By Linda Bobroff, PhD, RD, LD/N, Department of Family, Youth, and Community Sciences, University of Florida

Reviewed by Nan C. Jensen, Family & Consumer Sciences Extension Agent IV at UF/IFAS Extension Pinellas County

Last month was Berry Month, and I must say that I am still excited. Obviously, not all berries are in season everywhere during the month of July, but thanks to today’s advanced shipping and markets, American families can enjoy a variety of fresh berries even when they are not in season in our home town. Local may be best for taste, cost, and living “green,” but honestly, can you blame me for wanting to stretch my enjoyment of fresh strawberries at least a bit beyond our Florida peak season in the winter, or blueberries past their peak in June and July?

Berries Pack a Nutrition Punch

What’s so great about berries? Aside from their delicious and varied flavors, berries offer us a variety of critical nutrients. (If you know me, you knew I was going to get to that sooner or later!) As a group, berries provide us with vitamin C, folate (a B vitamin), potassium, and fiber, as well as cancer-fighting, anti-inflammatory antioxidants and other phytochemicals (phyto simply means “plant”). Different types of berries contain varying amounts of these and other nutrients, so eating all the various types is your best bet for good nutrition. An added bonus is that (at least before you add sugar, cream, and butter) these nutrient powerhouses contain very little fat or sodium and few calories. What a bargain!

Here’s an example of the nutrient content of one of my favorite berries. Blueberries are a good source of fiber, potassium, and vitamin C, and are low in calories and sodium. You can find the nutrient content of most foods at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s online nutrient database.

Blueberries, raw, 1 cup

• Calories: 85
• Fiber: 4 grams
• Potassium: 115 milligrams
• Sodium: 1 milligram
• Vitamin C: 10 milligrams

Berries and Your Health

The role of berries in reducing our risk of developing various health conditions is an area of active research. Various berries may:

• improve gastrointestinal health,
• reduce risk for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease,
• decrease cardiovascular disease risk, and
• reduce risk for certain cancers.

The coming decades should be fruitful (pun intended) when it comes to identifying more about the role of berries in disease risk, as well as understanding exactly how they work.

Preparing, Storing, and Eating Berries

Most berries are used in a variety of creative ways. Many can be eaten raw and “as is,” but we also enjoy berries in jams, jellies, syrups, pies, cakes, muffins, salads, and smoothies. For taste, nutritional value, and cost, fresh and in-season berries certainly are best, but you can use frozen berries (from the store or frozen at home using the freshest berries you can find) when fresh berries are poor quality or expensive. Canned berries are available, mainly as pie fillings, but bear little resemblance to fresh or frozen berries.

If you are interested in growing blueberries or strawberries, the University of Florida IFAS Extension program has many fact sheets to help you get started. Once you have a crop (or even if you buy the berries at a farmer’s market or supermarket), UF/IFAS Extension and USDA publications can help you prepare the berries for canning or freezing or as a delicious syrup for year-round enjoyment.

Berries are fun for children, too. My colleague Alice Henneman out in Nebraska has a webpage called Food Fun for Young Children on her University of Nebraska Extension website that includes ideas for berry treats that children can help put together.

Linda’s Favorite Blueberry Sauce

• 2 cups fresh or frozen (do not thaw) blueberries
• 3 Tbsp orange juice
• 3 Tbsp water
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 3 Tbsp sugar or sweetener of your choice (more or less to taste)
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup (optional)
• 1/8 tsp dried orange peel (or about ¼ tsp fresh orange zest)

Mix ingredients in pot and bring to boil. Turn down heat to a simmer and stir frequently for about 10 min, mashing some of the blueberries, until it has thickened nicely. Use over pancakes, waffles, vanilla ice cream, or any other way you enjoy!

Who doesn’t love berries? My mouth waters just thinking about them! Enjoy the rest of berry season and the great nutrition benefits of these delicious fruits.

(Photo credit: berries by Janine. CC BY 2.0. Cropped.)

Further Reading

Preserving Food: Freezing Fruits–Info on freezing fresh berries from UF-IFAS EDIS

Blueberry Products (series of publications)–Recipes for canning blueberries from UF-IFAS EDIS

Healthy Eating: Drink to Your Health–Tasty berry smoothie recipes from UF-IFAS EDIS

Berries (list of resources)–Ideas for serving and enjoying berries from the USDA

Selecting, preparing, and canning: Berries – whole–Instructions for canning berries from the USDA

Selecting, preparing, and canning: Berry syrup--Instructions for canning berry syrup from the USDA

References:

Basu A, Rhone M, and Lyons TJ. Berries: Emerging impact on cardiovascular health. Nutrition Reviews 2010; 68: 168-77.

Seeram NP. Emerging research supporting the positive effects of berries on human health and disease prevention. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 2012; 69:5685-86 (This is an overview of the Berry Health Benefits Symposium, June 27-29, 2011. This journal includes a series of papers on the specific research papers presented.)

Tsuda T. Dietary anthocyanin-rich plants: Biochemical basis and recent progress in health benefits studies. Molecular Nutrition and Food Research. 2012; 56:159-70.

USDA. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Retrieved from http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list

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