What if a handful of blueberries could help babies grow up healthier? A team of researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz has found that introducing blueberries early in a baby’s diet, especially during the period when they transition from milk to solid food, may do just that.
In a clinical trial, they showed that infants who consumed blueberry powder daily showed fewer allergy symptoms, calmer signs of inflammation, and healthier gut bacteria compared to those who didn’t.
“For parents beginning to wean their infants, it’s incredibly difficult to find solid, research-backed advice on what foods to introduce. This study is a critical first step in filling that gap by offering real data on how a specific food like blueberries can improve your infant’s health,” Minghua Tang, one of the study authors and a professor at UC Anschutz, said.
These results aren’t a claim that blueberries are a cure for allergies and illnesses, but they do suggest that a common food introduced at the right time may nudge early biological systems toward healthier patterns.
Results from the blueberry trial
The investigators ran a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled feeding trial in the Denver area. Seventy-six caregiver–infant pairs enrolled, and 61 completed the study (30 infants were given the blueberry powder and 31 received a placebo powder).
Infants entered the trial around 5–6 months of age and were followed through 12 months. Their diet included 10 grams per day of freeze-dried blueberry powder mixed into liquid or semi-liquid foods and served as a puree for safety. The other group received the same amount of placebo powder.
The team collected stool samples repeatedly over time (bimonthly in the microbiome study) to track changes in bacterial diversity and composition. Plus, they also took blood and recorded caregiver-reported allergy symptoms at study visits to measure immune biomarkers and symptoms.
When the team compared gut microbe activity, the immune system response, and whether allergy symptoms improved. The results pointed in the same direction—infants who received blueberry powder had healthier bacterial patterns in their intestines, lower markers of inflammation in the blood, and noticeable relief from existing allergy symptoms.
Importantly, there were no negative side effects, and the growth rates of babies stayed normal, showing that the intervention was safe as well as effective.
“This research supports the idea that blueberries offer meaningful health benefits. Just a few blueberries a day could make a difference in supporting long-term health,” Tang said.
Time to conduct larger trials
The current study includes a small number of subjects who are mostly breastfed babies from a single US metro area. Therefore, the researchers recommend larger trials, longer follow-up, and testing in more varied populations.
Further laboratory work is also required to isolate which blueberry components (for example, anthocyanins or fiber) actually drive the observed positive effects.
However, if these findings also hold up in larger and more diverse trials, this could shift how clinicians and parents think about first foods. Pediatric guidance might eventually move beyond tradition to recommend foods that actively support a baby’s gut health and immune system.
For parents who want to try blueberries, we “recommend pureeing them for younger infants. For older babies and toddlers, blueberries should be mashed or cut into small pieces to eliminate choking hazards,” the UC Anschutz team notes.
You can read more about the trials here and here.
