Blue elderberries are some of the last berries to be harvested for the year. Because life got busy I didn't get into the blackberry harvest as much as I wanted to this year. At least we have dozens of quarts of blackberry jam put away from years past. With some time now on my hands I can fall back to the last berry of the season, the blue elderberry. Here's a piece extolling the nutritional benefits of the blue elderberry, which are numerous. I eat them because they're yummy and free. After reading this piece, I think I'll pick some extra just for the health benefits.

Be aware the red elderberry grows at lower elevations and if you eat those without cooking them, they'll give you a stomach ache. Blue elderberries on the other hand can be gathered by the handfuls in seconds and it takes mere minutes to fill ziplock bags which can be frozen. Their raw sweet taste can later be added to muffins, pancakes, cereal, smoothies- you name it!

A couple of years ago I attended a course at FEMA's Center for Domestic Preparedness in Anniston, Alabama. In the evenings they'll offer time for anyone to give a presentation on disaster preparedness topics of their expertise. I listened to a doctor talk about ways of combating flu epidemics. To my surprise one of the homeopathic remedies he mentioned was that of eating elderberries.

From: http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-elderberry.html
Elderberry Benefits


"Used for its antioxidant activity, to lower cholesterol, improve vision, boost the immune system, improve heart health and for coughs, colds, flu, bacterial and viral infections and tonsilitis. Elderberry juice was used to treat a flu epidemic in Panama in 1995.

Elderberries have been a folk remedy for centuries in North America, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, hence the medicinal benefits of elderberries are being investigated and rediscovered. Elderberry is used for its antioxidant activity, to lower cholesterol, to improve vision, to boost the immune system, to improve heart health and for coughs, colds, flu, bacterial and viral infections and tonsilitis. Bioflavonoids and other proteins in the juice destroy the ability of cold and flu viruses to infect a cell. People with the flu who took elderberry juice reported less severe symptoms and felt better much faster than those who did not.

Elderberries contain organic pigments, tannin, amino acids, carotenoids, flavonoids, sugar, rutin, viburnic acid, vitaman A and B and a large amount of vitamin C. They are also mildly laxative, a diuretic, and diaphoretic. Flavonoids, including quercetin, are believed to account for the therapeutic actions of the elderberry flowers and berries. According to test tube studies these flavonoids include anthocyanins that are powerful antioxidants and protect cells against damage.

Elderberries were listed in the CRC Handbook of Medicinal Herbs as early as 1985, and are listed in the 2000 Mosby's Nursing Drug reference for colds, flue, yeast infections, nasal and chest congestion, and hay fever. In Israel, Hasassah's Oncology Lab has determined that elderberry stimulates the body's immune system and they are treating cancer and AIDS patients with it. The wide range of medical benefits (from flue and colds to debilitating asthma, diabetes, and weight loss) is probably due to the enhancement of each individual's immune system.

At the Bundesforschungsanstalt research center for food in Karlsruhe, Germany, scientists conducting studies on elderberries showed that elderberry anthocyanins enhance immune function by boosting the production of cytokines. These unique protiens act as messengers in the immune system to help regulate immune response, thus helping to defend the body against disease. Further research indicated that anthocyanins found in elderberries possess appreciably more antioxidant capacity than either vitamine E or vitamin C.

Studies at Austria's University of Graz found that elderberry extract reduces oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. Oxidation of LDL cholesterol is implicated in atherogenesis, thus contributing to cardiovascular disease."