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raspberry-related stories

Berries - what tops the antioxidant chart?

Nutrition & Supplements

I'm confused. Which berries really have the most antioxidants? I've always heard that blueberries are tops. But cranberries have gotten some pretty good press too. And there are others that pop up from time to time and jockey for a spot on the most-healthy list. The experts at Ladies Home Journal (November 2008) try to clear up the mystery as they sort out the berry best.

And the winner is: The frozen açaí berry, boasting an antioxidant score of 10,000 (for about a half a cup). We're talking ORAC scores here -- oxygen radical absorbance capacity. Ideally, you should get more than 5,000 ORACs per day. Clearly, this berry delivers. Here's how some others stack up. Serving size for all is one cup.

Blueberries, fresh or frozen: 9,697
Cranberries, frozen: 9,584
Blackberries, fresh or frozen: 7,700
Raspberries, fresh or frozen: 6,005
Strawberries, fresh or frozen: 5,151

Jams, chutneys, and relishes ... oh my!

Diet & Weight Loss

jar of homemade jamEach week, I head to the farmer's market. It's always fun to see what new fruits and vegetables are at the market. Produce never tastes better than when it's fresh from the farm. Take advantage of summer's bounty and preserve some fresh produce.

You can can or freeze many fruits. I remember spending many summer days helping my mom freeze and can fruits and vegetables. My favorite was (and is) sliced and frozen peaches -- they're so delicious when they're just partially thawed. You can also try some of these recipes from Cooking Light and create yummy jams, chutneys, and relishes for use throughout the year. Some of their recipes include:

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Jumpstart Your Fitness: With the 5 best summer fruits

Nutrition & Supplements

One of the best parts about summer is all the fresh fruit that comes into season -- not only does it taste so much better when it didn't have to get shipped across the world but freshly ripened fruit is also full of much more in the way of nutrients, enzymes, and other health benefits. And although pretty much all fruits are good for you in one way or another, here are a few you'll want to make sure you incorporate as much as possible into your summer diet:

The 5 best summer fruits(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Red RaspberriesBlueberriesSweet CherriesPeachesStrawberries


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Some tasty ways to get flaxseed into your diet

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

If you haven't heard about the benefits of flaxseed yet, where have you been hiding? The superfood is full of fiber, can lower cholesterol as well as reduce the risk of heart disease, may protect again breast cancer and contains tonnes of Omega-3 fatty acids. So if you haven't added it to your diet, now is as good a time as any.

Many people choose to grind the seed, which can be found at most local grocery and health food stores, in a coffee bean grinder and then sprinkle it into yogurt, cereal or even pasta sauce. If you'd like a few new ideas, take a look at the three tasty recipes listed here.

You can treat yourself to a Raspberry Smoothie, try a delectable Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin or whip up some Flaxseed and Blueberry Pancakes, which include another superfood (blueberries) as a main ingredient. Having taken a look at the recipes, I'm already craving one of the Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins.

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Do it yourself: Jam

Nutrition & Supplements

One of my favorite treats is bread and jam. Toast and jam works too, and both are especially good with a tablespoon of the tasty, homemade raspberry variety. When I was little, I used to love visiting the family farm and spending an afternoon picking berries (although admittedly, a lot of those berries didn't make it into the pail, but rather ended up heading straight into my mouth after being plucked from among its leafy green surroundings), knowing that my grandmother would turn it into one of my favorite sweet treats.

I never sat in on a jam-making session though, so have never had the chance to make it on my own and wouldn't even know where to start. But recently I came across this post at DIY Life by Heather Craven that gives details on how to make your own jam! She mentions that it's great to use fruit out of your own garden, but if you don't have that particular luxury it's the perfect time of year to find all sorts of appropriate fruits at a local farmer's market. Next time all you fellow jam-fans out there have some time on your hands, you'll know what to do.

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We'll pay anything for those magic berries

Diet & Weight Loss, Celebs & Entertainment, Nutrition & Supplements

There has been so much good press lately regarding the health benefits of fresh fruit, especially fresh raspberries and blueberries, that more and more shoppers are putting fruit on the weekly grocery list. Credited with helping in the fight against one of the biggest illnesses in this country, cancer, it's no wonder fresh fruit is getting so popular. So that's great and all, but there is a downside to this sudden interest in the produce aisle: prices are skyrocketing. Berries are flying by air, floating by sea, and traveling by truck from all over the world in an attempt to meet the drastically rising demand.

Of course it's never a good thing when prices at the grocery store go up, especially when it's related to something in the "health food" category. But hopefully people won't get too discouraged -- spending a few extra bucks on fresh fruit is so much better for you than blowing it on a big bag of Doritos.

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