Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)
Wild bilberry at its most typical grows in a fir forest. It thrives on fresh wood-covered ground, on the shores, pine marshes and fells. Bilberry twigs are light green in colour and the ripe berries are dark blue. The season for bilberries continues from July until early September. Bilberry has a strong and delicious flavour although the berry is not very rich in sugar. The berries contain a lot of flavonoids, carotene, vitamins B6 and C, as well as magnesium.
According to the latest Finnish research, bilberry contains large quantities of fenolic compounds, such as flavonoids, hydroxy-cinnamon acids and hydroxybenzoic acids. Due to the high contents of fenolic compounds, bilberry is highly antioxidicing. Wild bilberry has a high content of antocyans and it is about five times as high as that of the cultivated bilberry. Delfinidine, malvidine, petunidine, cyanidine and peonidine are the main antocyans indentified in the wild bilberry.
Traditionally, bilberry has been used for diverse problems in the functions of the intestines as well as for typhus, infections of the mouth, skin and urinary tracts, gout and rheumatism. Tea made of dried berries was used as a contracting substance for diarrhoea and dysentry, as a diuretic, cooling and nourishing medication, to prevent scurvy and to reduce bleeding.
Antioxidants in the food and diets containing lots of vegetables and fruit increase longevity, reduce cardiovascular diseases as well as counteract cancer. Wild bilberry has also been used to reduce the stress on eyes and to support better visual functions of the eye.
Nutritive content of fresh bilberry / 100 g:
| Energy, kj | 139,5 |
| Energy, Kcal | 33,3 |
| Protein, g | 0,5 |
| Fat, g | 0,4 |
| Carbon hydrate, g | 6,4 |
| Nutritional fiber, g | 3,3 |
| Vitamin A, ug | 7,9 |
| Vitamin E, mg | 1,9 |
| Tiamine, (B1), mg | 0,04 |
| Riboflavin (B2), mg | 0,07 |
| Niasine, mg | 0,4 |
| Pyridoxine (B6), mg | 0,06 |
| Vitamine C, mg | 15 |
| Natrium, mg | 0,3 |
| Potassium, mg | 0,1 |
| Calcium, mg | 19 |
| Magnesium, mg | 9 |
Nutritive content data: FINELI / and Ruoka-aineiden ravintosisältö, Kansaneläkelaitos, Helsinki, 1989
