If you are collecting the flowers or berries yourself, ensure that you have correctly identified the plant as American or European elderberry, as other types of elderberry may be more toxic. Also, be sure to remove any bark or leaves before use.

However, it’s important to be mindful of sambuca’s high sugar quantity as this surely negates certain benefits. Gluten, Carbs, & Calories In SambucaThe bark, unripe berries, and seeds contain small amounts of substances known as lectins, which can cause stomach problems if too much is eaten ( 2). Therefore, products like syrups, juices, teas, and jams may have reduced benefits compared to some results seen in laboratory studies ( 16). Summary As mentioned above, there are numerous anise-flavoured drinks that are quite similar to sambuca. For instance, we already discussed ouzo in detail yet Truk Raki is a very similar alternative. During normal metabolism, reactive molecules may be released that can accumulate in the body. This can cause oxidative stress and may lead to diseases like type 2 diabetes and cancer ( 12, 13, 14).

Further studies found that rats that were fed foods containing polyphenols extracted from elderberry had reductions in blood pressure ( 25).May support the immune system. In rats, elderberry polyphenols were found to support immune defense by increasing the number of white blood cells ( 30). In addition, the elderberry plant contains substances called cyanogenic glycosides, which can release cyanide in some circumstances. This is a toxin also found in apricot seeds and almonds ( 1, 3 4).