Researchers have developed novel black raspberry-based functional foods that can withstand the rigors of a large-scale cancer prevention trial.
Black raspberries- not to be confused with the more recognizable red variety - have piqued the interest of cancer scientists in the last decade due to research showing they have distinct antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that appear to inhibit tumor growth.
But the berries are only grown in a few places around the US, and like many of their berry cousins, must be refrigerated and eaten within a few days of picking.
"We set out to create a product that had the same level of quality and stability you would find in a pharmaceutical medicine, but that was 100 percent fruit, simple to take and retained high levels of chemopreventive bioactives," said Yael Vodovotz, PhD, a food scientist with The Ohio State University Department of Food Science and Technology, said.
The result was two different formulations - gummy candies and a concentrated fruit juice (nectar) - each roughly equal to a cup of fresh berries. Both formulations were created by freeze drying the berries, which helped preserve the essential nutrients, and then grinding the whole berry - fiber, seeds and fuzz - into a fine powder.
The black raspberry formulations are currently being used in a clinical study of men with prostate cancer undergoing surgery.
More From This Section
The researchers hope to see if the black raspberry preparations, coupled with different types of diets, can improve post-surgery outcomes versus a control group of men with diet interventions only.
The study was published in the journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry.