Wild Blueberries Might Cut Cardiovascular-Disease Risk

Results from a new study conducted at the University of Maine, Orono, show that wild blueberries might help regulate blood pressure, thereby helping prevent cardiovascular disease. As documented in the study and recently published in the Feb. 2006 issue of the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, phenolic compounds in the berries send a signal that results in less low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or "bad") cholesterol binding to arterial walls. The researchers reported on these findings at the recent Experimental Biology 2006 conference in San Francisco.

The study--supported in part by a grant from the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine, Orno, and the Wild Blueberry Association of North America (WBANA), Kennebunkport, ME--involved feeding a powdered equivalent of one-half cup of wild blueberries to rats with normal blood pressure on a daily basis for 13 weeks; a control group was fed the same diet without the blueberry supplementation. Researchers from the University of Maine have conducted previous studies related to the effects of a diet that includes wild blueberries on animal-model blood-vessel function. According to Susan Davis, R.D., nutrition advisor, WBANA, this research is part of a larger body of work centered on determining the effects of wild blueberries on diseases related to aging. "Ongoing research into the health effects of plant-based compounds is going to dominate research for years to come," she says. "We're only just beginning to understand how fruit and vegetable compounds work together in the body to prevent disease."

According to Dorothy J. Klimis-Zacas, Ph.D., professor of clinical nutrition, University of Maine, and a researcher for the recent study, "Our investigation of the potential of natural antioxidants like those found in wild blueberries to combat the precursors to cardiovascular disease is part of a broader research movement to gain a better understanding of the role of diet in disease prevention."

USDA research into the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) of various fruits demonstrated that wild blueberries had the highest antioxidant capacity per serving of the 20 different fruits tested, including 48% more antioxidant capacity than cultivated highbush blueberries (see http://www.foodproductdesign.com/archive/2004/1204CATSH1.html for more on ORAC values). Wild blueberries also differ from cultivated types in size, flavor and color. Wild types also tend to cost more than cultivated blueberries.