Blueberries

These would have to be one of the most well known berries after strawberries.

Blueberries are native to east Asia and the USA. Traditionally used by North American Indians for diarrhoea and labour pains.

We know they are full of antioxidants due to their incredible blue colour, in particular anthocyanins. The deeper the colour the richer the anthocyanins. They are also rich in vitamin C, beta-carotene, flavonoids and resveratrol.

They can be helpful for heart health and the cardiovascular system. They can help with healthy ageing of the brain, can help prevent bone loss and and can reduce LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol).

Organic or spray free are better as they are heavily sprayed, but they also contain more overall antioxidant activity. If you can’t buy fresh organic/spray free than frozen organic is just as good as the phenolic compounds don’t get destroyed in the freezing process.

These pics are stages of our own blueberry bush! We were very excited to get our first proper harvest (we’ve been trying to grow blueberries for years)!