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The Power of Blueberries

by Alia Akkam

Don’t pass over those cartons of blueberries the next time you hit the farmer’s market. They are bursting with antioxidants, and as Angela Pifer, certified nutritionist of Nutrition Northwest, with offices in Seattle and Bellevue, Washington, points out, Tufts University recently ranked blueberries highest among 60 other fruits and vegetables for their unique free radical destroying capabilities. “You may have heard that drinking a serving of red wine is good for your heart—being both high in antioxidants and compounds like resveratrol,” she says. “Blueberries offer thirty-eight percent more antioxidant activity. Rich in antioxidants, anthocyanidins, anthocyanins, and ellagic acid, blueberries protect against cataracts, heart disease and cancers, improve our skin’s elasticity, and protect the body and brain from oxidative stress.”

Besides popping blueberries in your mouth as a mid-morning snack—or indulging in the fruit in gooey pie form—go to organicspamagazine.com for an old-fashioned recipe for sweet, earthy blueberry-thyme muffins from Maine Classics, the new cookbook by Mark Gaier and Clark Frasier of Mark and Clark Restaurants.

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