마키베리 에세이

The Newest Superfruit, Maqui Berry

   

최근 칠레 남부지방(파타고니아) 지역에 여행을 하다보면, 마키베리라는 열매를 쉽게 발견할 수 있는데, 마푸체(Mapuche: 칠레 원주민)족이 야생의 열매를 먹던 것이 시작이었습니다.

마키베리는 보라색 열매로서 도로나 고속도로 근처에서도 칠레 남부에서는 쉽게 발견된다고 합니다. 마키베리는 굳이 경작하지 않아도 칠레 남부지방에서는 언덕이나 들판에서 쉽게 발견되기 때문에 경작이 필요하지 않았습니다.

칠레 남부의 마푸체족은 과거 스페인에 정복이 되지 않았으며 자신만의 커뮤니티가 잘 보존 되어있다고 합니다. 최근 각광받고 있는 마키베리가 칠레 남부지역을 중심으로 경작되기 시작했으며 양이 많이 늘어나고 있는 추세라고 합니다. 보라색 열매로 매우 맛있고 단 과일이라고 설명하고 있습니다.

 

Dr. Juan Hancke 는 다년간 이 슈퍼 열매, 마키베리에 대한 연구를 하였으며, 그 연구결과는 아래와 같습니다.

   

• 풍부한 안토시아닌 (Anthocyanin): Concord 포도에 많이 포함 되어있는 델피이딘(delphinidin)이 마키베리에 매우 높은 함량을 가지고 있기때문에 병에 대한 저항력 및 암세포 증식을 막는 데에 매우 탁월한 효과가 있다고 합니다.

     

• 심혈관에서 오는 퇴행성 질환의 염증에 매우 좋은 치료 효과가 있다고 합니다. 염증 자체에 매우 좋은 작용을 한다고 연구 결과가 있습니다.

   

• 심혈관 질환(심장마비)의 원인이 되는 산화 콜레스테롤(Oxidation of cholesterol)을 예방하는데 매우 큰 도움이 됩니다. 매일 마키베리 혹은 마키베리 주스의 섭취는 심혈관 건강에 대하여 매우 현명한 투자(a smart investment)가 될 수 있습니다.

   

• 식 후, 마키베리를 섭취하면 혈당이 증가하는 것을 억제하는 효과가 있습니다. 또한 몸에 인슐린을 증가 시키기도 하기에 당뇨병에 효과가 잇을 뿐 아니라, 지방 세포 증식을 막는데도 큰 효과가 있으므로 다이어트에도 큰 효과를 줄 수 있습니다.

   

• 박테리아 활동을 억제하는 효과도 있기때문에 음식으로 인한 박테리아 관련 병에도 효과를 거둘 수 있습니다. 최근 이슈가 되고 있는 콜레라도 박테리아에 의한 병이기에 그에 대해서도 좋은 예방법이 될 수 도 있습니다.

   

꾸준하게 섭취하는 Superfruit, 마키베리를 통하여 건강한 삶을 유지하시면 좋을 것 같습니다. 

사실 조사를 하면서 알게 되었지만 아사이베리, 마키베리, 아로니아 같은 류의 Berry류는 꾸준하게 섭취하는 것은 건강을 유지하는데 매우 큰 도움 이 될 수 있습니다.

   

By this point, we have been liberally inundated with tales of super fruits, specifically super berries.

Today, practically everyone knows that blueberries, blackberries, black currants, acai, raspberries and elderberries are very good for health. But few have heard of one of the greatest super berries of them all, maqui berry. Recently I traveled to the southern part of Chile, in the Patagonia region, where I experienced maqui berry, the Mapuche native people who harvest the berry, and the majestic Patagonia region where maqui grows profusely in the wild.

Maqui berry (Aristotelia chilensis) is an intensely purple berry that grows wild throughout parts of southern Chile. Along roads and highways, maqui berry bushes are easy to spot. They grow all over hillsides, throughout fields, and on the borders of forested areas. At this point in time, maqui is not cultivated. There is simply so much available in the wild, cultivation is unnecessary

The people who harvest most of the maqui berry sold commercially are the Mapuche indians, who are indigenous to Chile. Known as fierce warriors, the Mapuche are the only native people in the Americas who were not conquered by invading colonists. In southern Chile, I traveled to the area of Maihue' (pron: my hway), to the hillsides of a pristine lake with the same name, where a community of Mapuche native people harvest tens of tons of wild maqui berry for commercial sale. There I saw, ate, harvested and learned about this remarkable berry, which is making its way into the U.S. marketplace.

The Mapuche people harvest maqui berry in increasingly large quantities, as demand for this nutritious and healing berry has increased. In harvest season, the whole Mapuche community turns out to pick the vibrant purple berries. One thing I discovered is that maqui berries taste delicious. They are sweet, bursting with flavor, and something I would be happy to eat every day. But beyond the marvelous taste, maqui delivers real health benefits. To learn about the health benefits of maqui, I turned to the research of Dr. Juan Hancke, a medical doctor who has devoted several years of intensive research into this super berry.

Here is what is known so far:

Maqui berries are very rich in anthocyanins, which are purple pigments with very high antioxidant activity. Specifically, maqui berries contain high levels of anthocyanins called delphinidins, which is also found in violas, delphiniums, and Concord grapes. But in maqui berry, these compounds are found in unusually high amounts. The delphinidins demonstrate potent anti-inflammatory activity, so they help to reduce the risk of a variety of degenerative diseases that involve inflammation. These pigments also inhibit the growth of colon cancer cells.

Inflammation is part of virtually every degenerative disease, from cardiovascular disease to diabetes to arthritis. Any illness that ends with "itis" is an inflammatory disease. The anthocyanins exhibit powerful anti-inflammatory activity, and do it as well as drugs for the same purposes, without negative effects.

The antioxidant compounds in maqui berry help to prevent the oxidation of cholesterol in the blood. Oxidation of cholesterol is a factor in the development of cardiovascular disease, including heart attack, stroke and hardening of the arteries. Regular daily intake of maqui berries or the berry juice is a smart investment in better cardiovascular health.

Interestingly, intake of maqui berries or their juice causes a significant increase of insulin in the body. In fact, maqui appears to do this better than any other known plant. What does this mean? Consuming maqui berries or their juice with or after meals can help to suppress blood glucose, thereby evening out energy and preventing the formation of new fat cells. As a result, maqui may prove to be a beneficial aid in weight control.

Maqui also demonstrates antibacterial activity, which suggests that it may aid in preventing illness due to foodborne germs.

The Mapuche native people have been eating maqui berries and drinking their juice for centuries. And other non-native people in Chile have done the same for a very long time as well. Even in an environment in which the maret is literally flooded with so-called super fruits, maqui stands head and shoulders above most of them in terms of benefits.

By Chris Kilham, for Fox News Health

   

출처: <http://www.medicinehunter.com/maqui>