Elderberries have been recommended for their health benefits throughout history.

​Over 2,000 years ago, Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, called elderberries
“Nature’s Medicine Chest for the common people,” and from that point forward, it is noted in herbals and pharmacopia.

​

Native Americans and European herbalists have long used elderberries for their supposed range of health benefits. These include boosting the immune system to help the body fight off colds, flu, and other respiratory infections.

Elderberries contain many vitamins and nutrients that can benefit people's health. One cup of elderberries contains 106 calories and 26.68 grams (g) of carbohydrate. A cup also contains the following vitamins and minerals:

• 870 mg of vitamin A

• 406 mg of potassium

• 52.2 mg of vitamin C

• 9 mg of folate

• 55 mg of calcium

• 2.32 mg of iron

Wisconsin Elderberry Enterprises focuses on elderberry because today’s science and elderberry research is in keeping with the folklore of the past. Through years of extensive elderberry research, studies show that elderberry is good for you and your immune system. Our all-natural elderberry products are packed with vitamins, iron, potassium, as well as powerful antioxidants known as anthocyanins. Today’s health professionals are encouraging people to eat well, get plenty of sleep and exercise, and to boost their immune system with natural antivirals to stay as healthy as possible.  Dr. Oz specifically recommends Vitamin D (from the sun if you can get it!), vitamin C, Zinc and elderberry as his top 4 essential supplements.

“Full of antioxidants” appears almost everywhere these days. Wine, chocolate, vegetables, and fruits all boast their antioxidant levels. But what are antioxidants? How do they help our bodies? What is all the hype really about? 
According to the Harvard School of Public Health, antioxidant does not refer to an object but a chemical state. Antioxidants are vitamins, minerals and proteins found in certain foods that have a specific atomic form to help combat free radicals (another common term).

ORAC Value of Elderberries

As you can see, Elderberries have a high ORAC value, second only to Aronia Berries. ORAC stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity, which is the measurement of the free radical fighting strength of
an antioxidant. The higher the ORAC value, the more ability it has to reduce oxidative damage to the cells in your body.

What are free radicals? Free radicals are unstable molecules naturally formed when entering the body. More often, the media and health blogs talk about the free radicals created from environmental factors –- smoke, pollution, various carcinogens, etc.
Free radicals have the potential to damage cells in our bodies. They cause this damage by stealing an electron (a component of an atom), leaving the cell unbalanced. In stealing an electron, a new free radical is formed that needs to take another electron, causing a chain reaction (i.e., each atom, now short an electron, steals an electron from another atom). This cellular damage is believed to possibly lead to some chronic diseases, although lab tests do not form a strong conclusion. We can see the effects of free radical damage, also known as oxidation, all around us. Apples brown and iron rusts due to free radicals. Antioxidants help prevent and fight the free radical damage by donating” an electron. Through this chemical process of exchanging electrons, antioxidants prevent the theft of a needed part of our bodies’ cells.

In this year of focus on the Immune System, elderberry has been a popular topic in the news. Science has confirmed a role for elderberry in human health in cellular lab studies and in some human clinical trials. Since 2012, 50-80 studies have been published annually on PubMed, the scientific journal repository organized by the National
Institutes of Health, showing how this fruit mechanistically influences the immune system. Internet searches will take you to the latest information on elderberry and
human immunity, as well.

Long story short! It is important to provide the human body with a balanced diet and
a healthy lifestyle. We believe Elderberry is a part of that formula to good health
and happiness.