Maqui Antioxidants
Most people know that blueberries, black currants, acai berries, raspberry, and especially aronia berries, contain large amounts of anioxidants. They also know that aronia berries contain approx. eight times as many antioxidants than blueberries, but only a few have heard about the biggest super berry, the maqui berry (aristotelia chilensis).
The strongest of all..
Even fewer people know that the maqui berry contains almost twice as many antioxidants as aronia berries, which is nearly 16 times as many antioxidants as blueberries.Maqui berries can only be found in the Patagonia region in Chile, where they grow in the wild. The berries have been known for centuries by the Chilean Mapuche natives who used the maqui berries to make a traditional, fermented energy drink meant to give strength and courage to the Mapuche tribe warrior.
The Mapuche natives harvest the berries during the harvesting season, and almost the entire Mapuche community is involved. In comparison to many other berries that contain antioxidants, maqui berries taste good as well.
Many prebiotic foods are not only rich in prebiotic fiber but also in bitter substances. A lot of bitter substances are antioxidants. Antioxidants are the common denominator for a long line of microscopical plant substances and select vitamins and minerals which protect the body by reinforcing the cells against oxygen damage.
When you eat substances that are meant to protect food against oxygen damage, they surround the body’s tissue and become a part of the defense against inflammation and free radicals.
Research has shown that antioxidants have an anti-inflammatory effect that counteracts the inflammation in the blood vessels, formation of atherosclerosis, and it lowers the blood pressure as the elasticity of the blood vessels increases.
