What do wild blueberries, cranberries, tart cherries and all super fruits have in common. In addition to great taste and high antioxidant values one underlying thread that holds the super fruit family together is Anthocyanins.
As more and more people are searching for natural and healthy solutions, super fruits and Anthocyanins are fast becoming the compound of choice for those looking for a whole spectrum of health benefits from this ubiquitous compound. However, before we learn about the amazing health benefits of Anthocyanins, we need to know exactly what they are.

Anthocyanins Defined

The next time you open the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator or walk through the fresh fruit aisle of your local grocery store and see the wide spectrum of hues, realize you are witnessing the presence of Anthocyanins. These compounds are responsible for giving Mother Nature her many colors. According to ongoing research, over 300 distinct types of Anthocyanins have been discovered and identified. In addition to giving fruits and vegetables there many colors, Anthocyanins are also responsible for changing of the colors of the leaves during the Autumn season from green to red, orange, purple and every imaginable color in-between.

For decades, Anthocyanins have the study of botanists and with recent advances in food research technology; botanists are able to study this compound at very close range. Botanists have classified Anthocyanins as belonging to a class of flavonoids. Flavonoids can further be categorized in to different sub-classes including flavonols, flavones and flavon-3-ols.

These different classes of flavonoids each have different stages of oxidation or oxidative degrees. This means some flavonoids fight free radicals to a greater degree than other flavonoids. Anthocyanins are one of the common bonds present across the range of flavoniods. In addition, it is how the Anthocyanins interact with the other phytochemicals found in the fruit or vegetable that gives each fruit its unique healthy ability.

So are Anthocyanins the secret weapon of the superfruits? Although, a definite answer to that question is still unclear, it does appear that the presence of Anthocyanins, in addition the unique compounds of the remaining phytochemicals in the underlying is why each fruit offers unique and specific health benefits. For instance, Anthocyanins are present in of the following fruit: tart cherries, black currants, wild blueberries and cranberries. Ongoing research indicates wild blueberries help to improve eye sight and reverse short-term memory loss. Cranberries are known to fight urinary tract infections. Tart cherries are known as "Mother Nature's Joint Solution".

To explore this a little further, let's take a closer look at a newly recognized super fruit: the tart cherry. Numerous medical research organizations are providing documented proof on the natural joint pain relieving properties of tart cherries. Tart cherries are high in Anthocyanins, Melatonin and over 17 other natural compounds that work synergistically together to fight pain caused by gout and arthritis.
How to Benefit From Anthocyanins

However, one of the drawbacks of the super fruit is seasonality - the ability to get fresh fruit year round. For example, fresh tart cherries are only available a few short weeks during the summer harvest. However, there are several different formats of the tart cherry available for year round benefit: cherry juice concentrate and tart cherry capsules. Cherry juice concentrate is a highly concentrate way to get the pain relieving property of the tart cherry. It takes approximately 100 cherries to make just one ounce of tart cherry juice.

Tart cherry capsules are another way to get tart cherries conveniently. Tart cherry capsules are made with tart cherry powder. The tart cherry powder is made using the freeze-dried process. The freeze dried process uses low heat and low temperature, thus maintaining 100% of the phytochemicals of the tart cherry. A few of the best sources for tart cherry products are Traverse Bay Farms and Fruit Advantage. Traverse Bay Farms offers cherry juice concentrate, while Fruit Advantage offers a complete line of super fruit supplements including tart cherry capsules.

Thus, Anthocyanins are not only responsible for the spectrum of colors found in nature but also contribute to natural health benefits of the underlying fruit.