The Benefits of Blueberries II
There are three or four species of cranberry, classified in two sections:
* Oxycoccus or Oxycoccus Vaccinium palustris (Common Cranberry or Northern Cranberry). It is found throughout the Northern Hemisphere cold area, including northern Europe, northern Asia and North America.
The leaves are small, between 5 and 10 mm. The leaves are dark pink with a purple central spike, and grow on stems finely hairy. The fruit is a small pale pink berry, with a refreshing sharp taste sour.
* Vaccinium microcarpum or Oxycoccus microcarpus (small cranberry), which occurs in northern Europe and northern Asia, and differs in that the leaves are more triangular, and flower stems are hairless. Some botanists include it in V. oxycoccus.
* Vaccinium macrocarpon or Oxycoccus macrocarpus (American Cranberry) native to northern North America (eastern Canada and eastern United States, south of North Carolina at high altitudes). It differs from V. oxycoccus in the leaves are larger, between 10 and 20 mm in length, and taste slightly similar to the block.
* Vaccinium erythrocarpum or Oxycoccus erythrocarpus (mountain cranberry south), is native to southeastern North America at high altitudes in the southern Appalachian Mountains, and also in East Asia.
The Benefits of Blueberries I
So it is a wild fruit in the form of berries, which are usually black-blue or red, which grows in mountainous areas, not too humid, or limestone, not too fertile.
Anthocyanins and carotenoids are abundant in the composition of all fruits. From the biochemical point of view are characterized by a high antioxidant activity; neutralize the action of free radicals that are harmful to the body.
These properties can lead to very different physiological effects, inflammatory and antibacterial effects of anthocyanins, among others. These fruits contain, in addition to the anthocyanins and carotenoids, other antioxidants such as vitamin C.
The dietary intake of these substances enhances our immune system or the body’s defenses and helps reduce the risk of degenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases and even cancer. Also, vitamin C has the ability to promote absorption of iron from food.
The name cranberry refers to a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs in the genus Vaccinium, subgenus Oxycoccus, although some botanists believe Oxycoccus a separate genus. They grow in acidic bogs in the colder areas of the Northern Hemisphere.
The cranberry bush is low, with stems of 10 cm or less, with thin stems and small evergreens. The flowers are dark pink, with distinctive petals “reflected” leaving the style and stamens fully exposed, pointing forward. The fruit is a berry-sized authentic than the leaves. It is initially white, but turns bright red when ripe.