The camu-camu, like many other Amazonian fruits, shows an excellent potential for health benefit use due to its high vitamin C content. Camu camu is now available as a dietary supplement.

Subscribe to a FREE Supplement Research Update newsletter. Twice a month you will receive an email with abstracts of several studies on various supplements and natural medicine topics, including camu camu, and their practical interpretation by Ray Sahelian, M.D.

Camu Camu nutrition content
Nutritional composition and vitamin C stability in stored camu-camu (Myrciaria dubia) pulp.
Arch Latinoam Nutr. 2000 Dec;50(4):405-8.
Camu-camu ( Myrciaria dubia ), a native fruit of the Amazon region, is one of the richest sources of vitamin C (2.4 to 3.0 g/100 g in the pulp) found in Brazil. The purpose of this work was the physical-chemical characterization of some nutrients and the valuation of vitamin C stability in stored camu-camu pulp, produced by the Agronomic Institute of Parana (IAPAR), Parana State, Brazil. The vitamin C determination was made by titration with potassium iodate. The fruit produced in Parana State, presented a lower content of vitamin C than the one native of the amazon region, possibly due to the different development conditions of the plant, and consequently of the fruit, as well as the climatic variation, the humidity and the characteristics of the soil. Regarding the vitamin C stability in stored (-18 degrees C) camu-camu pulp, a considerable decrease in its concentration until the 28th day was observed lost 23% (from 1.57 to 1.21 g/100 g), staying approximately the same until the end of the experiment. After 335 days of storage, the content found was of approximately 1.16 g/100 g of pulp, the ascorbic acid losses amounted to 26%. This content was still higher than the one found for most fruits that are good sources of this vitamin.

Camu Camu plant
Camu camu  is a small evergreen shrub native to the Amazonian lowlands and a close relative of the Guavaberry or Rumberry. The plant reaches heights of 7to10 feet), The camu camu fruits are round, light orange to purplish colored with yellow pulp and reach about the size of a lemon. The fruits are sour with a unique aroma. Harvest occurs once per year by canoe due to the fruits maturing during flooding seasons.

Camu camu availability
Raw material suppliers have camu camu powder and camu camu extracts. One common camu camu extract is a 4 to 1 potency with 20 percent vitamin C. I have also come across a camu camu extract that purports to have 50 percent ascorbic acid.