According to Grand View Research, global brain health supplements was valued at USD 6.2 billion in 2018. We expect an increase in 2019.

This clearly shows that people are spending a huge sum of money on buying brain supplements, even though there are a lot of issues surrounding the efficacy of these supplements. You can learn more about memory/brain supplements here.

Instead of spending your hard-earned money on questionable supplements, why don’t you actually invest in buying food items that have actually been proven to improve your memory?

An example of such a food item is blueberry.

Blueberries are wonderful fruits to always have around. This blue colored fruit has many fantastic health benefits and one of them is that it helps your brain/memory.

Blueberries contain water (84%), protein (0.7%) , fat (0.3%), carbohydrates (14%).  Blueberries also contain manganese, vitamin C, vitamin K and dietary fibers in moderate quantities.

In this guide, we will show you pieces of evidence that support that blueberries are good for the memory, where to buy blueberries and ways and how to start eating them now.

By the time you finish this guide, we will like you to start including blueberries in your diet immediately. At least, you should do this for the sake of your memory and health.

Before we talk about where to buy blueberries and how to include it in your recipe, let’s first talk about the research works that prove that blueberries are good for the memory.

Scientific Research Works That Suggest That Blueberries Are Good for the Memory

1) Robert Krikorian et al. ⁽¹⁾ investigated the effects of daily consumption of wild blueberry juice in nine older adults and found that blueberry supplementation improves memory in the adults. The research also found trends suggesting reduced depressive symptoms and lower glucose levels.

This research suggests that blueberry helps memory and have a tendency to reduce depressive symptom and glucose levels.

2) Elizabeth E. Devore⁽²⁾ investigated whether long-term intakes of berries and flavonoids are associated with slower rates of cognitive decline in older women and found that increased consumption of berries (including blueberries) and anthocyanidins is associated with slower progression of cognitive decline in older women.

This research further reinforces the fact that blueberries can help your memory.

3) Barbara Shukitt-Hale et al.⁽³⁾ found that polyphenol-rich fruits (including blueberries) can reverse the age-related neuronal deficits.

They even went ahead to suggest that “dietary interventions with polyphenol-rich berry fruit may be one strategy to forestall or even reverse age-related neuronal deficits, via decreases in inflammation, to help preserve cognitive function.”⁽⁴⁾

This further strengthens the fact that blueberries are the food items to always have in your home if you want a good memory.

4. Malin, David et al.⁽⁵⁾ found that a blueberry-enriched diet prevents and reverse object recognition memory loss in aged rats.

Going by all the research works mentioned above, we can infer that blueberries consumption may improve your memory over time.

It is crucial we mention that blueberries also has many other health benefits apart from helping your brain.

This means you not only stand the chance of improving your memory by consuming blueberries but also stand to gain a lot of other health benefits. Some of those benefits are mentioned below.

Other Benefits of Blueberries

• Blueberries help with diabetes

Stull A. J et al. found that daily dietary supplementation with bioactives in freeze-dried whole blueberry powder improved insulin sensitivity in obese patients and insulin-resistant individuals (both men and women)⁽⁶⁾.

There are indications that whole blueberries also help lower glucose over time.

An article on blueberries published on ars.usda.gov⁽⁷⁾ also indicated that blueberries are good for people with type two diabetes because it has the capability to increase insulin sensitivity.

However, if you have diabetes, it is crucial you consult your doctor before you start eating blueberries. This is because there is a tendency that the blood sugar may be greatly reduced if you combine blueberries with antidiabetic medications.

• Blueberries have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and it is good for the eyes

Wuyang Huang et al.⁽⁸⁾ found that “blueberry anthocyanin extract, as well as its major constituent malvidin and its glycosides” could protect the human eyes from high glucose-induced injury. This means that blueberries could help protect against diabetic retinopathy.

• Blueberries can improve mood and help fight depression

There are research works that suggest that blueberries flavonoid consumption can help improve mood⁽⁹⁾. There is also evidence that blueberry can help fight depression⁽¹⁰⁾.

With all these benefits, it is clear blueberries are good for our health. It is a cool idea to consider including blueberries in your food for a better brain and body.

However, we recommend you consult your doctor before you begin consuming blueberries if you have a certain health condition.

What is Blueberries Price?

The price of blueberries depends on whether it is processed or not. Generally processed (e.g. dried blueberries) appears to be more expensive than the fresh ones.

Generally, in the US, the price of fresh blueberries is less than 0.5$ per ounce. The price of the blueberries usually depends on the seller and the place where you are buying it.

Where to Buy Blueberries in Your Area

The first place we will recommend is the local farm store in your area. You can inquire from your friends and family members about the local farm store(s) around you.

You can also get blueberries from a grocery store. Go to grocery stores around you and ask if they have blueberries.

Another place to get blueberries is online markets. For example, Amazon carries many varieties of blueberries and you should be able to easily buy blueberries from this online store.

If you have decided not to buy blueberries, you can also grow them. This is not impossible. Just be ready to put efforts and you will also have to wait for about three to four years before you begin to reap the fruits.

Different Kinds of Blueberries

In case you are just being introduced to these super fruits, it is cool you know that blueberries exist in different forms.

Generally, blueberries occur in five varieties:

1. Lowbush blueberries: These are also called wild blueberries. As the name implies, they are usually found growing in the wild and are smaller in size as compared to highbush blueberries.
2. Northern highbush blueberries: As the name implies, these blueberries grow up to 12 feet in height and are bigger in size as compared to lowbush blueberries. These blueberries are native to the eastern and northeastern parts of the United States. These blueberries are commonly found in grocery stores.
3. Southern highbush blueberries: These blueberries are native to the southeastern part of the United States. Usually, they don’t grow as high as Northern highbush blueberries.
4. Half-high blueberries: These blueberries are the result of a cross between northern highbush blueberries and lowbush blueberries.
5. Rabbiteye blueberries: These blueberries grow up to 4 to 10 feet in height. They are native to Southern United States.

Storage Condition of Blueberry

As an infovore, it is cool you know how to store blueberry when you begin to include them in your diet.

Please note that blueberries can easily spoil when left at room temperature.

To store blueberries properly in a fridge:

1. Sort out the spoiled blueberries. For example, sort out those blueberries with white fuzzy mold.
2. Wash the remaining blueberries in water and dry them with a towel.
3. Look for a container (e.g. a basket) and lay the container with a folded paper towel.
4. Spread the blueberries on the paper towel inside the container.
5. Put the container inside the fridge.

Pro tip: Avoid the coldest or most humid part of the fridge. The crisper drawer of the fridge should also be avoided because the air circulation in the crisper drawer is usually not enough and this may encourage the growth of mold.

Blueberries stored like this can last up to five days or more.

To store blueberries properly in a freezer:

1. Repeat steps one and two above.
2. Place the blueberries individually in a large tray (laid with parchment paper). Make sure that the blueberries are not clumped together.
3. Freeze for three to five hours.

Pro tip: Clumping the blueberries together before they get frozen may not be good for the blueberries. The trick is to freeze them individually first (for few hours) and then clump them together in a resealable freezer-safe bag and then place them back in the freezer.

• Then transfer it to a resealable freezer-safe bag.
• Freeze until you need to use the blueberries. Please note that (good) blueberries can last for several months in a freezer.

Ways in Which You Can Eat or Take Blueberries

In this section, we are going to be mentioning various ways to eat blueberries.

Please endeavor to first consult your doctor if you have any health condition and you wish to include blueberries in your diet.

A. Raw Blueberries

The first form in which you can consume blueberries is to consume them raw. A raw blueberry is an unprocessed form of blueberry.

Preparing raw blueberries for eating:

1. Put the blueberries in a container big enough to contain all the blueberries you want to eat.
2. Identify any spoiled blueberry and pick them out.

Tip: You can use spoilt blueberry to make compost.

• Wash the remaining blueberries with water, if needed.
• Eat and enjoy the blueberries.

Tip: Eating your blueberries raw is probably the best way to get all the nutrients in the blueberries delivered to your body

Hint: Researchers⁽¹¹⁾ have said that eating blueberries with milk might reduce the antioxidants benefits of blueberries. We will recommend that if you need to take milk after blueberries, do so after some hours have gone (preferably more than six hours).

Raw Blueberries Recipe

Servings: 1

Ingredient(s):

• One cup of fresh blueberries

Instructions:

1. Make sure that the blueberries are fresh and not spoilt.
2. Enjoy the raw blueberries.

B.  Blueberries Juice

Another way you can take blueberries is to use it to make juice and then drink the juice. To make blueberries juice, you would need the following ingredients:

1. 2 cups of fresh blueberries
2. 2 cups of water

Instructions:

1. Sort out the spoiled blueberries (if needed). You can use the spoiled blueberries to make compost.
2. Wash the blueberries in clean water. You can do this more than once to properly clean the blueberries.
3. Soak the blueberries for 15 to 30 minutes.
4. After soaking the blueberries, get your blender and put the blueberries inside it.
5. Pour the two cups of water into the blender. Blend until you get a consistent mixture.
6. Sieve the juice out of the blended mixture using a suitable sieve. You have to squeeze the sieve bag so that you get all the juice out.
7. Pour the juice into a suitable container.
8. Drink and enjoy.

Pro tip: You may skip step 6. It is not compulsory you sieve out the juice. You may just take the blended mixture like that.

C. Blueberries Recipes

The third way to take blueberries is to include them in a recipe. There are many recipes that has blueberries as their major ingredients. Take time to look for healthy recipes that have blueberry as a major ingredient.  You should be able to find healthy blueberries recipes by surfing the net.

References

1. Krikorian, R., Shidler, M., Nash, T., Kalt, W., Vinqvist-Tymchuk, M., Shukitt-Hale, B. and Joseph, J. (2010). Blueberry Supplementation Improves Memory in Older Adults†. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 58(7), pp.3996-4000.
2. Devore, E., Kang, J., Breteler, M. and Grodstein, F. (2012). Dietary intakes of berries and flavonoids in relation to cognitive decline. Annals of Neurology, 72(1), pp.135-143.
3. Ars.usda.gov. (2019). Publication : USDA ARS. [online] Available at: https://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publication/?seqNo115=351657 [Accessed 17 Dec. 2019].
4. Ibid
5. Ars.usda.gov. (2019). Publication : USDA ARS. [online] Available at: https://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publication/?seqNo115=250546 [Accessed 27 Dec. 2019].
6. Stull, A., Cash, K., Johnson, W., Champagne, C. and Cefalu, W. (2010). Bioactives in Blueberries Improve Insulin Sensitivity in Obese, Insulin-Resistant Men and Women. The Journal of Nutrition, 140(10), pp.1764-1768.
7. Ars.usda.gov. (2019). Blueberries and Health : USDA ARS. [online] Available at: https://www.ars.usda.gov/plains-area/gfnd/gfhnrc/docs/news-2014/blueberries-and-health/ [Accessed 27 Dec. 2019].
8. Huang, W., Yan, Z., Li, D., Ma, Y., Zhou, J. and Sui, Z. (2018). Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Blueberry Anthocyanins on High Glucose-Induced Human Retinal Capillary Endothelial Cells. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2018, pp.1-10.
9. Khalid, S., Barfoot, K., May, G., Lamport, D., Reynolds, S. and Williams, C. (2017). Effects of Acute Blueberry Flavonoids on Mood in Children and Young Adults. Nutrients, 9(2), p.158.
10. Medlineplus.gov. (2019). Blueberry: MedlinePlus Supplements. [online] Available at: https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/1013.html [Accessed 27 Dec. 2019].
11. Serafini M, e. (2019). Antioxidant activity of blueberry fruit is impaired by association with milk. – PubMed – NCBI . [online] Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19135520 [Accessed 30 Dec. 2019].