"Purple berries" amongst fruits with highest levels of anti-oxidants

You may not be familiar with "purple berries", but new research by a group of USDA scientists suggest they are among the highest fruits for antioxidants, even higher than blueberries and cranberries. In preliminary laboratory studies, the researchers found that the elderberry, black currant and chokeberry - collectively known as the "purple berries" due to their dark color - are as much as 50 percent higher in antioxidants than some of the more common berry varieties and have the potential to provide more health benefits, such as protection against cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's. They predict that the "purple berries" will play a bigger role in the marketplace in the near future, where they are poised to be used as part of a growing number of specialty health foods, drinks and nutraceuticals. The study will appear in the Dec. 15 print issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a peer-reviewed publication of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society. It was published in the online version of the journal on Nov. 24.

The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization, chartered by the U.S. Congress, with a multidisciplinary membership of more than 159,000 chemists and chemical engineers. It publishes numerous scientific journals and databases, convenes major research conferences and provides educational, science policy and career programs in chemistry. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio