Açaí                             Goji ("wolfberry")

We're making comparisons of these two “superfruits” in 4 parts

(click on the #1-3 links below for previous reports)

1. macronutrients
2. micronutrients
3. phytochemicals -- phenolics and carotenoids
4. antioxidant strength and product applications --> TODAY!

When two superstars are on stage at the same time, what more can one do than compare their features to see how they stack up against one another?

This is a fascinating contest for looking deeper into açaí (Brazilian palmberry, Euterpe oleracea Mart.) and goji (Chinese wolfberry, Lycium barbarum L.) because each has

1. at one time or another, been called the world's most nutrient-rich plant food and/or

2. been called the most antioxidant-potent food on Earth

3. centuries of use as a medicinal plant by peasants and shamans in their respective land

4. rapidly growing market interest in many countries

5. taste and nutrient qualities making it “exotic” and

included among the emerging “superfruits” (click link)

emphasized for their antioxidant qualities (click link)

6. diverse applications as a "functional" ingredient in new foods and beverages

Click here if you missed Part 1 on Micronutrients

Part 2 on Macronutrients or Part 3 on Phytochemicals

Part 4: Antioxidants, ORAC and

Functional Food Applications

Oxygen radical absorbance capacity -- "ORAC" -- is the most commonly used

quantitative measure of antioxidant strength in foods.

It has its problems, however. ORAC may vary unpredictably due to

variations in the plant species, growing conditions, environment,

harvesting and processing methods, assay conditions, oxidant species and

others to be discussed in our next report from the Berry Doctor's Journal.

Nevetheless, ORAC is what we have to compare the antioxidant strength of

açaí and goji.

Here are comparative data for antioxidant strength

	Açaí (a)	Goji    “Wolfberry”    (b)
per 100 g	Euterpe oleracea	Lycium barbarum
Total phenolics*, mg	1,390	1,309^?
Main phenolic, Proanthocyanidins, mg	1,289	nm
Ellagic acid, mg ^	nm	86 ?
Total carotenoids, mg	nm	182
Total ORAC	102,700	30,300^
Water-soluble ORAC	99,700	30,300
Fat-soluble ORAC	3,000	?
Brunswick Labs, Total ORAC (c)	53,600	22,000

                                a. freeze-dried pulp and skin powder as reported by Schauss et al., 2006
                                b. dried berries as reported by Gross et al., 2006

                          c. private report on dehydrated berries, January, 2004; Brunswick Laboratories Inc.

                                nm =not yet measured; ? = not well-studied or published under peer-review

                                * gallic acid equivalents, Folin-Ciocalteu assay
                                ^ Young et al., Discovery of the Ultimate Superfood, 2005, Essential Science Publishing

                                         

[Note: although different raw material preparations were used for assays of the two berry species,

these data represent a reasonable benchmark for comparing them. The "nm" entries indicate that research is still early on both of these berries. Given their growing popularity, more research is expected in coming years]

The table is just a snapshot but tells us a lot about

açaí and goji antioxidant strength!

1. açaí and goji both are rich sources of phenolics although

açaí has been more thoroughly studied in the report by Schauss et al., 2006,

showing most of its phenolics are proanthocyanidins ; the values of total phenolics for both açaí and goji are among the highest reported for berries

2. açaí, possibly the darkest pigmented berry known, is rich in water-soluble flavonoids

(has high total phenolics and high water-soluble ORAC)

but appears to be poor in fat-soluble carotenoids (low fat-soluble ORAC)

3. goji berries are exceptionally rich in carotenoids which should give them a high

fat-soluble ORAC but this has not been determined yet;

goji has a high water-soluble ORAC relative to other berries

(rich in phenolics such as ellagic acid)

and its total ORAC may exceed açaí if fat-soluble ORAC is also high

4. Antioxidant Summary: both açaí and goji are exceptional for phenolic content and ORAC. Analysis to date for açaí is convincing about its

superior ORAC for water-soluble antioxidants.

5. What does all this mean for these two berries to be used as

functional foods providing high antioxidant value?

• açaí may be best for water-soluble antioxidant applications (beverages)
• goji may be best for mixed- or fat-soluble antioxidant applications

(foods, yogurt, smoothies)

• açaí is difficult to transport as a whole fruit because of its high fat content

(Series essay #1) which may oxidize and so limit it to use as a freeze-dried powder

• goji has more versatility as a raw material, e.g., below as a whole dried fruit

(not possible for açaí)

dried goji berries ("wolfberries"), rich in fat-soluble carotenoids giving the berries their orange-red pigmentation

So who wins this fourth round?

Let's give the nod to açaí for its exceptional total ORAC!

Who wins the overall comparison between açaí and goji

for nutrient-richness, antioxidant strength and versatility as a functional food?

GOJI!

A nutrient-dense food: Series Essays #1 and #2

An antioxidant-rich berry, containing both phenolics and carotenoids: Series Essay #3

Versatile as a whole dried berry, juice and pulp powder.

 

Share this information by referring a contact to http://berrydoctor.com for sign-up!

Dr. Paul
The Berry Doctor

References

* information on açaí: 1) The Super Berry Site; 2) Sambazon; 3) Bomdia

* information on goji: 1) The Goji Site; 2) Wikipedia on goji