What Is Elderberry And What Is It Good For?

You’ve probably had a really edgy cocktail made with elderflower syrup, and then you’ve seen some supplements on the pharmacy shelves labeled as elderberry and thought they were the same thing. 

Well they do come from the same tree (the Sambucas tree) but they are sourced from different parts of it - the berry and the flower. We know, seems obvious but it’s a common confusion! 

Anyway the important thing is what they are used for, as you’ll realise soon, this is one powerful tree. 

Today we’re getting into the nitty gritty what what elderberry is and what it does in your body. 

What is elderberry? 

Elderberry is a rich purple berry found on the Sambucas tree. It can be found growing naturally in areas across eastern and central North America and Canada. 

What does elderberry do? 

It’s high in antioxidants, which help prevent against free radical damage in our bodies. 

Free radi-wha?? 

Put simply, free radicals are molecules that are constantly being formed in the body, and they are very unstable. For the science nerds among us, they only have one electron, so the scavenge the body for other molecules to complete their electron pair. 

They aren’t totally bad, but in excess they cause oxidative stress and this leads to higher risk of disease and may contribute to ageing too. 

So basically, antioxidants allow us to maintain a normal level of free radicals.  

Elderberry also has antiviral properties and exhibits anti-inflammatory effects. 

And these may prevent or reduce the severity of certain common infection. This is part of the popularity of elderberry as an immune system support supplement. 

And this is also how it modulates the body’s immune system response through the stimulation of cytokines, therefore reducing swelling and pain. 

So there you have our quick guide to elderberry. 

It’s pretty hard to get your hands on the actual berry, which is why supplementation is so popular. In fact just two of our ImmuneBare gummies have 144mg of Elderberry.