04/03/2021
Our family is never without this Red Juice. Ningxia Red is made of Wolfberries and here are some benefits.
Wolfberry Benefits: Antioxidant & Anti-Inflammatory Superfruit
8 Benefits of Wolfberries:
1. Provide High Levels of Antioxidants and Nutrients
Like most other superfoods, wolfberries are an excellent source of antioxidants that help boost the immune system and protect the body from high levels of inflammation since they fight free radical damage. In terms of the quantity of antioxidants present in wolfberries, they have a high ORAC value along with other beneficial berries, which indicates their exceptional ability to reduce oxidative stress.
One of the surprising wolfberry benefits you might not know about is that each serving has about four grams of protein per serving and 18 different amino acids, plus over 20 other trace minerals, including zinc, iron, phosphorus and riboflavin (vitamin B2). Ounce for ounce, wolfberries offer more beta-carotene than carrots and more iron than soybeans and spinach nutrition, which makes them a great source to help stave off iron deficiency!
2. Improve Immune Function and Fight Cancer
Wolfberries are similar to other berries — like blueberries and raspberries — in that they supply high levels of antioxidants vitamin C and vitamin A. These are two nutrients key to building immunity and preventing common illnesses like a cold, plus more serious chronic diseases like cancer or neurodegenerative decline.
Of the antioxidants present among wolfberry benefits, carotenoids like zeaxanthin and precursors to vitamin C are the most extensively researched. High levels of these compounds give wolfberries a reputation for battling cancerous cells, fighting tumor growth, decreasing inflammatory cytokine levels and detoxifying the body of harmful toxins.
Wolfberry benefits also extend to other parts of the body thanks to their polysaccharides and glycoconjugate compounds that promote unique bioactive immunomodulating, anti-tumor and antioxidant activities in the brain, liver, reproductive organs and digestive tract. Did you know you could help fight skin cancer with food? Wolfberries are reported to have anti-aging properties and show anti-tumor activities against various types of skin cancer cells by inhibiting tumor growth and inducing apoptosis.
3. Promote Healthy Skin
Similar to the benefits you get from eating other berries, wolfberries are loaded with beta-carotene (a pigment found in plants and fruits), which helps promote healthy skin and even acts like a natural skin cancer treatment.
In an animal study done by the Faculty of Veterinary Science at the University of Sydney, drinking 5 percent wolfberry juice supplied antioxidant activity that offered significant protection against skin disorders and lipid peroxidation of UV light damage. Two known endogenous skin antioxidants are present in wolfberries, heme oxygenase-1 and metallothionein, which were found to be involved in the photoimmune protection.
The results show that drinking juice made from wolfberries increases your protection against free radical damage from the sun. Wolfberries provide additional photoprotection for people who are susceptible to skin cancer and other skin disorders.
4. Protect Eye Health
Wolfberry benefits also include the ability to protect eyes from age-related diseases like macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in older adults. Wolfberries are a natural treatment for macular degeneration and beneficial for vision because of their high levels of antioxidants (especially zeaxanthin), which can help stop damage from UV light exposure, free radicals and other forms of oxidative stress.
One study published in the American Academy of Optometry’s Optometry & Vision Science journal found that drinking wolfberry juice daily as a dietary supplementation for 90 days increases plasma zeaxanthin and antioxidant levels significantly, which protect eyes from hypopigmentation and accumulation of oxidative stress compounds that can damage the macula. Other studies show that the wolfberry benefits eye health by protecting the retina from ganglion cells so wolfberry antioxidants act as a natural treatment for glaucoma.
5. Help Stabilize Blood Sugar
Especially useful for people with diabetes, wolfberries benefits also help control the release of sugar into the bloodstream, which prevents spikes and dips due to problems balancing glucose levels. Evidence shows that wolfberries exhibit significant hypoglycemic effects and insulin-sensitizing activity by increasing glucose responsiveness. As part of a healthy diet, a natural diabetes remedy and a way to increase insulin sensitivity, wolfberries are one of the best choices for those with trouble balancing blood glucose levels and its effects.
Reducing sugar intake and increasing responsiveness to insulin is extremely important for the growing number of diabetes cases in the U.S. and other developed nations today, so wolfberries make a much better snack alternative and sweetener to high-sugar packaged goods and sugar additives.
6. Detoxify the Liver
Wolfberries are believed to offer liver protection and are used along with traditional herbs like licorice, ganoderma, gynostemna and pentaphylla in many liver cleanses. This is one reason they’re commonly used as a tonic ingredient in soups and to make sweet or savory porridges for people who are sick.
They’re thought to be one of the best ingredients for promoting liver and kidney health, according to TCM, since wolfberry benefits the body’s liver and kidney meridians to restore vitality, strength and well-being. This makes them a great kidney stone natural remedy as well as a good food for cleansing the blood.
7. Keep Your Energy and Mood Up
According to a study from the Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine, drinking wolfberry juice regularly can help increase energy levels, moods and improve digestive health, too. Participants who drank wolfberry juice for two weeks had improvements in terms of their feelings of “general well-being,” increased energy levels and better gastrointestinal function. Try having some wolfberries as a pre-workout snack to get you going and keep your stamina up.
8. Boost Fertility
Traditionally, the Chinese believe that wolfberry nutrition benefits the reproductive system and offers increased fertility. Wolfberries are believed to increase s***m count and the vitality of s***m. Evidence shows additional wolfberry benefits include treating female infertility in patients with premature ovarian failure and the inability to ovulate normally.
Wolfberries are mainly used in TCM for treating “yin deficiency,” which is believed to be the “female” aspect of the personality and body. Knowing that wolfberry benefits include the ability to increase mood, reduce stress and fight inflammation, TCM practitioners prescribe a dose of six to 15 grams daily for balancing yin and restoring hormonal health.
Results from a study done by the College of Public Health at Wuhan University in China showed wolfberries protect against testicular tissue damage induced by heat exposure, raise antioxidant activity of superoxide dismutase in the reproductive system, raise sexual hormone levels and protect against DNA oxidative damage to testicular cells. These findings support the folk reputation that wolfberries are effective for fighting infertility.
