photo credit: gurucrusher

This is an easy and convenient way to take acai berry.  The powder can be added to your favourite drink including juice, milk or even to your favourite type of smoothie to give it some extra nutritional value.  Freeze dried acai often has a higher concentration of nutrients than the same weight of the fresh fruit, and the freeze drying process retains the nutritional value of the fruits, ensuring that you get the same nutritional value from the powdered version.

It is worth noting that other processing methods such as spray drying are carried out at higher temperatures and can result in the destruction of some of the berry's nutrients.  This means that it is preferable to choose powders that have been produced using the freeze drying method.

As is the case with the fresh fruits, the powdered form of the fruit  contains naturally-found nutrients like antioxidants (believed to have an effect on reducing damage to cells and helping slow the effects of ageing), essential amino acids (assist the body in recovery from exercise, builds muscle), essential fatty acids (believed to have a role in the reduction of blood pressure), vitamins (nutrients the body needs to function), minerals (other nutrients required for normal body function) and fibre (essential for maintaining operation of the digestive tract) .  During laboratory testing, 100 grams of freeze dried pulp and skin has been discovered to contain 44.2 grams of fibre.

Although often sold as a weight loss supplement, there seems to be currently no evidence that acai speeds up weight loss. It could, however be a useful source of extra nutrients for people who are on a conventional weight loss diet.