Why is it that I can not be on the web lately for more than 10 minutes without coming across and ad, popup or banner for this magical new diet based on the acai berry? Seeing as it is more or less impossible to steer clear of all these advertisements, it is only rational to ask yourself if there is any truth behind all the hype? Does this bizarre sounding mysterious berry from a far off land possess any nutritional merit worth discussing? When all is said and done, the # 1 question that people want answered is, “will this product in fact make it easier to reduce my weight?”

Why is it that a purple berry, from Brazil, that no one had heard of before the last couple of years, is now found in everything from beer, to shampoo to snack bars and beyond? Why are food manufactures running to produce as many acai products as they feasibly can?

Before we start talking about this berry and the rationale behind its attractiveness, I do need to answer the more significant and fundamental question about whether it can help with losing weight and that response is: YES and NO.

If that response spiked your curiosity, fabulous. If it made you mad, I am sorry and all I can say is, “don’t be”. After you finish reading this article, you will comprehend exactly why it is that I provided you with that response and you will have the education you need to make an knowledgeable choice when it comes to the acai berry.

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The logic behind the “no” piece of my response is very clear-cut and concise so we will talk about that part of my response first. If your program for reducing your weight consists of just downing acai pills (or most “weight-loss” pills in this case), there is a very small probability that you will encounter any form of success with short term weight loss and an even more unlikely likelihood that the weight loss will be long term. I wish it was that undemanding but regrettably, successful weight loss (short and long term) does not live inside the confines of a plastic bottle or container.

With the “no” piece covered, lets shift our attention over to the “yes” piece of my answer. With hindsight, I can’t believe the amount of time and energy I put into trying different acai based products for the solitary purpose of seeing how it would fit into a diet and what outcome it would have for a person that was looking to shed some weight. Before we ensue
advance, please consider that I am not a medical doctor or some Masters or PhD scientist. So my research wasn’t done in a lab and I am not observing this berry at a molecular level. My conclusions come from real world application. Application on myself and the acknowledgements I have received from dozens of people that have tried and incorporated different acai based products into their weight reduction routine.

Here is the cliff notes account of what my research uncovered; it would be a massive understatement to say that the acai berry is a nutritionally complex phenomenon of nature. The nutritional advantages of this berry go well beyond most of the stuff a lot of us place into our mouths day after day. And I can with assurance say that it will in all probability be several more years before we thoroughly get a full understanding of the nutritional advantages that the acai berry offers. Appropriate and superb nutrition is a major element of any successful diet and nutrition curriculum and as you can imagine at this point, the acai berry is at the head of its class in this department.

It is vital to know what it is that makes this berry so special and that includes knowing where it grows and what function that plays in its nutritional superiority. You can circle our earth all you want but I will save you the time and cost if you are looking to find where the acai berry grows and prospers. It is native to solely one location and that is the Amazon Rainforest in the jungles of Brazil. This fact plays a key role in comprehending why it is that on a nutritional level, this berry is such a powerhouse.

First and foremost, lack of urbanization and industrial expansion have kept this berry pure of so many of the impurities we uncover in today’s fruits (impurities caused by things like pollution, insect killer, etc…). Second, because of where it grows, it literally has to be resilient in order to survive many of the adversities nature tosses its way; hardships like seasonal flooding, powerful rays from the sun, and other fruits and vegetation fighting for the resources that are needed to grow and blossom in that environment. This hardiness is found in the skin of this fruit and that is precisely where so much of the incredible nutritional properties this fruit possess is stored. The acai berry grows high above the ground in a particular species of palm trees. On paper, the acai berry truly has no known counterpart in the fruit or vegetable world. Its nutritional properties and the levels of antioxidants that it contains are off the charts. When the pulp and skin of the acai were analyzed, it was determined that it contained an remarkable amount of amino acids, trace minerals and essential fatty acids.

Under a microscope and at a cellular level, the exceedingly considerable amount of antioxidants found in this berry act as an remarkable weapon against an enemy known as free radicals.

As you sit there and read this article, free radicals are harming the cell’s in your body. Free radicals are formed as a byproduct of all the pollution our bodies soak up on a daily basis. Pollution from sources like car exhaust, industrial fumes, first and second hand smoke, etc… Unless you propose on never leaving the restrictions of sealed chamber, don’t waste your time in trying to come up with a way to avoid free radicals; it is a virtual impossibility. An amassing of free radicals is something you should fight at all costs. Not only will you appear more worn because of an acceleration in the aging process, you will also decrease the strength of your immune system which leaves your body more vulnerable to sickness and disease.

Lets take a look at this process in the real world so you can really understand what free radicals are doing to your body. Please go and locate an apple. Cut the apple in half and watch what takes place. As it changes color, that process is recognized as oxidation. Free radicals are doing same thing to your cells; they cause them to oxidize. More antioxidants equals less free radicals in your body… that is how you are going to defeat them. You need to ensure that your diet consists of foods that are rich in antioxidants. If you look in a book titled, ‘The Perricone Promise’ (or on Oprah’s website), you will see that the author, Dr. Nicholas Perricone, lists the acai berry as his number 1 choice for superfoods in the world.

Please bear in mind that there are a lot of ads and web sites out on the internet these days that are advertising the ‘Acai Berry Diet’ as Oprah’s new diet and this is a total fabrication of the truth. At the time of this article being written, there were no acai based weight loss products that she was endorsing or standing behind.

Now that we have finished with the science lesson, let’s shift our focus back to losing weight. The secret is not to waste time in search of that one almighty and all-powerful fruit or vegetable that is going to make it happen for you. Yes, the acai berry has many astounding properties and makes an outstanding addition to most nutritional regimens but if you want true weight loss success (especially for the long term), you need to make intelligent choices about all the food that is going into your body. It is of the highest significance that you take the time to have a handle on which foods in reality help the fat burning process and more importantly, which foods hinder the process. There are loads of impressive approaches out there like ‘calorie shifting’, which allow a person to use specific nutritional properties found in different foods to help boost up your metabolism. This enables your body to produce a greater quantity of fat burning hormones which will, of course, help your body lose weight more rapidly.

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So now that we recognize that free radicals are bad, antioxidants are good, and acai berries hold lots of them (antioxidants); how do we incorporate acai into our diet while avoiding all the scams we are learning about each day and what can we expect once we are consuming it? This is a long way from being a true science experiment but I did pull together a significant amount of testimonials from different people consuming acai based products and I have gone ahead and listed them below. One important thing to note is that I have only listed items that myself and least 2 other people experienced or felt:

- Raised energy levels
– Deeper and sustained sleep in the evenings
– Improvements in my skin and complexion
– Enhanced sexual drive and performance
– Better focus throughout the day
– Almost no occurrence of heart burn or indigestion
– Overall higher stamina

Put the car keys down! I don’t want you driving off to your local farmers market… not unless that market is located in the Brasilian rain forest or at a minimum, within a few hours of it. I’m certain I just wrecked the thought you had for acai hotcakes in the morning but it is very important that you know this part. Upon being harvested from the palm in which it grows, the acai berry starts to lose its nutritional propensity just about instantly and inside of 24-36 hours, well… you might as well settle for some blueberry pancakes.

I know that I have presented you with a lot of information to digest but this next portion is going to be the most critical and pertinent portion of this article when it comes to acai, your diet and weight loss. It is extremely important that you take great care in deciding on an acai based product and take extra care if you see the phrase ‘free trial’ in the offer or advertisement. Let me be of assistance with the translation; ‘free trail’ is turning out to be another way of saying ‘scam’ with many of these offers (notice the words I used. Not ALL of them are scams).

Pills: check; powders: check; liquid form: check… I have evaluated just about all the various forms that acai based products come in and the one that gave me the most physical benefit came in a liquid form. The product name was MonaVie. They are a Utah based direct sales company and aside from the acai berry, their functional health beverage contains 18 other fruits known to contain tremendous levels of nutrition and antioxidants. This article is not intended to be a product advertisement and that is why you are not going to find any links directing you to a specific product. My goal is to share with you what worked best for me, and for a significant # of people I have spoken with. Even though this particular product is not an acai only product, from what I understand, it is the key ingredient in the blend and it also supports my belief in not focusing on just one ingredient to be the magic. If you want to concentrate on locating an acai only product to incorporate in to your diet, the key is to locate one that safeguards the nutritional integrity of the berry once it has been picked from the palm. So, with that being said, concentrate on acai that has been freeze dried in Brazil. If it is processed in the States, I doubt it made it to the processing facility inside 24-36 hours of being picked. Furthermore, make sure they are processing the whole berry. Many facilities abandon the skin and if you have read this whole article, you know exactly why that is a very poor idea.

On a final note, I have to emphasize this one more time; please be very careful with all these free trial offers that are going around out there…. Particularly the ones using Oprah’s name. I am sure some of these free trial offers are legit but I have spoken with more than a dozen individuals that said they were charged a very small amount and before the product even arrived, they were charged a much larger amount. They then had a very arduous time trying to cancel the service. On top of all that, when the product arrived, it was junk (their language, not mine). If you are considering one of these offers, take the time to read the fine print within the terms and conditions and know what they plan on doing with your credit card number. Also take the time to find out what is being charged and when. On a final note,  try getting in contact with customer service before placing your order and see if you are actually able to speak with a human being.

A diet rich in antioxidants is vital if you want to live a healthy or healthier lifestyle and the acai berry is a great addition to just about any nutritional regimen. Alone, it is not going to reduce the weight for you but properly incorporated into your diet, it can help with the overall program by providing more energy, focus and drive. Items you certainly need to successfully lose weight.

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