Bilberry

Studies in people

• Benefit

  Blood sugar and cholesterol²

  In adults, bilberry may lower HbA1c and triglycerides, but other heart and blood measures showed no clear change.

• Benefit

  Heart and blood fat health³

  Studies in people suggest bilberries may help improve blood fats and lower heart disease risk.

• Open question

  Heart and diabetes risk⁴

  In people, it is unclear whether bilberry supplements help with type 2 diabetes or heart disease.

• Open question

  Blood fats and cholesterol⁷

  In overweight women, bilberries changed blood fats differently depending on each woman's starting heart risk.

• No harm found

  Blood sugar control in diabetes⁸

  In people with type 2 diabetes, bilberry did not clearly change blood sugar, blood pressure, or cholesterol.

• Benefit

  Heart recovery after a heart attack⁹

  In people who had a heart attack, bilberry powder helped them walk farther in six minutes than standard care alone.

• Concern

  Muscle soreness after running¹⁰

  In runners, bilberry juice seemed to slightly raise soreness and inflammation after a half marathon, but scientists say larger studies are needed.

Animal and lab studies only

• Benefit

  Muscle strength and mass¹⁴

  In rats, high-dose European bilberry extract lessened the muscle strength loss caused by baked-diet advanced glycation end-products.

• Open question

  Brain insulin signalling in diabetes¹⁵

  In animal studies, bilberry fruit raised insulin receptors in a brain area of diabetic rats, but whether this helps is still unknown.

• Benefit

  Aging and gut health¹⁶

  In animal studies, bilberry anthocyanin helped aging female rats handle oxidative stress and improved their gut barrier.

• Benefit

  Liver fat and processed food¹⁷

  In animal studies, bilberry extract reduced liver fat and inflammation caused by a baked Western diet.

Study type not stated

• Benefit

  Blood sugar and diabetes¹¹

  Bilberries are rich in anthocyanins, and studies suggest they may help prevent and treat diabetes.

• Benefit

  Heart and brain health¹²

  Bilberry anthocyanins may help the heart and brain, but they break down during processing and storage.

• Benefit

  Heart and metabolic health¹³

  Bilberry is rich in anthocyanins, which have been linked to helping prevent heart disease, obesity and diabetes.

How it’s made and used

• How much the body absorbs⁵

  In 13 people, almost none of the bilberry anthocyanins eaten showed up in their blood or urine.

• What the body does with berries⁶

  After eating bilberry, scientists found new breakdown products of bilberry in people's blood and urine.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least one finding in people. When most findings in people point one way, the page leans that way (“Mostly”), and every finding is still shown. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.