Danielle Moore
The Aronia berry is considered a local superfood. It is advertised as beauty and nutritional supplement. You can buy them in juice, capsule, or pill form. It is also available dried. But what is in the so-called chokeberry?
The Aronia berry – a vitamin bomb
The Aronia berry belongs to the rose family and is native to eastern North America. The chokeberry made it to Germany at the end of the 19th century as an ornamental plant because of its beautiful flowers. For a long time, nothing was known about the positive properties of Aronia berries in this country. Only in the 1930s were the ingredients of the berry examined more closely.
Like many types of fruit, the berries of the Aronia plant are rich in vitamin C. But they also contain vitamins A, E, K, and B. That is why the Aronia berry is also considered a fuel for the immune system. It also contains plenty of minerals such as:
- calcium
- potassium
- iron
- magnesium
The chokeberry is also bursting with antioxidants. All of these ingredients earned it the title of Superfood.
Why is the Aronia berry healthy?
Sure, vitamin C is good for our immune system, magnesium strengthens muscles and calcium is good for our bones. But it is precisely the many antioxidants that make the Aronia berry so interesting. They bind free radicals in our body, which are caused by various metabolic processes. Free radicals are considered to be the trigger for a wide variety of diseases, including rheumatism, diabetes, heart attacks, accelerated aging, and cancer.
It is therefore important for our body to always be able to access enough antioxidants. Furthermore, the Aronia berry is said to be anti-inflammatory, cholesterol-lowering, and blood-sugar-lowering. However, these properties have not yet been proven.
How does the Aronia berry taste?
The taste of fresh Aronia berries is tart to bitter. For this reason, it is usually only sold dried. As the water content decreases, the sugar content increases and the fruit becomes sweeter. The Aronia berry is also available as a powder or in capsule form.
Due to its tart taste, the Aronia berry is best used in sweet dishes, for example
- as jam
- in smoothies or
- in shakes.
Then it is best to mix them with sweeter fruits such as bananas or kiwi. However, the chokeberry is particularly popular in baking.
Why shouldn’t you eat too many Aronia berries?
Like many rose plants, Aronia berries have a high proportion of hydrocyanic acid. As a rule, an overdose is not possible. Nevertheless, one should not overdo it with the consumption of the fruit, otherwise, stomach problems can occur. In addition, the intense blue color of the fruit causes the tongue and teeth to turn blue for a short time.
How is the effect of Aronia to be assessed?
The Aronia berry is a typical example of a made trend. Of course, Aronia has a positive effect and offers many valuable ingredients. It contains a disproportionate amount of antioxidants in particular. But this also applies to many other berry varieties. Blueberries and blackberries, for example, are just as healthy as Aronia.
If you want to use powder or capsules from the Aronia berry, you should pay attention to the country of manufacture. Many countries do not have strict guidelines here and are not particularly strict with plant protection products and pesticides. You should also buy dried Aronia berries from Germany and organic farming.
