Research looks at benefits of berries Research has suggested
that compounds that give colorful fruits their rich hues,
especially berries, promote health and might even prevent
cancer. But for the first time, scientists have exposed extracts
from numerous berries high in those pigments to human saliva to
see just what kinds of health-promoting substances are likely to
survive and be produced in the mouth. It's too early to name the
best berry for health promotion based on this initial work. But
the researchers have discovered that two families of pigments
that provide berries with their colors, called anthocyanins, are
more susceptible to degradation in the mouth than are the other
four classes of these pigments. The Ohio State University study
also showed that bacteria living in the mouth are responsible
for most of the breakdown of these compounds that occurs in
saliva. Researchers are investigating whether it's the berry
pigments themselves, or instead the products of their
degradation, that actually promo