Blueberries are one of the most nutrient potent foods on Earth and now, new research is showing they can be even better for you with this simple technique; here’s why:
More and more research is pointing in the direction that freezing fruits can actually make them even healthier. This appears to be the case with organic blueberries, where anthocyanin concentration is actually more potent after a short stay in the freezer. In case you don’t know, anthocyanins contain a number of anti-inflammatory qualities, and are known to benefit your overall brain health.
Research suggests that anthocyanin may possess anti-carcinogenic properties that could completely revolutionize the medical industry.
What does freezing do?
When you freeze blueberries (for short OR long periods of time), the low temperatures penetrate deep within the fruit and disrupt the tissue structure – this makes the anthocyanins more available and absorbable.
The berries actually have their sharp, blue color because of the anthocyanin in the tissue. Organic berries already have higher nutritional content than alternatives, but freezing them can actually improve on these 5 benefits:
1. Improves Heart Health
Eating frozen blueberries can significantly lower your risk of heart disease. This is because the nutrients regulate and relax the elasticity of your arteries in the vascular wall, keeping them from getting damaged. Consequently, this also improves your blood flow, giving you a healthy blood pressure in the process.
2. Reduced Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease & Other Forms of Dementia
The anthocyanin in the berries can actually improve your memory functions, and protect your brain against cell damage and loss. The protection makes your encoding and retrieval processes more fluid, making it easier to recall information.The berries can also improve your nerve cell growth, and make communication easier between nerve cell processes. This actually slows down the rate that they age, and ultimately, die.
3. Improves Nervous System Health
The antioxidants in blueberries provide your nerve cells with protection. They also keep your brain healthy from the various forms of pollutants that it’s exposed to every day. They basically create a safeguard around your nervous system to keep it healthy and strong for a longer period of time.
4. Improves Motor Function
Older adults, who are suffering from impaired movements (70+ years), generally perform and behave more function after eating frozen blueberries. They also show heightened cognitive ability, which translates into improved motor ability in comparison to other men and women in the same age group.
5. Improves Digestion
The antioxidants in blueberries protect your digestive tract from damage occurred outside sources. What’s scary is, many people who lack antioxidants in their diets consequently develop cancer as a result of poor gastrointestinal health. People at risk of developing colon cancer should definitely bring more frozen blueberries into their diets.
Blueberries are already very healthy, but freezing them allows you to get the benefits in a higher concentration than refrigeration. They will taste the same, but will be much healthier after being frozen for a few days.
So next time you go to the shop buy a couple extra packs for freezing or better yet, start growing some blueberry bushes around your home if possible and share with the neighborhood.
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