Acerola, the edible Latin American-native tropical fruit is a sour red berry that’s loaded with a plethora of vitamin C. The acerola cherry (known as Malpigha emarginata) has emerged as a powerful superfood because of the host of benefits it offers.
This tropical superfood is considered to be one of the world’s best sources of vitamin C. For example, 100 grams equates to 1,365 milligrams of vitamin C in fresh acerola. Think of it this way: oranges have around 50 milligrams of vitamin C in every 100 grams.
Vitamin C is an extremely important nutrient, responsible for keeping your bones, skin, teeth and immune system healthy and strong. Studies have shown that it has anti-histamine properties that can help stave off or ease various kinds of allergies.
A Natural Antioxidant
The fruit’s vitamin C means it’s a natural antioxidant, which is necessary to fight against free radicals that can lead to premature aging and the chance of suffering from degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, cancer and heart disease. Free radicals can occur because of normal metabolic processes, but most of them are produced because of:
〈 Air pollution
〈 Cigarette smoke
〈 Drugs
〈 Pesticides
〈 Radiation
It’s not that big of a surprise that the acerola fruit, with its copious amounts of vitamin C, that it surpasses many other fruits and berries for its antioxidant amount. This has resulted in the development of many anti-aging products with acerola extract.
Acerola Fruit Powder Helps Better Your Eye Health
A study found in the European Food Research and Technology journal shows that acerola, whether consumed raw or in powder form, has a plethora of carotenoids like lutein, beta-cryptoxanthin and beta-carotene with levels similar to guava fruit, papaya and tomatoes.
Foods loaded with carotenoids offer an array of health benefits, but are especially known for bettering eye health. According to scientific research, the lutein and beta-carotene help stave off age-related macular degeneration, better night vision, stave off cataract development and decrease the chance for retinitis pigmentosa.
