Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)
Summary
Rigorous trials do not support the famous night-vision claim. Small trials, mostly funded or run by extract makers, found modest relief of screen-related eye fatigue and dry-eye measures (grade D). Fruit extracts appear well tolerated, and at least one extract was found adulterated with a synthetic dye.
Key facts
- 480 mg/day for 8 weeks eased several eye-fatigue symptoms in 80 office workers[2]
- One commercial extract was coloured with the synthetic dye amaranth[6]
- NCCIH: fruit extracts up to 160 mg/day for 6 months were well tolerated; leaves may be unsafe at high doses[7]
- 4 graded human outcomes on this page
- October 13, 2026
How it works
ProposedBilberry anthocyanins are antioxidant pigments; trials suggest effects on ciliary muscle accommodation and tear secretion, but how they would act on the retina is not established.[3][4]
What the human research says
Human trials only, one row per outcome. The form column shows what each trial actually tested. Grades follow our evidence-grading policy.
At a glance: strongest evidence per outcome
| Outcome | Grade | Effect | Strongest evidence | Rows |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eyes | Grade D | Improved | RCT · n = 109 · 2020 | 3 rows |
| Inflammation | Grade D | Mixed | RCT · n = 27 · 2012 | 1 row |
Every graded row
| Outcome | Effect | Grade | Best evidence | PMID |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ciliary muscle strain after near work | Improved | Grade D | RCT · n = 109 · 2020 Healthy adults aged 20–60 Form: Standardised bilberry extract · Dose: 240 mg/day · Duration: 12 weeks Post-task HFC-1 values significantly better than placebo at weeks 8 and 12. | 32106548 (opens PubMed)Source [3] |
| Eye fatigue in screen (VDT) workers | Improved | Grade D | RCT · n = 80 · 2015 Japanese office workers aged 20–40 with lower flicker-fusion and accommodation scores (80 of 88 completed) Form: Bilberry extract · Dose: 480 mg/day · Duration: 8 weeks Less drop in critical flicker fusion after screen work (P = 0.023) and fewer subjective fatigue symptoms at week 8; near-point accommodation unchanged; no serious adverse events. | 25923485 (opens PubMed)Source [2] |
| Low-grade inflammation markers (whole berries) | Mixed | Grade D | RCT · n = 27 · 2012 Finnish adults with features of metabolic syndrome Form: Fresh bilberries vs habitual diet · Dose: Equivalent of 400 g fresh bilberries/day · Duration: Not stated in abstract No differences in weight, glucose or lipids; CRP, IL-6 and other markers tended to fall and an inflammation score differed between groups (P = 0.024). | 22961907 (opens PubMed)Source [5] |
| Dry eye tear secretion | Improved | Grade D | RCT · n = 21 · 2017 Adults with dry eye symptoms (21 of 22 completed) Form: Mirtoselect bilberry extract vs placebo · Dose: Daily extract (dose not stated in abstract) · Duration: 4 weeks Schirmer test values improved with bilberry (P = 0.019) but not placebo; antioxidant potential also improved. | 28617532 (opens PubMed)Source [4] |
Forms
| Form | Elemental % | Absorption (human data) | GI tolerance | Studied for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standardised fruit extract (25–37% anthocyanins) | Varies[4] | Mirtoselect gave higher plasma anthocyanins than a purified extract in rats.[4] | NCCIH: fruit extracts up to 160 mg/day for 6 months appear well tolerated.[7] | Eye fatigue, dry eye |
| Whole bilberries | Varies[5] | Food form.[5] | Considered safe in food amounts.[7] | Inflammation markers |
| Bilberry leaf | Varies[7] | Traditional use only.[7] | NCCIH: leaves may be unsafe at high doses or long-term.[7] | Not studied here |
Studied doses
Doses studied in human trials ranged from 240 mg/day of standardised bilberry extract for 12 weeks to 480 mg/day for 8 weeks.[2][3]
Interactions
Published interactions only: each row cites a source. No row means none was found in our sources, not that a combination is safe.
Medicines
- Blood thinners and antiplatelet drugsCase reportMSK reports a case of rectal bleeding and blood in the urine in a 77-year-old man using bilberry with a blood thinner, and advises against combining bilberry with warfarin or other blood thinners; added risk with aspirin or NSAIDs is possible but of unknown clinical relevance.[8]
Who should be careful
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding
- NCCIH: little is known about safety above food amounts.[7]
- Leaf products
- Bilberry leaves may be unsafe in high doses or for long periods.[7]
Talk to your pharmacist or clinician before starting a supplement, especially if you take prescription medicines.
Adulteration
- Amaranth dye
- Single-wavelength testing showed 25% anthocyanins in two extracts, but HPLC found one contained only 9% and was coloured with the synthetic dye amaranth.[6]
Where to buy Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)
Products from brands we partner with that contain Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus). Listing a product is not a claim that it works; check the amount per serving against the doses studied above, and the label for other ingredients.
- HerbsProPaid linkSource Naturals, Bilberry Extract, 100 MG, 120 Tabs2 tablets: 200 mg bilberry fruit extract yielding 74 mg anthocyanosides (37%); 60 servingsOne-time price $38.85Shop at HerbsPro (opens in new tab)Price and label checked 2026-10-13 on the brand’s site.
Partner links may earn us a commission. Learn more
Frequently asked questions
Does bilberry improve night vision?
No. A systematic review found the most rigorous placebo-controlled trials negative, and NCCIH agrees.[1][7]
Can bilberry help tired eyes from screens?
Two small trials funded or run by extract makers found modest improvements in eye-fatigue measures.[2][3]
Is bilberry safe?
Fruit extracts appear well tolerated in studies, but leaves may be unsafe in high doses and pregnancy safety is unknown.[7]
How can I spot fake bilberry extract?
Simple colour tests can be fooled: one extract labelled 25% anthocyanins was coloured with a synthetic dye; look for HPLC-tested products.[6]
Sources
- [1]Anthocyanosides of Vaccinium myrtillus (bilberry) for night vision--a systematic review of placebo-controlled trials.. Surv Ophthalmol, 2004. systematic-review
- [2]Bilberry extract supplementation for preventing eye fatigue in video display terminal workers.. J Nutr Health Aging, 2015. RCT
- [3]A 12-Week-Long Intake of Bilberry Extract (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) Improved Objective Findings of Ciliary Muscle Contraction of the Eye: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel-Group Comparison Trial.. Nutrients, 2020. RCT
- [4]The effect of a natural, standardized bilberry extract (Mirtoselect®) in dry eye: a randomized, double blinded, placebo-controlled trial.. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci, 2017. RCT
- [5]Bilberries reduce low-grade inflammation in individuals with features of metabolic syndrome.. Mol Nutr Food Res, 2012. RCT
- [6]Bilberry adulteration using the food dye amaranth.. J Agric Food Chem, 2006. observational
- [7]Bilberry: Usefulness and Safety. NIH National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, 2024. fact-sheet
- [8]Bilberry Fruit (About Herbs). Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 2023. database
What changed
- Editorial evidence re-review: added the anticoagulant/antiplatelet bleeding caution from Memorial Sloan Kettering's monograph (case report); maker involvement (Wakasa Seikatsu conducted, Omnica funded, Indena-affiliated lead author) re-checked in the full texts.
- Second-pass self-review: every PMID re-checked against NCBI esummary (title, year, no retraction or expression-of-concern flag), every dose, n and duration re-read against the PubMed abstract or PMC full text, grades held conservative, and interactions limited to what a cited source supports.
- First draft. Source titles and years taken from NCBI E-utilities esummary; abstracts read for every evidence row.