Acerola (Malphigia glabra)

Family: MALPIGHIACEAE
Species: glabra
Origin: Brazil
Common Names: cereso, barbados cherry, antilles cherry, acerola
Parts Used: fruit, cherries
Medicinal Properties: antioxidant, astringent, nutritive
Internal Uses: astringent, diarrhea, dysentery, hepatitis, fevers
acerola Habitat: Acerola is a small tree or shrub that grows in the dry deciduous forest. It produces a red fruit 1 to 2 centimeters in diameter with several small seeds that look similar to the European cherry also know as the Barbados cherry and Antilles cherry. These mature fruits are juicy and soft with a pleasant tart flavor. They contain about 80% juice and a large amount of vitamin C, as well as iron, calcium, and phosphorus. Acerola grows wild and raised in sandy soils throughout northeastern Brazil. It is native to the West Indies and can also be found in northern areas of South America, Central America, and Jamaica.

Comments: The vitamin C content of Acerola varies depending on how rip the fruit is season, climate and locality. The more the fruit ripens the more vitamin content is lost. Acerola fruit is harvested when green, considered the richest source of natural vitamin C known. Oranges provide anywhere from 500 to 4,000 parts per million vitamin C or ascorbic acid, while acerola has a range of 16,000 to 172,000 parts per million ascorbic acid and can contain up to 4.5% vitamin C, compared to 0.05% in a peeled orange. Acerola compared to oranges provides twice as much magnesium, pantothenic acid, and potassium. Other vitamins include vitamin A, thiamine, riboflavin, and niacin mostly associated with its high content of vitamin C coming under recent attention as a free radical scavenger due to its antioxidant properties. The leaves, bark, and fruit of the acerola also have demonstrated antifungal properties in laboratory testing. Acerola fruit extracts can be found in many over the counter supplements in the United States as a natural form of vitamin C. In addition to vitamin content, acerola contains mineral salts that has been shown to benefit in the remineralization of stressed and or tired skin, while the mucilage and proteins have skin hydrating properties and promote capillary conditioning.

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* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.