Blueberry Fermentation And Health Benefits

Although probiotic bacteria consumption is mainly related to dairy products, some studies have demonstrated that the fermentation of these bacteria into non-dairy matrices, like in fruits and vegetables, can bring additional benefits to the consumer’s health. Probiotics bacteria can be defined as a living microorganism that provide beneficial effects on the host when taken in adequate amounts.

Fermentation can be viewed as a biological technique of preservation. The fermentation of foods will give a low risk of contamination when enriched in antimicrobial food products, such as bacteriocins, ethanol and organic acids.

Consumption of blueberries has been known and reported to reduce hepatocyte injury, lipid peroxidation, and oxidative stress. In addition, fermentation of blueberries has been shown to increase the total polyphenols and antioxidant capacities. Therefore, the fermentation of blueberries may have enhanced the scavenging of free radicals that may antagonize the development of liver injury.

Study shows that the biotransformation of blueberry juice by a bacterium called Serratia vaccinii was found to greatly increase the content of phenolic compounds and its antioxidant activity.

Contrast to normal juice, blueberry juice that has been fermented stimulated glucose uptake in muscle cells and adipocytes using an insulin independent pathway implicating the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase.
Blueberry Fermentation And Health Benefits