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Bilberry is a shrub that grows to about 16 inches in height. It has oval, pointed leaves and small pink and white flowers, which bloom from April through June. In the late summer, its dark purple berries are ripe to pick. Bilberry is a relative of blueberry, cranberry, and huckleberry, and its fruit looks and tastes much like the American blueberry.
The key compounds in bilberry fruit are called anthocyanidins. These compounds help build strong capillaries and improve circulation to all areas of the body. They also prevent blood platelets from clumping together (helping to reduce the risk of blood clots which may lead, for example, to heart attack or stroke). On the other hand, bilberry fruit is also rich in tannins, a substance that acts as an astringent, thereby helping bleeding to stop. The tannins and anthocyanidins, therefore, may balance each other out when the whole bilberry fruit is used for medicinal purposes.
Anthocyanidins also boost the production of rhodopsin, a pigment that improves night vision and helps the eye adapt to light changes. The tannins have anti-inflammatory properties and may help control diarrhea.
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