If you have recently heard about acai berries, the fruit which comes from the South American palm tree, you may be wondering what potential side effects it may cause. Usually when one hears about a new product being promoted as a weight loss supplement they think about the possible negatives as well as the positives. Although the acai berry is a fruit and not a pharmaceutical, when considering their health, certain individuals may not take into account this difference. The extract form the acai berry often comes in may also be a cause of this confusion.

Supplementation with acai berry in any form, whether it be the whole berry, an extract or puree has not been proven to cause side effects in any study. Considering an acai berry is not too different from a blueberry, this is not surprising. Have you ever heard of someone having severe side effects from blueberries? If you happen to have a rare allergy to them you may have a reaction, but otherwise you should be just fine.

If you are currently taking a statin drug, you may be wondering if acai berries could interact with it. The answer is probably not. While no studies have proven that acai berries interact with any specific drug, anything is certainly possible. Although it possible, it is highly unlikely since the only fruit known to cause interactions with a wide array of drugs is grapefruit. Acai berry does not contain the substances which make grapefruit interact with certain drugs.

On the other hand, consuming acai berries can potentially have many benefits. As you may well know, they have been shown to have as much and even greater quantities of antioxidants than similar fruits such as black cherries and cranberries. This depends on the species of acai berry, as the white variety of acai doesn't contain as many antioxidants as the purple kind, but it unlikely that you will come across the white variety.

A scientific study done by AIMBR Life Sciences has shown that acai berry could actually be a COX-1 and COX-2 inhibitor.[1] If you're suffering the effects of inflammation, you may be familiar with those words. COX-2 is an enzyme responsible for pain and inflammation. Aspirin and ibuprofen are COX inhibitors. The discovery that acai berry is a natural COX inhibitor should be exciting news for anyone who suffers from the pain caused by inflammation.

Acai berry has recently been marketed as a weight loss and diet supplement, so it would be natural to assume it may have potential side effects. No scientific studies have found that supplementation with acai berry causes any side effects in people who are not allergic. You may not enjoy the flavor of the acai berry, which could be a side effect, but that is also highly unlikely since acai is quite delicious.

Reference:

1. Schauss A, Xianli W, Prior R, Ou B, Huang D, Owens J, Agarwal A, Jensen G, Hart A, Shanbrom E. Antioxidant Capacity and Other Bioactivities of the Freeze-Dried Amazonian Palm Berry, Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (Acai). J Agric Food Chem 2006 Nov 1;54(22):8604-10. PMID: 17061840