Bilberry is a queen of pine forest berries. It is a fruit and a wonderful medicinal plant. Can be found in pine forests of Northern or Western Europe and Canada. Season for fruits from late July until mid of September, depending on weather and region.
Bilberry which is dark purple blue inside is a very precious medicinal berry.
Countries like Sweden, Canada, Croatia, Serbia, Hungary, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and other export bilberries to other countries. Bilberries grow wild in pine forests. Variates, called light bilberries, also can be found in a forest and particularly this type is grown on farms.
Anthocyanidins rich extracts and plants rich in these compounds can modulate gut microbiota composition and counteract some of the features of HF-diet induced dysbiosis.
Bilberry fruits are rich in anthocyanidins and they are:
Anti-ageing
Collagen destruction inhibitor
Scavenger of free radicals
Reduce capillary permeability
Blood circulation peripheral and brain
Reduce inflammation and pain
Relieve muscles spasms
Eyesight can be greatly improved on bilberries.
You can pick your own bilberries in pine forests of Scotland or buy frozen from companies that import them to UK from such countries as Canada, Croatia and other. Or in a season of bilberries you can travel to countries where it grows to pick them there. Fresh from forest are always the best.
In fact, in Eastern Europe, they know 2 types of bilberries, one is called bilberries and another is called light bilberries. So, the ones which are available in supermarkets are farmed light bilberries, they are easier to grow, larger in size as berries as the bush on what they are growing. They resemble from outside wild bilberries which grow in pine forests but inside they are different in colour.
Those which are sold in supermarkets are from farms, they are not dark purple blue inside, only their skin is. So, it is possible that there are still some medicinal properties in farmed ones.
If you can't travel to bilberries countries in season and do not like frozen berries, at least get those from supermarkets. Dark blue purple skin of those berries still can have some goodness.
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