Acai Berries: Really a Super-Food?

(CBS)  Acai berries seem to be everywhere these days.

Ads claim they do everything from helping you lose weight to softening your hair and increasing your sex drive.

They're used in plenty of food products and dietary supplements.

But is acai really a super-fruit?

FOR SEVERAL LO-CAL RECIPES USING ACAI, GO TO PAGE 2. RECIPESSunrise Smoothie Parfait

Ingredients
1/2 cup frozen unsweetened blueberries, preferably wild
2 tablespoons frozen açaí pulp
1/2 tablespoon light agave nectar
1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
1/2 cup cubed peeled ripe mango
1/4 cup ice
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon toasted wheat germ
1/2 cup frozen unsweetened pineapple cubes (such as Dole)
1/4 cup coconut water
2 tablespoons flaked unsweetened coconut

Preparation
1. Purée first 4 ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour into a chilled glass.
2. Rinse blender, and purée mango with ice, lime juice, and wheat germ until smooth. Spoon over the blueberry mixture.
3. Rinse blender again; purée pineapple with remaining ingredients until smooth. Spoon into glass over mango mixture; serve.

"Early Show" recipes galore!

Oatmeal Pancakes with Wild Blueberry Sauce

Makes about 12 pancakes

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup 1% low-fat buttermilk
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons açaí powder
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups 1% low-fat milk
Cooking spray
2 cups frozen wild blueberries, thawed
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preparation
1. Soak oats in buttermilk in a small bowl for 15 minutes.
2. Combine all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and açaí powder in a medium bowl.
3. Whisk eggs together with egg whites in a small bowl, and stir in milk.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and stir.
5. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, and coat with cooking spray.
6. Pour about 1/2 cup batter per pancake onto hot skillet, and cook 2 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked.
7. Flip and cook 2 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned.
8. Transfer to a plate; keep warm.
9. Cook remaining batter in batches.
10. Meanwhile, combine blueberries, 1/4 cup sugar, and lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until berries pop. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Spoon blueberry sauce over pancakes; serve.

Salad Dressing

Ingredients
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons acai juice (or juice blend)
1 teaspoon agave nectar or honey (I have some in the office)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon olive oil (can increase if needed)

Instructions
1. Whisk together in a bowl. Drizzle over fresh spinach or your choice of mixed greens.

[19Angie80]

I take an antioxidant that contains Acai and I have noticed an increase in my energy. It is called Proleva and it contains other ingredients such as Goji Berries and Mangosteen all seem to be helping with my overall health. I have lowered my cholesterol and have more energy to exercise regularly which I have had trouble with in the past. I believe in antioxidants such as Acai and think people need to give them a try instead of doubting their affects.

[1ShelbyGirl]

The best source of acai is found in a juice called MonaVie. Once the acai berry is picked in the rain forest of Brazil, it looses it's potency in 24-48 hours. MonaVie has a patent on how the acai is processed and is the only source available to receive the full benefits that the berry offers!

[she_writes]

Acai is a global ripoff for overfed and over nourished Americans. They fly the berries in frozen at great cost, driving the prices up in the Amazon for a food that the local people used to rely on, since they had none of the berries that are so prolific in the US. What are the locals in Brazil supposed to eat now, should they fly in cheaper frozen blueberries from the US that have about the same antiox potential? This is a ridiculous food fad that helps a few rich exporters and the Brazilian economy but hurts the local diet of the poor. Not to mention the energy wasted for all that shipping, when a similar berry or combination of nutrients can be purchased locally for much less. Get a clue America! There is no such thing as a superfood, in fact the European Union banned the term because it can't be proved for most the foods are assigned this label. The word was coined by the media to sell advertising.

[rktsci3127]

I wonder what diameter they are.

[rktsci3127]

Hmmmmm..."Acai is a small, round, black-purple berry about an inch wide." About an inch wide, eh. Well, how deep and tall is it?? They kinda looked round to me.

[book_of_wally]

Well that would be about an inch Einstein.