How currants are a food that heals

The highly perishable  fruit is only available a few weeks in the summer and are packed with nutrition. Here are some of the benefits you can get from properly prepared currants.

Here are some facts about currants and its many varieties:

• Currants provide an excellent low-calorie source of vitamin C and potassium.
• The several va­rieties of fresh currants are ac­tually berries that are related to gooseberries.
• The fruit marketed as dried currants is a variety of grape, and thus a type of raisin.
• Red and white currants are the most common types available in North America.
• Black currants (cultivated mostly in Europe) lead both the red and white types in nutritional value.
• A 250 millilitre (one cup) serving of black currants provides a whopping 220 milligrams of vitamin C, as well as 360 milligrams of potassium. This compares with 50 milligrams of vitamin C and 300 milligrams of potassium, (which are still good amounts of these essential nutrients) in 250 millilitres (one cup) of red or white currants.
• All types are low in calories, about 70 in a cup of fresh berries.
• Currants are also a good source of fibre, providing about two grams per 250 millilitres (one cup)

Fresh currents usually are not eaten raw because they are quite tart. Instead, they are used in baking or to make jams, jellies and sauces. Diluted and sweetened black currant juice is a refreshing beverage that is very high in vitamin C. The juice can be fermented and made into liqueurs and cordials.

All varieties of currants are rich in bio­fla­vo­noids, pigments that are thought to boost the antioxidant effects of vitamin C. They also help inhibit cancer growth and may possibly prevent other diseases. Europeans have long valued black currants for their antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, which are thought to come from anthocyanin, a bioflavonoid in the berry skins. In Scandinavia a powder made from dried black currant skins is used to treat diarrhea. Europeans also use black currant syrup to ease the inflammation of a sore throat.

Currants are a delicious way to get your vitamin C, and its many varieties can be used in many different ways making it versatile as well.