Blueberry Drink Protects Mice from Diabetes, Obesity

A special blueberry drink fortified by processing it with bacteria that naturally occur on the fruit's skin proved effective at preventing the development of obesity and diabetes in mice predisposed to the conditions, in a study conducted by researchers from the University of Montreal, the Institut Armand-Frappier and the Université de Moncton, and published in the International Journal of Obesity.

Researchers "biotransformed" juice from the North American lowbush blueberry by fermenting it with Serratia vaccinii, a bacteria naturally found on the berry's skin. They then fed mice either the biotransformed juice or unmodified blueberry juice for three days. All the mice had been bred for resistance to the hormone leptin, thus predisposing them to obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes and high blood pressure

"Consumption of fermented blueberry juice gradually and significantly reduced high blood glucose levels in diabetic mice," lead author Tri Vuong said. "After three days, our mice subjects reduced their glycemia levels by 35 percent."...