk, beginning at age two, to prevent weight gain.
Well, they can cling to that myth all they like. But it won't make it right.
A new study of more than 10,500 U.S. pre-school kids shows the exact opposite is true. In this study, there is a clear (and significant) link between drinking skim milk and higher body weight. And it held up across all racial, ethnic, and economic groups.
Researchers are mystified. But that just means they haven't read the literature. Previous research has produced similar results.
NPR talked to a pediatrician who's a member of the AAP Committee on Nutrition. Of course, he's not letting go of the advice about switching kids to low-fat milk at age two. No way. He claims that the results of the new study don't make sense "from a biological perspective."
Really? Well here are some biology fun facts I've been talking about for 10 years...
One: calcium intake helps kids lose weight. This isn't a surprise. Calcium does the same thing for adults. But Dr. Spreen has two important points to add... 1) The milk skimming process strips away nutrients, such as calcium. 2) Your body absorbs calcium better when you consume the mineral with ---- milk fat.
Your body absorbs milk sugars slower when they're consumed with milk fat. Take away the milk fat, and your body absorbs the sugars rapidly and turns them into fat. That's why low-fat milk has a HIGHER Glycemic Index rating than whole milk.
Wow! Who knew?
Well... We knew. These aren't secrets we've been hiding from mainstream nutritionists. It's more like those nutritionists are stubbornly hiding from any details that will shatter their "fats are bad" myth.
Argentina is a Poster Child for the Health Hazards of GMO
Crops
Argentina’s
population is being sickened by massive spraying of herbicides on its
genetically engineered soya fields. Glyphosate, the main ingredient in Roundup,
(the weed killer used on GMO plants) is blamed for the dramatic increase in
devastating birth defects as well as cancer. Sterility and miscarriages are
also increasing.
A 2012
nutritional analysis of GMO versus non-GMO corn shows shocking differences in
nutritional content. Non-GMO corn contains 437 times more calcium, 56 times
more magnesium, and 7 times more manganese than GMO corn.
GMO corn was
also found to contain 13 ppm of glyphosate, compared to zero in non-GMO corn.
The EPA standard for glyphosate in American water supplies is 0.7 ppm, and
organ damage in animals has occurred at levels as low as 0.1 ppm.
GMO corn
contains extremely high levels of formaldehyde—about 200 times the amount found
toxic to animals.
Unfortunately,
President Obama recently signed into law a spending bill that included a
devastating provision that puts Monsanto above the law. The provision limits
the ability of judges to stop Monsanto and/or farmers from growing or
harvesting genetically engineered crops, even if courts find evidence of
potential health risks.
Monsanto engaged in massive fraud with
claims that GMOs are 'substantially equivalent' to non-GMOs
These shocking findings are at great odds with the
claims continually being made by agri-genocide giant Monsanto. On its corporate
website, Monsanto claims that approved genetically-modified (GM) crops are
"substantially equivalent" to non-GMOs, meaning they are not
nutritionally different from non-GMO crops.
But as this study shows, these claims are patently false, and indicate that
Monsanto is engaged in a global agricultural scam based on complete lies.
"Glyphosate is a strong organic phosphate chelator that immobilizes positively charged minerals such as manganese, cobalt, iron, zinc, copper, etc. that are essential for normal physiological functions in soils, plants and animals," explains Dr. Huber about how GMO crop chemicals literally destroy the nutrient content of GMO crops.
To learn more about how to avoid GMOs in the food supply, visit:
http://www.westonaprice.org/modern-foods/how-to-avoid-gmos
Learn more about GMO foods: http://www.naturalnews.com/039864_GMO_corn_nutrients_minerals.html#ixzz2Q67ZngcA
"Glyphosate is a strong organic phosphate chelator that immobilizes positively charged minerals such as manganese, cobalt, iron, zinc, copper, etc. that are essential for normal physiological functions in soils, plants and animals," explains Dr. Huber about how GMO crop chemicals literally destroy the nutrient content of GMO crops.
To learn more about how to avoid GMOs in the food supply, visit:
http://www.westonaprice.org/modern-foods/how-to-avoid-gmos
Learn more about GMO foods: http://www.naturalnews.com/039864_GMO_corn_nutrients_minerals.html#ixzz2Q67ZngcA
An urgent "new" warning finds that common cholesterol meds may cause serious kidney damage.
Well, it's new to the mainstream.
But if you've been with me a while, it's certainly not new to you -- because I've been warning you about this very risk for years now.
Statins may increase your risk of acute kidney injury by more than a third. According to "new" research in the British Medical Journal those who were on "higher" doses of statins were hospitalized 34% more for acute kidney injury in the first 120 days they were on medication compared to those who took lower doses of statins. And that risk remains higher for as much as two years after you start taking the drugs.
The risk kicks in at 10 milligrams of rosuvastatin (Crestor), 20 mg of atorvastatin (Lipitor) and 40 mg of and simvastatin (Zocor), or what the researchers refer to as "high" doses.
Sounds to me like these researchers aren't just behind the times. They're out of touch -- because those aren't high doses at all. They're the doses millions of Americans take each day, and many take even more.
Statins block the production of coenzyme Q10, which is critical to muscle energy and function. When you don't have enough CoQ10, you get muscle pain -- another statin side effect.
The more you take, the lower your CoQ10 levels -- and eventually, your muscle may start to dissolve like butter in a hot pan. The disintegrated tissue then goes into your bloodstream and heads for your kidneys.
If you're lucky, you may suffer from a kidney "injury." If you're not, well, the risks start at kidney failure which can lead to death.
And believe it or not, this isn't even close to the biggest risk of statins. These meds have been linked to memory loss, sex problems, liver damage, cancer, and more.
My
Comment:
The need for cholesterol
reduction and its effect on heart disease has been blown way out of proportion
by the medical community. Most
Naturopathic Doctors recommend cholesterol levels up to 300 as healthy. It has
now been proven beyond a doubt that cholesterol is NOT the cause of heart disease and low cholesterol levels can damage your
health and cloud your brain function. Not to mention the damage cholesterol
drugs can cause to your body.
Until next
time, stay healthy and happy
JD Roma
The information on this blog is provided for
educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical
care, and medical advice and services are not being offered. If you have, or
suspect you have, a health problem you should consult your physician
(preferably a Naturopath).
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