Cardiovascular Maintenance properties, of Acai.

Cardiovascular Maintenance properties, of Acai.

Acai is a new fruit from Brazil that offers vital nutritional benefits for
people over 40 years of age. The Acai contains 33 times the cholesterol
fighting anthocyanin than a glass of red wine, a Daily Value (DVS) of
calcium, twice the DVS at the antioxidant 'Vitamin E and a substantial
amount of dietary fiber" (2)

Cardiovascular Maintenance, Anthocyanins are cholesterol regulating
compounds with well researched data (indicating their value in
Cardiovascular support Elevated blood cholesterol is one of the major
modifiable risk factors for coronary heart disease (5) and the leading cause
of death in the US The fact is that 490,000 Americans die of Coronary Heart
Diseases each year (3) with cost of over $60 billion annually in medical
expenses and lost productivity ( 4) Therefore, regulating and reducing
cholesterol through dietary means can contribute to prolonging life and
reducing medical expenses. Low cholesterol foods and exercise are only a
part of the natural program to prevent and mitigate cardiovascular diseases.
The consumption of foods rich in compounds that reduce cholesterol, reduce
blood pressure and curry antioxidant protection completes the program. Acai
is an excellent example of such a functional food that is now accessible to
food, beverage and supplement markets in an economical and convenient form.

Calcium rich Acai also provides several cardiovascular health benefits.
According to a research summary by the Just-Food.com editorial team. More
than maintaining skeletal strength and reducing the impact of osteoporosis,
studies have shown that people who suffer from high blood pressure often
also have diets low in calcium, When calcium is added to their diet, blood
pressure drops. Some research also suggest that calcium may help reduce LDL
cholesterol levels. Also the lower risk of stroke, found in a study of
86,000 women, was attributed to calcium. Diets rich in calcium have also
been linked to reduced occurrences of colon and breast cancer in various
laboratory studies.

The generous amount of Vitamin E in Acai, twice the D.V., (Daily Value), is
essential for regeneration of damaged tissue and as a protective
antioxidant. Cancer prevention and Intestinal function: "Acai" high fiber
content is very favorable to the consumers proper intestinal function, "
reports Dr. Herve Rogez , "Fiber accelerates the intestinal processes and
has a very important role in avoiding colon cancer, The D.V. is 35g of
fibers/adult a day, Acai consumers reach this dose very easily," (2)

References

a.. (1)Claire Madden, VP Marketing at MarketResearch.com,
b.. (2) "Biochemical and Technical Studies on Acai" by Dr. Herve Rogez 2,
Sofia Pascal 2, Jesus N.S. de Souza, Arlete R. Aquino & Raphaele Buxant
Dept.. de Engenharia Quimica - Centro Tecnologico, Diaouiweir ria I niinnin,
Beligica)
c.. (3) National Contor for Health Statictice. Annual summary of births,
marriages, divorces, and deaths United States, 1993, Monthly vital
statistics report-, vol 42 no 13. Hyattsville, MD: Public Health Service,
1594.
d.. (4) American Heart Association. Heart and stroke facts 1995
statistical supplement. Dallas, TX: American Heart Association, 1994,
e.. (5) National Cholesterol Education Program. Second report of the
Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood
Cholesterol in Adults Adult Treatment Panel II). BeM6sda National Heart,
Lung.

Acai Study Continued

4. Sugars

The assimilatable sugar content in Açai fruit is generally normal, with sucrose (present mainly in pineapple, pears, citrus fruit and bananas) and the glucose monomers and fructose (mainly present in kiwis, cherries, apples, plums and grapes) constituting the forms most commonly found. These sugars come from progressive starch degradation, normally abundant before maturity (Kader & Barrett, 1996).

The detailed analysis of these sugars by liquid chromatography shows the presence of glucose and fructose (1.55% and 1.36% respectively in relation to dry matter). The glucose and fructose contents do not present any significant difference among trees, shoots and conditions (p > 0.05). Sucrose is almost absent from the product (0.05% of the D.M.). The presence of starch was not detected.

5. Fibers

The fiber content varies widely from one fruit species to the other. In the case of Açai, the total food fiber concentration is notably high (25.22% of dry matter on an average) (Table 2) and make them the second largest quantity of compound in cabbage palm after lipids. Part of these fibers can easily be seen by optic microscope. The fibers do not present any significant difference of content for the factors trees, shoots and conditions (p > 0.05).

Fibers play a very important role in regulating the consumer’s intestinal transit, as well as participating in the prevention of colon cancer. The daily recommended intake of total food fibers is 35g per adult. Therefore, Açai may really be considered to be an excellent source of fibers. Further studies should be developed to characterize these fibers.

6. Vitamins and Minerals

6.1. Vitamins

Costa (1953), for the first time, showed the presence of vitamin B in Açai, using it to1 enrich the feed for pigeons that lacked this vitamin . Vitamin B (0.25 mg/100g D.M.) is 2 frequently present in significant amounts in oleaginous plants.

6.2. Major Mineral Elements

Potassium is the most abundant mineral in the Açai (990 mg/100g D,M.). High contents of this mineral in foods are frequently associated with an easily growing acidity and/or an improved color.

2 - For man, extreme lack of vitamin B, causes beriberi, a disease characterized by cardiac and nervous disturbances, muscular atrophy and edemas (Domart & Bourneuf, 1981)

The weak sodium content (76 mg/100 g D.M.) finds its origin in the richness in potassium.

Calcium is the second most abundant mineral in the Açai and is associated with the cell wall structures (Kader & Barrett, 1996).

The magnesium found in fruits originates in the chlorophyll present before maturity. On an average, the content is of 178 mg/100 g D.M.

With regard to phosphorous, it is a citoplasmatic and nuclear constituent of proteins and plays an important role in carbohydrate metabolism and energy transfer (Kader & Barrett, 1996). The mean quantities of this mineral in Açai are 147 mg/100 g D.M.

6.3. Oligo-elements

The copper content is very high for a fruit (1.38 mg/100 g D.M.) and the Açai may therefore, be considered to be an excellent source of this oligo-element. In effect, the daily recommended consumption is 1.1 mg for an adult (CNNB, 1996).

The manganese content (32.3 mg/100 g D.M.) is excessive in relation to the daily required quantity (10 times more) but does not get to be toxic, as the manganese causes disorders at much higher concentrations (above 200 mg/day) (Belitz & Grosch, 1992).

The zinc content (1.73 mg/100 g D.M.) is below the values found by other authors (2

-7 mg/100 g D.M.) and should, in all cases, be considered as low for a food.

The cadmium (460 ppm of D.M.), and boron (1.58 mg/100 g D.M.) and nickel (203 ppm of D.M.) had never been dosed before.

It is also mentioned that Almeida & Valsechi (1966) dosed the aluminum and obtained a value of 2.6 mg/100 g of dry matter, normal for this type of food.

The Anthocyanines

The mean content is 440 mg/kg of fruit (Table 2). Expressing the anthocyanine content in 100 g of dry extract, a mean value of 1.02 g is obtained, which means to say that around 1% of the dry matter is made of these powerful anti-oxidants. It was seen that other products contain comparable contents (Table 5).

Table 5 Concentration of anthocyanines in various foods

Common name
Scientific name
Concentration

Açaí
Euterpe oleracea
440mg/100g fruit

Cranberry
Vaccinium corimbosum x V. macrocarpon
330-535mg/100g

Cherry
Prunus cerasus
43.6mg/100g

Red cabbage
Brassica oleracea var. capitata
25mg/100g

Strawberry
Fragaria chiloensis
15-35mg/100g

Raspberry
Rubus idaeus
40mg/100g fruit

Gooseberry
Ribes nigrum
145mg/100ml

Black beans
Phaseolus vulgaris
213mg/100g

Juçara
Euterpe edulis
134.7/100g fruit

Mulberry
Rubus occidentalis
345mg/100g fruit

Red onion
Allium cepa
9-21mg/100g

Apple (skin)
Malus pumila
0.03mg/cm2

Plum (skin)
Prunus domestica
29.5mg/100g fruit

Black grapes
Vitis vinifera
65-140mg/100g

Acai Study

Clinical Study completed in July 2004 on Acai – Powder Extract

Study Conducted by: Laboratório Catarinense S/A a FDA Certified Pharmaceutical Laboratory

Composition Results Obtained

There are seven bromatological parameters studied with reference to juices done in the past. However, in this study we are now showing the power of a pure extract of Acai berry: pH, fatty matter, total nitrogenous matter, sugars, fibers, total ash and anthocyanines. The results are presented in a summarized form in Table 2.

1. pH
The cabbage palm beverage is a hardly acid drink, as its mean pH is 5.23. The mean pH of 5.23 is lower than the values mentioned in the literature (pH 5.8-5.9) (Table 1). The variations in pH are due to the organic acids. pH variations evolve in a highly significant manner over the period of time from the harvest, towards a slight alkalinization (p < 0.01), this means to say that the pH increases appreciably over the months of collection.

Table 1: Chemical composition and energy value


2. Lipid and Energy Value

2.1. Total Lipids
The Açai is a caloric food due to its percentage of fatty material, the main Açai component in quantitative terms. A man between 18 and 29 years of age, weighing 65 kilos and engaged in average physical activity needs approximately 3,000 kcal/day. The daily consumption of one liter of Açai with 12.5% dry matter, contains 65.8g of lipids, which corresponds to 66% of the daily lipid ingestion requirement (100g) (CNNB, 1996). This amount supplies 592 kcal of the 657 total kcal contained in one liter of Açai, that is to say, over 20% of the daily energy contribution for an adult man. This gives it an energy value comparable to whole cow’s milk (614 kcal/l) (USDA, 1998). This energy value is partly responsible for the success of Açai among the youngsters in the Southern region of Brazil.

The lipids content does not present any significant difference among trees, shoots and conditions (p > 0.05) (Table 2). However, it diminishes almost significantly during the course of the harvest (p = 0.06).

Thus the lipids represent around 90% of the calories contained in this beverage. Thanks to the good profile the oil presents (see the following point) the consumption of Açai assures taking good advantage of mono- and poly-unsaturated fatty acids.

Table 2: Nutrients


2.2. Profile of Liposoluble Components
Table 3 presents the complete profile of fatty acids, sterols and tocopherols and tocotrienols in olive oil and Açai. According to the nutritional recommendations in force, the ideal profile of an oil should have 50% of mono-unsaturated, a maximum of 33% of saturated and the remainder of poly-unsaturated fatty acids (CNNB, 1996), which contributes towards giving olive oil a good reputation. In Table 3 it can be seen that, in the set of palms analyzed, oleic acid is the most abundant, followed by palmitic and linoleic acids. Euterpe oleracea presents a particularly interesting profile from the nutritional point of view, which gives it an important advantage. However, a weak content of linolenic acid is pointed out, an indispensable fatty acid , whose recommendation for an adult (CNNB, 1996) is established at 0.5-1% of the diet energy (1.6 – 3.3 g/day).

The main sterol in all the examples examined is beta-sitosterol with maximum values for olive oil and Açai (Table 3). The proportions of cholesterol are small.

The total amount of alpha-tocopherol present in Açai is high (45 mg/100 g M.S.). This high vitamin E content must be related to that of the unsaturated fatty acids, the first generally being related to the second. Vitamin E (tocopherols), thermo-resistant, is an important natural anti-oxidant that protects the lipids (de Luca & Suttie, 1969). The daily vitamin E recommendation is from 5-15 mg for an adult (CNNB, 1996), which makes one perceives that the Açai may be considered to be an excellent source.

Table 3: Liposoluble Components:


3. Proteins

3.1. Total Nitrogenous Matter
In comparison with other fruits, the cabbage palm presents a high protein content: the mean total nitrogenous matter content found in 109 samples is 10.05% in relation to the dry matter (Table 2).

3.2. Amino Acid Profile
To assess the nutritional value of the Açai protein (Table 4), comparison with egg protein was chosen, which constitutes a classical reference for human feeding. The amino acid contents dosed in these different foods were expressed in relative proportions to enable them to be compared. With regard to the amino acid profiles, it is pointed out that only that of Açai is very similar to that of egg; the primary limiting amino acid is metionine (chemical index of 60%); the secondary limiting amino acid is lisine and has an excess of phenylalanine 1 and treonine.

Table 4: Aminoacids:


1 - The chemical index of a protein is defined by the ratio, expressed in %, between the amounts of primary limiting amino acid found in the studied food and that found in the reference food.