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Deep in the Amazon rainforest, you’ll find thousands of species of plants of which some remain undiscovered and unclassified by modern science. But under the shady rainforest canopy along the river line, there are slender palm trees producing a dark purple berry that is one of nature's most complete and healthy fruit.

The Acai (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) berry is a small round fruit that is similar in size and appearance to a grape. Although found throughout South America, the Acai tree is harvested in the Brazilian state of Para where it thrives in large groves in the lowland flood areas.

As with most vegetation in the Amazon, the Acai palm tree has shown evidence of medicinal benefits for its local inhabitants. The indigenous people consume the Acai berry by creating a fruit juice that tastes like a dynamic mix of berries and chocolates.

In the Brazilian Amazon, different parts of the fruit are used as traditional medicine for various ailments such as diarrhea, skin ulcers, and jaundice. In the Peruvian Amazon, the acai berry is used to treat everything ranging from hepatitis and jaundice to malaria and hair loss.

But how do these medicinal effects translate into our modern world? We’re not exactly consulting with the Amazonian shamans for information and tips on the medicinal plants so to answer this question, we first have to look at what makes the Acai berry so special.

 Acai berries have exploded onto the health scene and have gotten the attention from nutritionists, scientists, and medical researchers. That is because the Acai berry has a high phytonutrient content that provides incredible health benefits, thereby making it a super fruit.

That means it has special chemicals that have notably potent disease-fighting properties. The Acai fruit hasn’t reached the level of clinical research that has been conducted on pomegranates, but latest studies show that this berry has the right combination of antioxidants, anthocyanins (20 – 30 times the amount in red wine), amino acids, essential fatty acids, fibers, and proteins that is so important to healthy living. The beneficial fatty acids are similar to those found in olive oil that help lower LDL cholesterol and maintain the good HDL cholesterol.

In a study conducted by AIMBR Life Sciences in Washington, the Acai berry was found to contain Cyanidin-3-glucoside, which is the most potent and powerful source of anthocyanins (flavonoids) in fruits and vegetables. You may already be familiar with the anthocyanin compound and its benefits because it is part of the group of flavonoids that lend the deep red-to-purple pigment to fruits such as grapes, blackberries, and raspberries.

With results similar to what the Brazilians have discovered a while ago, clinical studies have shown that the anthocyanins can build the blood by preventing blood clots, improving blood circulation, relaxing blood vessels, and ultimately preventing atherosclerosis. Acai berries were also found to contain 2 dominant, beneficial fatty acids: Oleic acid (53.9%) and palmitic (26.7%).

If these findings haven’t convinced you of acai’s health benefits, there are also studies conducted by Tufts University for the United States Department of Agriculture that assigned the highest ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbency Capacity) value to the Acai fruit. OLAC is a unit of measurement for antioxidants that was developed by the National Institute on Aging in the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In the case of Acai berries, the value assigned is 3800 for each dose (30mL/1oz.) of the berry juice.

One of the major benefits of consuming the Acai berry is its incredible antioxidant capabilities (with 10 times more than grapes) and the ability to fight free radicals in our bodies. Because antioxidants cancel the cell-damaging effects of free radicals, it follows that they may have disease-prevention capabilities as well.

Consequently, if you have lower levels of antioxidants, you may develop oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is believed to be the cause of many diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, neurodegeneration, and rheumatoid arthritis.

Studies have also shown a relationship between oxidative stress and cardiovascular disease. In a ground-breaking study from the University of Florida that was published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, the Acai berries triggered a self-destruct response in up to 86% of leukemia cells tested in vitro.

As you can see, Acai berries can provide you with a huge arsenal of antioxidants to combat free radicals and premature aging. The studies to date also prove that plants produce the best medicine possible. If you haven’t considered consuming Acai berries, whether as pulp or juice, you should take a closer look if you have more than a passing interest in your overall health and well-being.