Go Go Goji
17 Nov 2006 — If you are like me, you would typically go through several “junkfood phases” throughout your lifetime. There was the Milo phase, the konyaku jelly phase, the Famous Amos, the Khong Guan wafer biscuits, Krispy Kreme donuts, pandan cake, Pods, Red Rock Deli chips, durian cream puff at Joo Chiat, Gelatissimo ice-cream, etc, etc, etc, you get the picture. Not all junkfood is created equal of course, some are more evil than others, which is why I’m more than relieved to say that this latest junk fad that I’m going through has actually taken a good turning.
You might have heard of it. Afterall how many of us Chinese did not grow up having to drink one sort of herbal tonic soup or another, especially if at least one of your parents is Cantonese. So what am I talking about? 枸杞! Yep, adorned in some fancy packaging and going by its new funky name…
…your once very average humble wolfberry is now strutting the uber-hip functional-food catwalk as the “Goji” berry. And with that new image comes its new price, what previously only costs a few dollars a packet is now being sold downunder at AUS$25 for a 450g bag, and looking up some sites in the UK, up to 18 GBP (AUS$44, S$53) for 500g! Whoa! If people in China caught wind of this, they’d be laughing their heads off!
Don’t know about you, but when I was told to eat wolfberries as a kid, I was told it brightens the eyes. Hmm… having a vision of 650 degrees in one eye, and 800 in the other, I obviously didn’t have enough of them then.
And leafing through my Eu Yan Sang book, I found out that it also “influences the liver, lung and kidney channels, nourishes the essence, enriches Yin and moistens the lungs. (In TCM), it is commonly used to treat anaemia, sore lower back, vision problems and long term cough.”
Well and that’s just the traditional chinese medicine side of things, ever since hitting the Western market, websites 
of one kind or another have also claim that it:
– Fortifies the immune system, improving disease resistance
– Promotes normal heart function and blood pressure, helping to fight heart disease
– Strengthens muscles and bones
– Increases energy
– Improves memory and recall
– Eases digestion
– Reduces stress
– Is anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal and cleansing
Apparently the benefits don’t end there. The hype machine also calls the goji berry the “fruit Viagra” for its “legendary ability to spark the passions”, a possible “cure” for cancer, a weight loss wonder, and top of the list, “The Fountain of Youth” for its potent anti-ageing properties. One website even calls it “The Longevity Secret of the Stars” citing celebs like Madonna, Liz Hurley, Gwyneth Paltrow and Sting(?!!) as huge fans.
Personally, I don’t know how much I’d buy into the hype. I’m hooked simply because as opposed to chocolate, cakes and ice-cream, this is something that I can snack on for considerable periods of time (the dried berries being small and chewy) without suffering the immense guilt and fear that I would put on a hundred pounds right after. And if there are really said benefits from its consumption, well, bring it on!
Admittedly, one thing did pique my interest… I’ve always thought that blueberries contain the highest amount of antioxidants, so it was fascinating to discover that wolfberries, you know as something that I’ve practically grew up with and paid so little attention to until now, actually has 10 times the amount of antioxidants as blueberries!
In technical terms, wolfberries have tested as high as 25,300 ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) units per 100 grams compared to 2,400 for blueberries, 1,540 for strawberries and only 750 for oranges. And I know it’s crazy since I can lay no claims to it, but I almost feel this burst of elation and pride, like “Yeah! One for Chinese medicine!” As a naturopath, I’m just thrilled that we’re returning to our roots and all these traditional foods are being rediscovered and embraced!
If you surf around, you’d quickly notice that the most popular forms of goji ingestion are the dried berries and the juices.
However, that has certainly not stopped some enterprising folks from inventing even more novel ways to get that goji in, including:
Goji bars, crisps, muesli, jam, and even eye cream!?!
And for those lazy boring bums out there, of course for you it comes in a “magic bullet” form as well.
But tell me, why would anyone opt to swallow a horrid bland capsule when instead you can be sinking your teeth into a handful of these yummy, sweet berries? Sigh… I guess that’s the flip side of anything that gets westernised; it also gets capitalised, commercialised, and “consumerised”.