Superfood Spotlight: Raspberries

Now that summer is here, berries are in season! Berries are indeed one of Mother Nature’s superfoods. They are packed with nutrition including antioxidants and phytochemicals that help to keep us youthful and cancer free.

Today I was at the market and was immediately drawn to raspberries. Interestingly, black raspberries have been involved in numerous studies and have been shown to decrease the growth of certain types of cancers. An extract in black raspberries has been found to prevent the proliferation of cancer cells (which is different from killing cancer cells). Since they are hard to find, freeze dried products exist in capsular and whole form as shown to left.

Raspberry Breakfast Selfie! ©DrNikkiNoce

Other things to know about raspberries:

•  If you really have to pick and choose about which fruits to buy organic, berries are one of them because of all the pesticides often used in the cultivation process.
• Since fresh organic berries are often hard to find and can be pricey, rest assure that frozen organic berries aren’t such a bad option. If anything frozen fruit may contain higher nutrients because they continue to receive nourishment until they are picked at optimal ripeness— unlike fresh produce, which is oftentimes picked early to avoid spoiling before hitting the market.
• I love eating them as a snack, adding them to my oatmeal in the morning, or adding them to a smoothie.