Berries a Good Source of Plant Antioxidant
(London, Reuters Health, 2/4/03)

Dr. Iris Erlund of the University of Helsinki in Finland, and team, examined the way that food choices affect blood levels of quercitin, a potent flavonoid that inhibits free radical production by combating oxidation. The scientists monitored quercitin levels for 40 sixty-year-old men during 8 weeks, while half the group continued eating their regular diets and the other half enhanced their food intake with a daily combination of 100 mg of berries, consisting of: blackcurrants, lingonberries (similar to cranberries) and bilberries (similar to blueberries). The study found that those eating the berries had significant increases in their blood levels of quercitin, a substance that may protect against cardiovascular disease and cancer.