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ORAC - Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity. The ORAC scale measures the ability of almost any substance to overcome oxygen free radicals. Simply put, ORAC is a laboratory measurement of the antioxidant activity of any substance. Remember, this is a laboratory measurement. There is no way to measure ORAC once the food has been consumed.

Various factors (such as moisture) affect ORAC scores, but generally, results should fall within a +/-5% tolerance.

For the record, the actual unit of measurement for the ORAC scale is micromole Trolox equivalent (TE) per 100 grams (µTE/100 g),which is a mouthful by any standards, so I'll just stick to the term "units" from here in if you don't mind. Thanks.

The higher the ORAC, the stronger the antioxodant qualities of the food. In this article we'll be looking at the acai orac values and how it compares to other foods on the ORAC scale.

Food

ORAC Value

Freeze Dried Acai Pulp

50,000

Acai Berries

5,500

Pomegranates

3,100

Blueberries

2,300

Kale

1,860

Strawberries

1,520

Spinach

1,270

Raspberries

1,240

Brussel Sprouts

990

Plums

940

Beetroot

860

Oranges

750

Red Grapes

740

Cherries

680

Corn

410

Carrots

230

Remember, this is a laboratory measurement per 100 grams of the food in question. Although measurments will vary from test to test, give or take a few of those obscure ORAC units and the table above is indicative of the results for the various foods listed.

What is clear to see though is the levels of antioxidants in acai berries. The picture becomes even clearer when you look at the ORAC for freeze dried acai pulp. 50,000 ORAC units per 100 grams.

Generally, the darker the pigment of a food or berry, the higher the ORAC value. This has a lot to do with the substance that gives pigmentation to foods. Anthocyanins.

Anthocyanins are essentially nature's sun block, protecting the fruit from the harmful effects of the sun's ultra violet light. The ultra violet light encourages the development of free radicals which can cause oxidative issues and degeneration.

Acai berries are extremely rich in anthocyanins, with a corresponding rise in the acai orac score and it's antioxidant properties.

For an interesting analysis of the acai orac values, here's an article from the USDA website, Antioxidant capacity and other bioactivities of the freeze-dried Amazonian palm berry.

It's a bit technical to say the least, so if you don't read the whole thing, I won't really blame you. Here's an interesting extract though:

"A fruit known as acai has been demonstrated to exhibit significantly high antioxidant capacity and, therefore, may have possible health benefits. In this study, the antioxidant capacities of freeze-dried acai fruit was evaluated and found to have the highest antioxidant activity of any food reported to date. These results suggest that this fruit would be an excellent food to study for potential disease prevention effects in the future"

So pretty solidly behind the acai, which pretty much sums up my feelings on this amazing little berry.

Read our acai capsules comparisons and see how their acai orac levels stack up.