Plus, what a dietitian wants you to know before adding them to your routine.
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What happened when I ate blueberries every day
Potential benefits of blueberries
Blueberry nutrition
Can you eat too many blueberries?
How to eat more blueberries
The bottom lineFrom trying a wellness retreat tucked into the Italian Alps to testing the best blood glucose meters for easy blood sugar readings to figuring out which is the best sneaker: Brooks’ Ghost vs. Adrenaline, I’ve done a lot in the name of science. As a type 1 diabetic, so much of what I eat affects my day-to-day life. Anything from an apple to a donut can send my blood sugar into a frenzy. This led me to wonder what happens to your body when you eat blueberries every day.
Meet the expert: Lauren Harris-Pincus, M.S., R.D.N., founder of NutritionStarringYOU.com and author of The Everything Easy Pre-Diabetes Cookbook
Lauded for their low glycemic index and high antioxidant count, the delicious blue spheres make for a tasty ingredient in muffins, blended into smoothies, adorning a yogurt bowl, and much more. So, I added about a cup to my routine for over two weeks (eating them straight up, on their own as a snack) to see if I reaped the many purported benefits—of which there seem to be many.
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“There is also emerging research on the role of blueberries in gut health and exercise recovery,” explains Lauren Harris-Pincus, M.S., R.D.N., founder of NutritionStarringYOU.com and author of The Everything Easy Pre-Diabetes Cookbook
Research shows that eating blueberries every day may yield health benefits in just two weeks, Pincus points out.
Though their seasonality varies depending on where in the world you’re located, they can be found year-round in the supermarket.
What happened when I ate blueberries every day
As a type 1 diabetic, the biggest benefit I saw from eating blueberries every day was the effect it had on my blood sugar (a.k.a. blood glucose). Swapping my afternoon snack with them instead of a large apple or banana (which have, on average, more carbohydrates) allowed me to maintain more stable blood sugars.
I wear a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), which measures the level of glucose between the layers of my skin. This showed the impact blueberries had on my general blood sugars—mainly, eating around a cup led to fewer spikes, and more even numbers than some higher-carb snacks. As a type 1 diabetic, I do need to administer insulin (I opt for an insulin pump) when I eat anything with carbohydrates (note: carbs, not just sugars).
Although I’m not one for ultra-processed foods, I do enjoy some low-cal, low-carb options from time to time. Swapping these for blueberries led me to feeling more satisfied, less weighed down, and more nourished.
Potential benefits of blueberries
Blood sugars aside, I didn’t notice much of the purported benefits (more specifics below), including getting sick less (in fact, I ended up getting the flu a few days after completing this experiment). But research does note the following health benefits of eating blueberries:
Full of antioxidants
