March 20, 2009

You Ask, I Answer: Wild Blueberries

Are wild blueberries more nutritious than regular blueberries?

-- Sophia Durbitry

[Location withheld]


The main differences between wild blueberries and "regular" (planted) blueberries are their size (wild blueberries are smaller) and taste (wild blueberries are tangier and a little sweeter).

From a nutritional standpoint, there isn't a huge difference.

Wild blueberries are reported to have higher levels of antioxidants, but I wonder if that is simply because they are smaller in size (a half cup of wild blueberries contains almost twice as much individual berries as half a cup of cultivated blueberries).

Even if, ounce by ounce, the wild variety is higher in antioxidants, cultivated blueberries already contain a wide array.

Incorporating blueberries -- wild or otherwise -- into your diet is a great move. As the popular idiom suggests, "don't sweat the small stuff."

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