Aronia Health Benefits and Effects

Dear Readers, The aronia berry is known for its health-promoting effects.
What many people don’t know: The fruit is not as exotic as Aronia sounds.

The Aronia or chokeberry?

Just a few years ago, Aronia was relatively unknown.
With the discovery of superfood interest in the small berry also began to increase.
Aronia is said to be full of health-promoting ingredients.
It is also ideal for making juice and jam.
This means that many nutrients are retained.
Aronia is the technical term for the chokeberry. However, this does not grow on an apple tree, but on bushes one to two meters high.
The chokeberry originally comes from North America and grew in Canadian forests. The small berry is used to cold. It has also been cultivated in Siberia for several decades.
The shrub blooms for about ten days in May. The flowers are white and resemble those of the apple tree. There are generally three different types of chokeberries. The black chokeberry or Aronia melanocarpa is used for consumption.
Its berries are similar to blueberries and are usually harvested at the end of August. They are approximately one centimeter in diameter and red-black.

Plant Aronia yourself

You can also plant the Aronia berry yourself. It only needs a little care.
The only drawback: Birds and deer also like the dark berry. You should therefore be quick with the harvest.

It is suitable for any garden because the shrub can cope well with difficult soils. He also rarely needs water and otherwise only needs little attention.
You only have to re-harvest in rare cases. As a rule, the berries all ripen at the same time, so you can harvest them all at once.

You can harvest the first aronia berries just one year after planting. If the dark aronia berries are too tart for you, you can use the red berries.
Similar to red currants, these are sweeter and are therefore also suitable for consumption raw.

The origin of the chokeberry
It is very resistant to freezing temperatures.
It also became very popular with self-catering people.
However, interest in the berry declined after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Only in recent years has the power of the aronia berry been rediscovered and it has ended up in our supermarkets as a superfood.

The natives of North America already knew about the health-promoting properties of the berry. They collected the berries, dried them, and consumed them in the cold season. Among other things, they processed them as pemmican.
This is a mixture of jerky, fat, and other ingredients that Native Americans made as provisions for migration and the long winter. Aronia berries were often used as an ingredient here.

Effect of the Aronia Berry

Dark berry has many rich ingredients and is therefore considered a true superfood.
The berry gets its effect from numerous healthy vitamins, trace elements and minerals.
These help to prevent various diseases and support the body in its natural functioning.
They work, among other things:
Anti-inflammatory
Cholesterol-lowering
Antioxidant
Blood sugar regulating
Vasodilating
Antioxidant effect
The antioxidant effect of the plant is particularly well known.
This means that it helps the body fight off free radicals.
These can be caused by harmful environmental influences such as smoking, UV radiation and other pollutants.
Free radicals are very aggressive and can multiply quickly in the body. This process is called oxidative stress.
This can impair various body functions and damage and even destroy proteins, blood vessels, and lipids.
Oxidative stress can increase the risk of numerous diseases, including cancer, autoimmune diseases, and heart disease.
The aging process can also be accelerated by free radicals.
The aronia berry gets its antioxidant effect from numerous secondary plant substances such as the plant pigment anthocyanin, which gives the plant a dark color.
The anthocyanin content of this small berry is said to be higher than that of any other fruit. It is said to contain 800 milligrams of anthocyanin per 100 grams of berries.
In comparison, blackcurrants only have 370 milligrams, and blueberries only 165 milligrams per 100 grams of berries.

The aronia berry is therefore better suited than other berries to ward off harmful environmental influences. However, other berries also have strong antioxidant effects.

Aronia for cancer prevention

In Russia, the aronia berry is even known as a medicinal plant.
In the case of breast cancer, the fruit extract of the berry is said to be able to reduce oxidative stress.
Aronia is also said to have a preventive effect on colon cancer.
A 2004 study found that Aronia extract can inhibit the growth of cancer cells.
However, the laboratory conditions under which such studies are carried out can rarely be transferred to a person’s everyday life.

Health-promoting trace elements

The chokeberry contains many effective minerals and trace elements. These are needed for many bodily functions.
Potassium affects blood pressure and can help regulate blood pressure.
Magnesium is essential for the functionality of muscles. Zinc promotes wound healing and is also important for skin and hair.
Aronia contains potassium as well as magnesium and zinc in appropriate amounts. There are also calcium, iodine, and iron, which also support important body functions.

Numerous vitamins

In addition to trace elements, the berry is also rich in vitamins.
It contains vitamin A as well as vitamin C, E, K and all B vitamins, which have a metabolism-activating effect.
Vitamin C and K strengthen the immune system.
Vitamins A and E are radical scavengers. Aronia contains many ingredients that the body can benefit from.
The small berry can prevent various diseases and sometimes even support their healing.
These include, among other things, intestinal problems, cardiovascular diseases and colds. However, this is rarely scientifically proven.

Relieve stomach and intestinal problems

Unlike Acai, for example, Aronia can rarely be found in cosmetic products.
The berry is more suitable for consumption.
It is suitable as a tasty ingredient for cooking and baking.
But it is also ideal as a dietary supplement.
Since the berry contains a lot of tannins, Aronia products should primarily be consumed after a meal.

This way you avoid possible stomach and intestinal problems. On the other hand, these tannins in particular can also have positive effects on the stomach and intestinal tract.

They can even relieve discomfort in this area. For example, Aronia juice has a mild laxative effect and can therefore be used as a natural laxative.

Aronia for premature skin aging

Although aronia can do little as a cosmetic, it does counteract premature skin aging.
Eating the rich berries also affects the skin.
The combination of active ingredients in the berry strengthens the immune system and connective tissue.

Thanks to its strong antioxidant effect, it can ward off free radicals that would otherwise accelerate the aging process of the skin.
This way you can slow down the aging process and ensure radiant skin for a long time.

Risks of consuming chokeberries

In addition to the numerous positive effects of the aronia berry, there are also some risks and side effects.
These can occur after eating chokeberries.
However, there are risks and intolerances with almost every food. Compared to other superfoods, Aronia berries have few risks.

Hydrocyanic acid

The small, dark aronia berry contains a relatively high amount of hydrogen cyanide. This can turn the tongue and teeth blue when the berry is eaten.

Hydrocyanic acid can be toxic in certain quantities. However, 100 grams of Aronia berries contain a maximum of 1.2 milligrams of hydrogen cyanide.

Hydrocyanic acid is only toxic at a level of 0.7 milligrams per kilogram of body weight.
So you would have to eat several kilos of Aronia berries to get poisoned from them.

Children should be careful and not consume too many chokeberries. Since children have a lower body weight, fewer berries are enough to cause possible symptoms of poisoning.

These include dizziness, headaches, and vomiting. Hydrocyanic acid poisoning only leads to death in very severe cases, for example, if large amounts of hydrogen cyanide are inhaled.

When the chokeberries are processed, the hydrogen cyanide content also decreases. Juices, jams, and fruit bars can therefore be consumed without hesitation. Nevertheless, you should pay attention to the recommended consumption amount.

Stomach pain

In some cases, consuming aronia berries leads to abdominal pain and constipation. This is due to the tannins it contains, which can lead to intolerance in some cases.
However, these effects can be reduced if aronia juices and teas are consumed after meals.

Be careful with iron deficiency

People who have been diagnosed with iron deficiency should be careful.
Aronia berries contain proanthocyanidins, which bind iron and promote its excretion.
Although aronia berries themselves contain iron, excessive consumption can hurt iron levels.

Aronia and blood thinners

Some superfoods can react with blood thinners. For example, goji berries, together with blood thinners, can severely impair blood clotting. This can sometimes even be life-threatening.
In contrast to goji berries, aronia berries can weaken and even eliminate the effects of blood thinners. This is due to the vitamin K it contains. Dried fruits contain up to 1.0 milligrams of vitamin K per 100 grams of berries.

When taking blood thinners, you should pay attention to how much vitamin K you consume. It is best to discuss this with a doctor beforehand.

Buying aronia berries: This is what you should keep in mind

If you want to use aronia as an ingredient in cake or as a healthy alternative in muesli, you have to take a few things into account when purchasing.
There are a few things you can keep in mind. If quality is important to you, you should choose products from certified organic farming.
Organic products usually contain fewer harmful substances.

To be sure that it is an organic product, you should look for organic seals.
For example, there is the EU organic seal here. Products with this seal do not use chemical plants and fertilizers, genetic engineering, and numerous additives, among other things.
If you would like to buy aronia juice, you should make sure that it is straight juice.

Juices often consist of juice concentrate and are diluted with water and additives. Direct juice is pure juice as long as it is 100 percent direct juice.

This means that the ingredients in the berry can work even faster, as they reach the blood and cells more quickly than if you consume the whole berry. Dried berries have the advantage that the ingredients are highly concentrated.
However, anyone who consumes dried fruit should also drink plenty of water.