Addressing the issue of capsules and freeze-dried black raspberries
At BerriHealth, we offer freeze-dried black raspberry powder and whole freeze-dried black raspberries in 100 gram pouches. We also offer a black raspberry extract that was launched just a few weeks ago. However, we do not offer freeze-dried black raspberries in capsules due to the very small amount of black raspberry powder you can fit into a single capsule.
There have been a lot of recent inquiries on black raspberry capsules due to a segment on the Dr. Oz show about cancer-fighting supplements. We are thrilled to see black raspberries get more coverage, as they are a well-researched berry that can rarely be found outside of the state of Oregon. However, there might be a misconception on how many black raspberries are really in one 300mg capsule of freeze-dried black raspberries, and how useful taking one or two of those capsules really is.
Many people heard through a guest on the show that 300mg of freeze-dried black raspberries is equal to around 4 full cups of the fresh black raspberries. To put that in perspective, an average paperclip is around 1 gram, or 1000mg. So can you really take something that weighs around 30% of a paperclip and have it be the nutritional equivalent of 4 full cups of black raspberries? The simple answer is no.
The process of freeze-drying essentially removes all of the water contained within a berry. A black raspberry is usually made up of around 80% water, so freeze-drying allows us to keep all the remaining nutrients in a concentrated form. Even accounting for variations in water content, 300mg of freeze-dried berries is only equal to a maximum of 3 fresh black raspberries. A single cup of whole berries would weigh around 16 grams after being freeze-dried, or the equivalent of over 53 capsules, which certainly is a tough number of pills to swallow. Now consider how many capsules you would actually have to take to get the equivalent of four cups of black raspberries.
It is not our intent to turn anyone off of black raspberries. We love them and are very excited about their potential benefits in many areas of health and wellness. The great thing about black raspberries is that they are one of the most researched berries in the world, especially in relation to cancer. Our company is supplying universities in the United States with freeze-dried black raspberries for several clinical trials. We feel that this research is of the utmost importance in understanding how black raspberries can impact our health.
The information given on the show may have been skewed, which makes understanding effective dosages even more important. A USDA serving of fruit, or half a cup of black raspberries, is equal to around 8 grams of freeze-dried black raspberry powder. A USDA serving or two a day would be a great start in getting the benefits offered by black raspberries. Specific research studies usually are based on amounts of freeze-dried black raspberry powder that are significantly higher than that
Here are some of the freeze-dried black raspberry dosages two human clinical trials pulled from an NIH PubMed article:
Barrett's Esophagus: "Twenty BE Patients were provided 32 or 45 grams (female and male, respectively) of BRB powder daily as a slurry in water for 6 months."
Colon Cancer: "Patients then consume 20 grams of freeze-dried BRB powder as a slurry in water, three times per day (60 grams total) until their scheduled surgery date, usually within two to four weeks."
As you can see, even the lowest daily dosage found in these trials would be the same as taking over 100 capsules per day. All the great research on black raspberries doesn’t carry as much weight when you don't take an amount that correlates to the actual studies (you can find more right on our website at http://www.berrihealth.com/information.html). While the small dosages found in capsules certainly won't do any harm, and still are a nice little boost to the daily diet, there is no currently published research that is based on such small quantities of black raspberries for daily consumption.
The great thing about our powder, is a person can take an amount that fits best with their current situation and the research that is available to them and their physician. Even if you decided to only take 600mg a day (two capsules worth), one pouch of our powder would last for almost half a year. When you compare the cost per gram for these capsules, there isn't really any comparison in terms of value. Some companies are selling as little as 30 capsules for $9.99, which would be the same as paying $111.00 for 100 grams of freeze-dried black raspberry powder!
We understand there is a lot of information provided here, so feel free respond to this e-mail with any questions that you might have. We hope this helps clarify things in regards to black raspberries and the reason our freeze-dried black raspberry products are sold in the forms they currently are.
The BerriHealth Team
|
