Black currants (Ribes nigrum) are making a comeback in the United States, after being banned in the early 1910s, and are now recognized for their numerous health benefits. Native to Northern Europe and Northern Asia, these berries are packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, offering a range of advantages, including potential support for weight loss.
Nutritional Profile and Antioxidant Power
Black currants are full of antioxidants, including vitamin C and anthocyanins. Anthocyanins give black currants their characteristic dark color and fight free radicals in the body, reducing oxidative stress and cell damage. Black currants have one of the highest antioxidant values for fruit, making them effective in treating or preventing a number of health issues. Black currants are high in vitamin C, containing about 56% of your daily recommended value in a single serving.
Blackcurrant Tea
For every berry lover, black currants are far from an ordinary fruit. With a deep and rich purple color, delicious and very versatile, these berries are packed with antioxidants and Vitamin C. In fact, they may surpass many other fruits we usually consider the best source of important nutrients. When we talk about blackcurrant tea, we usually talk about tea made from berries, rather than leaves. Blackcurrant tea is a dried fruit tea made from small berries grown on a shrub. The Latin name of the shrub is ribes nigrum, and it’s mostly grown across Europe and Asia. Today, Poland is one of the biggest producers of black currants in the world. Pure black currant fruit tea is mostly available in tea bags, with larger freeze-dried fruits often being an ingredient in delicious loose tea blends. Black currant doesn’t only tastes great, it may offer many great health benefits such as regulating blood pressure, increasing fat oxidation and promoting skin health. It’s rich in Vitamin C and flavonols and has a high antioxidant activity. Similar to acai berries, fruit of the black currant bush contains a pigment anthocyanins, powerful antioxidant that gives dark purple color to fruits and vegetables.
Blackcurrants are often eaten raw, used for making jams and syrups, and dried for making tea. Pure black currant fruit tea is a very popular and widely available tea and tastes delicious even with no sugar or lemon. Blackcurrants are a great ingredient for making tea blends with green and black tea too. Always use freshly boiled spring water for making tea. Although fruit and herbal teas are usually stronger in flavor and may tolerate hard tap water, for the best flavor spring water is the top choice. Use 1-2 teaspoons of loose black currant tea or one tea bag per cup of water. Bring water to a boil and let it cool for a few seconds. Steep the tea for 5-10 minutes.
Blackcurrant and Weight Management
Black currants may have an impact on fat oxidation and promote weight loss. However, just like any other fruits or vegetables, to benefit from black currants in terms of weight loss, physical exercise is a must. Recent studies have shown that this clever New Zealand blackcurrant extract has unprecedented fat burning effects during activity, while increasing blood flow up to 30% and makes exercising easier by lowering blood pressure - actions that would also prevent and support people with type 2 diabetes.
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Enhanced Fat Burning
In the first comparative study of its kind, the berry supplement accelerated fat burning in the group by an average 28%, with the highest male responder reaching 204%, and female responder reaching 216%. The greatest effect was seen in women carrying more body fat. The researchers from the University of Worcester concluded one week’s supplementation with the berry supplement led the group to burn, on average, an additional 3.6g of fat in one hour of exercise. Across a month, if users were to exercise five times a week, this could equate to an average of approximately 72 grams of fat. Cook said: “If you can increase fat burning during exercise, over a prolonged period of time, that could equate to greater fat loss. Applied to a population doing an exercise training program with high polyphenol intake with blackcurrant would have really important health implications.”The supplement also led to large-to-moderate reductions in blood pressure, showcasing how the berry can amplify the heart-health benefits of exercise to a clinically-significant degree.
The study showed that supplementation with the extract increased fat oxidation during supine rest. In the study, 16 healthy active men were given the blackcurrant extract daily with breakfast for 14 days. Researchers measured physiological and metabolic responses during supine rest, and analyzed observations with the lowest 10-minute ventilation. They also used bioelectrical impedance to measure body fat percentage. Researchers found that 14-day daily intake of the blackcurrant extract did not have an effect on heart rate, minute ventilation, oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production, and energy expenditure during supine rest, but it did decrease respiratory exchange ratio, increase fat oxidation, and decrease carbohydrate oxidation. Half of the subjects in the study experienced a greater than 10% increase (ranging from 13% to 61%) in fat oxidation.
Based on the premise that this New Zealand blackcurrant extract is effective for six-ten hours of the day, outside of eating periods (when the effects would be eliminated), this could contribute to burning up to an additional 15 lbs of fat in a year for some people.
Blackcurrant Extract as a Supplement
Willems states that the data is impressive because, “If you’re trying to increase all your healthy habits and using diet and exercise to lose weight, it can be a significant tool for those seeking fat loss, without doing anything extra.” In the study, subjects consumed 210 mg of anthocyanins. Each 300 mg capsule of CurraNZ contains 105 mg of Enzans which is a proprietary standardized dose of bioactive anthocyanins and polyphenols.
With a standardized blackcurrant extract, you are receiving a known amount of bio actives that provide proven and favorable changes to energy metabolism, and these supplement studies consistently show exactly what a high-quality extract can do.
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Additional Health Benefits
Beyond weight management, black currants offer a wide array of health benefits:
Immune Support
Black currants are high in antioxidants, including vitamin C. Along with the anthocyanins in black currants, these antioxidants can help to give your immune system a boost, allowing your body to fight infection and viruses more effectively. Antioxidant activity in black currants is enhanced because of the high levels of Vitamin C. These berries are great for the overall health and boosting immune system.
Reduced Inflammation
Black currants are rich in an omega-6 fatty acid called gamma-linoleic acid. This compound can help to reduce inflammation, as well as improve symptoms of inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis. Some studies also showed that gamma-linoleic acid helped to lessen joint pain and stiffness for people with arthritis.
Eye Health
Anthocyanin-rich black currants may help treat glaucoma, one of the leading causes of blindness. The antioxidant increases blood flow in the eyes and may help to slow the progression of glaucoma. Gamma-linoleic acid, linoleic acid (found in vitamin C), and other antioxidants may also help to improve dry eye and symptoms of eye fatigue.
Heart Health
Incorporating black currants into your diet may help to improve your heart health and reduce your risk for heart disease. Some studies show that black currant seed oil can help to improve your total cholesterol levels and reduce triglycerides in your blood.
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Digestive Health
Black currants contain soluble and insoluble fiber, both of which are vital for healthy digestion. While soluble fiber slows digestion so your gut can absorb more nutrients, insoluble fiber keeps things moving through the digestive system. It also helps to prevent the buildup of toxins and reduce your risk of colon cancer.
Diabetes Management
Black currants have high levels of manganese, which is an important mineral for helping to control blood sugar level. Manganese may aid in proper insulin secretion and help level out blood sugar for people with type 2 diabetes. Scientists involved in this latest study believed there was emerging evidence that potentially medication could be reduced for people with type 2 diabetes if consuming the blackcurrant extract as well, together with lifestyle changes.
Cancer Prevention
The antioxidants in black currants help to fight free radicals in the body. They also help to reduce cell damage that can otherwise lead to certain types of cancer. Anthocyanins in black currants may even help to slow the development of existing cancer cells on the liver. Blackcurrants may have a strong anti-cancer potential.
Cognitive Function
Including black currants into a diet may have positive benefits on the brain too. So far, studies in rats showed a neuroprotective activity in aging mice.
Athletic Performance
The benefit of blackcurrants’ rich anthocyanin content may extend to tangible athletic performance improvements, according to the findings of several recent studies. One new study, published in the journal Nutrients, found that New Zealand blackcurrant extract could improve athletic performance by as much as 38%. In this study, researchers found that after seven days of New Zealand blackcurrant extract supplementation, cyclists improved their 16.1km cycling time trial performance by an average of 2.4%. That’s about 44 seconds. Pretty impressive. A 2020 review and meta-analyses of 16 studies on blackcurrant supplementation also concluded that blackcurrant has a small but significant effect on sport performance, with no known detrimental side effects. There is a reason why black current are some of the most favorite berries of physically active people.
Muscle Recovery
Following intense bouts of exercise, increased inflammation and oxidative stress (when the body struggles to neutralise free radicals with antioxidants) are parts of the body’s natural response, so it makes sense that consuming an antioxidant-rich substance, aka blackcurrant extract, would help combat this.
Reduced Running-Induced GI Symptoms
Well, a brand-new study suggests that New Zealand blackcurrant extract could help you avoid that. Participants supplemented with blackcurrant extract for seven days before running on a treadmill in hot conditions (34°C and around 40% humidity) for one hour at 65% of their VO2 max. They repeated this with a placebo, acting as their own control. With the placebo, 11 participants (92%) reported gastrointestinal symptoms (eg, stitches and bloating), but with the blackcurrant extract, this reduced to only four participants (25%). Therefore, based on these findings, blackcurrant extract is potentially quite powerful if you’re going to be doing any heat-stressed exercise, which is useful information in this seemingly never-ending heatwave.
Blood Pressure Regulation
The supplement also led to large-to-moderate reductions in blood pressure, showcasing how the berry can amplify the heart-health benefits of exercise to a clinically-significant degree. Black currants may also lower blood pressure.
Considerations and Precautions
If you have a bleeding disorder or take blood thinning medications like aspirin, you should speak with your doctor before adding black currants to your diet. Low blood pressure can lead to dizziness, fainting, rapid breathing, and blurry vision.
How to Incorporate Black Currants into Your Diet
You’re more likely to find dried black currants than fresh, but some stores do carry them. When buying these berries fresh, look for deep purple, glossy skin. Keep in mind that, once picked, black currants can go bad quickly. You can slow the process by storing them in the refrigerator or freezer. While black currants have a strong taste, they’re delicious to eat raw when they’re ripe. You can also use them in a variety of recipes.
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