Lingonberry – the small red berry with a big part of the Nordic tradition

Lingonberries may not be a berry you eat in the same way as blueberries, raspberries or strawberries. They are rarely eaten straight from the forest in large quantities, and have never really had the role of a “snack berry”. Instead, lingonberries have had a different function in Nordic food culture. They have been a berry that can be stored.

Long before freezers and imported fruit became commonplace, sustainability was an important part of how we used nature's resources. Lingonberries, with their natural acidity and preservatives, were therefore well suited to being processed into jams, purees and pickles that could last well into the winter.

A berry that has followed in tradition

In Nordic tradition, lingonberries have long been used with food, rather than as a berry in themselves. They have added acidity, flavor and balance to more energetic dishes.

But lingonberries have also had a place in older folk medicine and home remedies. For example, they have been used to support digestion or as a general “strengthening” berry in various traditional contexts. It is important to distinguish between traditional use and modern research findings – but the continuous usage says something about how strongly the berry has been anchored in everyday life.

What makes lingonberries interesting from a research perspective?

Lingonberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) belong to the same plant genus as blueberries, but differ in both taste and content. The primary interest of researchers is the content of polyphenols - a large group of natural plant substances that are often studied in relation to diet, metabolism and intestinal flora. The distinct acidity and slightly bitter note in lingonberries come from these plant substances. In the plant world, they often function as protection, but in our diet they become part of the chemical diversity we consume. In research, this type of substance is studied in order to understand how they are broken down and transformed in the body, often in interaction with our gut microbiome.

Lingonberries naturally contain, among other things:

• flavonoids and many other polyphenols

• organic acids that provide the clear acid

• fiber

• vitamin C

• benzoic acid (which contributes to durability)

It is precisely the combination of acid, bitterness and polyphenols that makes lingonberries interesting in research into how plant substances interact with the body.

What the research is looking at

Lingonberries have been studied primarily in relation to several different areas of nutrition and plant research. Since it is a food, it is not about immediate effects, but about how natural plant substances interact with the body over time and provide long-term health.

1. Blood sugar and metabolism

One of the areas that has received the most attention is how lingonberries may affect metabolism in connection with meals. Some studies have examined how lingonberries and their polyphenols interact with blood sugar and insulin responses after eating. The results are not clear-cut, but the interest is there because the berry's phytochemicals interact with several of the body's metabolic processes. This is still an area of development, where research is trying to understand the big picture rather than draw clear conclusions.

The fiber and/or polyphenols present in lingonberries null the glycemic effect of the sugars present in the berries when consumed together with added glucose in healthy human volunteers

2. Intestinal flora and polyphenols

Like other berries, lingonberries contain a rich mixture of polyphenols that are not always absorbed directly in the small intestine. Instead, they can be broken down and transformed in interaction with gut bacteria. Researchers are therefore investigating how these substances are metabolized and which bioactive metabolites are formed in the body. This makes lingonberries interesting in research on gut flora, where efforts are made to understand how dietary plant substances interact with the microbiota over time.

Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) Fruit Phenolic Bioactivities-A Review of In Vitro and In Vivo Human Studies

3. Oxidative stress and cellular processes

Lingonberries contain relatively high levels of polyphenols compared to many other berries, which has made them interesting in studies of oxidative stress and the cells' defense systems. Experimental models investigate how these plant substances affect biological processes at the cellular level. This provides a basis for understanding mechanisms, but does not in itself say how it works in a whole person in everyday life.

ROS Modulating Effects of Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) Polyphenols on Obese Adipocyte Hypertrophy and Vascular Endothelial Dysfunction

A berry that fits better in a jam jar than in your hand

Unlike many other berries, lingonberries have not primarily been an “eat straight from the wild” berry, but a berry that has been processed. Perhaps that is also why it has become so deeply rooted in Nordic food tradition. And it is precisely there, in the meeting of tradition, taste and biochemistry, that lingonberries continue to be an interesting berry to take a closer look at.

That's one of the reasons why we chose lingonberries as one of the ingredients in Nordic Shape, a berry with a long history and growing research interest.