What does medical research say about the health properties of acai?
As a relatively new discovery, acai has appeared in the online database of the US National Library of Medicine—PubMed—only since 2004. Since then, just five reports are listed (June 2006). Three studies analyzed the antioxidant properties of acai, showing its powerful effects against specific oxidizing agents like peroxyl radicals and peroxynitrite. One interesting finding was that the total antioxidant capacity of acai could be accounted in just 10% of the identified anthocyanins. This finding indicates that acai is loaded with other, yet unidentified, antioxidant phytochemicals. In 2006, a study performed at the University of Florida showed that acai antioxidants could induce more rapid death (apoptosis) of leukemia cells in vitro. This preliminary research indicates a possible anti-cancer effect of anthocyanins and other pigments, as shown for North American dark berries like the blueberry and black raspberry.
