Maqui-Berry: The Treasure of Patagonia

Hi, my name is Peter and I am a 25 years old Slovak living in Chile. I would like to share my experience and interesting findings about Chilean culture, nature and people. First of all I would like to tell you about the "Treasure of Patagonia", which is a powerful super-fruit called Maqui-Berry :)

Let's start with a short history about Maqui. The Maqui-Berry, super-berry, is an intense dark purple berry that can only be found deep within the Patagonia region of Chile. Known as a powerful and sacred plant, the Mapuche Indians of Central and Southern Chile have enjoyed its many benefits for hundreds of years. Mapuche are the only native Indian group that have been able to remain unconquered by colonists. Legend would have it that Mapuches' power, strength and stamina was largely due to drinking fermented Maqui-Berry juice several times each day.

These are typical Mapuche women:

On this photo you can see that Maqui is harvested manually by Mapuche:

This super berry was especially used during the winter months to increase warmth and stamina. Traditionally the Mapuche Indians would use the Maqui for aliments including tumors, fever, sore throat, diarrhea, birth delivery, ulcers and hemorrhoids.
Maqui has a long tradition in Chilean culture and it is slowly entering the Western market in many forms: powder, beverage, bars, etc.

MAQUI has many health benefits that make it a super-berry worth a try.
Maqui possesses a high level of antioxidants, which eliminate free radicals that cause health disorders and cell damage.

1. Maqui has anti-aging properties
2. It helps to people suffering with diabetes by balancing the glucose in the blood
3. This berry boosts your metabolism and improves your stamina
4. It is a rich source of antioxidants, especially anthocyanins (delphinidin) and polyphenols
5. Maqui prevents cardiovascular problems by controlling the level of cholesterol in blood
6. Anthocyanins have anti-inflammatory effect
7. Antioxidants in Maqui eliminate free radicals in our bodies, a main cause of tumors and cancer
8. Maqui enhances immune system
9. It can help you to lose weight
10. According to research Maqui has anti-viral properties, which can help you with with various viral conditions such as herpes
11. Maqui keeps kidneys healthy by flushing toxins out of our bodies

Regular consumption of Maqui can improve our overall health and help with many diseases.
The Maqui is harvested only once a year in a short period of two months, so it is almost impossible to find fresh Maqui if you don't live in Chile. It grows wildly in forests in Chile so it is not necessary to harvest it.
There are many convenient forms of Maqui on the market that you can get to buy. One of the most common is a form of a powder. The majority of powders are processed by vacuum drying or freeze drying (lyophilization), which conserve all properties of fresh berries.
The powder has many ways how to add it to your diet and enjoy its numerous benefits. You can make a smoothie just by adding one teaspoon, prepare breakfast oatmeal, add it to desserts or make a lemonade. There are many ways how to prepare Maqui, it depends on the cook's creativity in the kitchen.

The principal advantage of Maqui against other super berries is its ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) value that is approximately at 27 600 uMol per 100g.
Açai, a very popular super berry consumed by millions, has an ORAC value at approximately 16 000 uMol per 100g. Blueberries are at the third place with less than 7000 uMol per 100g.
These are values of fresh fruits, the ORAC value of the powder can vary, but it is usually superior to 40 000 uMol per 100g.
The potential of Maqui to become a new super fruit is very high since many scientists conduct research of the super berry and discover new information about the "Patagonian Treasure".

I am living in Chile for several months now and it has surprised me that I have heard of Maqui just a few days ago. Average Chilean people do not know much about Maqui's benefits and they don't consume it at regular basis. I searched for more information and the result was astonishing. It is an amazing fruit that deserves our attention.

I hope that you have enjoyed this story of Maqui, I felt that it was worth of sharing as my first story on steem. I will post more interesting stories about Chile, or my home country, Slovakia :)

Have a nice day

Peter...