If you add one food to your diet this season, make it
blueberries. Calorie for calorie, lucious blueberries have emerged as the single most ferocious food in the supermarket at halting the forces that age you. Even the scientists who study blueberries are excited! Read on, and you will be, too.
Radical Resistance Every second of your life, your cells are bombarded by dangerous particles called free radicals. In a split second, they can alter your DNA in ways that cause cancer. Or change Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LOL, the bad cholesterol) so it sticks to artery walls. Or damage collagen and make skin wrinkle-prone. Over time, changes such as these accelerate your aging.
Fortunately, you can fight back. The trick is to load your diet with antioxidants — the naturals zappers of free radicals — by eating lots of fruits and vegetables. And that’s where the incredible blueberries come in. The amazing little blueberry has emerged as nature’s number one source of antioxidants among fresh fruits and vegetables.
In tests at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, blueberries beat out 39 other common fruits and vegetables — even such heavyweights as kale, strawberries, spinach, and broccoli in antioxidant power. Much of that power comes from anthocyanins, the pigments that give blueberries their deep blue hue.
Where the Antioxidants Are * To get the level of antioxidants found in just cup of blueberries, you need to eat more — sometimes much more — of other fruits and vegetables:
cup blueberries = cup strawberries
1 cups orange sections
2 cups broccoli florets
2 cups chopped spinach
2 cups corn
*Source: USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University
Blueberry Rx So impressed is Ronald Prior, PhD, of the USDA Phytochemical Laboratory at Tufts and the scientist who discovered the secret power of blueberries, that he now recommends adding cup of blueberries to your diet every day — a far cry from our current average intake of about 2 cups a year!
“With cup of blueberries, you can just about double the amount of antioxidants most Americans get in one day. If you want to slow down the free radical aging process, blueberries are the leader of the pack,” he says.
“At our house, we always keep blueberries in the freezer." However, Dr. Prior urges you not to choose only fruits and vegetables high in antioxidants.
Tomatoes, for example, are fairly low in antioxidants but are a rich source of lycopene, which has been linked to lower rates of prostate cancer and heart disease.
The best advice? Add
blueberries to the fruits and vegetables you already eat.
How To Buy ‘Em Fresh blueberries are available year-round but are least expensive from May through September, when the supply comes from the U.S. and Canada. Look for berries that are dark blue, with a frosty bloom. Store fresh blueberries in your refrigerator for up to two weeks, and wash them just before you use them; otherwise they’ll get mushy. Loose-pack frozen blueberries are available year-round, and you can use them in any recipe that calls for fresh blueberries. Since they are prewashed, they can be used right from the package.
A Sweet. Quick, Delicious Blueberry Dessert Blueberries are really the no-work fruit — they require no pitting, peeling, coring, or cutting, and they’re outrageously healthy. Enjoy!
Blueberry-Plum Cobbler
8 plums, quartered
1 pint fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup + 4 tsp sugar
2 Tbsp + 1 cup unbleached or all-purpose flour
tsp baking powder
tsp salt
cup buttermilk
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Coat an 8 x 8 baking dish with nonstick spray.
2. In a large bowl, combine the plums, blueberries, cup of the sugar, and 2 tablespoons of the flour. Pour into the prepared baking dish.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the baking powder, salt, the remaining 1 cup of the flour, and 3 teaspoons of the remaining sugar.
4. In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk, egg white, and oil. Add to the flour mixture. Stir until a thick batter forms. Drop the batter by tablespoons on top of the fruit. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 teaspoon of the sugar.
5. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden. Transfer to a rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Makes 8 servings Per Serving: 238 calories, 4 g protein, 50 g carbohydrates, 4 g fat, o g saturated fat, 1 mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber, 107 mg sodium
— Prevention Brochure, 2000
We promise, eating a piece of blueberry cobbler will put a smile on your face!
“A smile is a light on your face that lets people know your heart is at home.”
— Anonymous Folk Saying
