Fresh. Healthy. Useful.

Cranberries are full of proven health benefits, according to researchers from Rutgers University. The National Institutes of Health is funding research on the tart, antioxidant-rich, and increasingly popular fruit. Its effects on heart disease, cancer, stroke, yeast infections, viral infections, and several other conditions is being studied all over the US.

So far, researchers have found:

• Drinking cranberry juice can help to prevent urinary tract infections.
• A compound found in cranberries, proanthocyanidine, prevents plaque formation on teeth.
• In some people, drinking cranberry juice on a regular basis can kill H. pylori bacteria, which can cause ulcers and even stomach cancer.

Preliminary research on cranberries also shows:

• Drinking cranberry juice on a daily basis may increase “good cholesterol“ levels and decrease “bad cholesterol” levels.
• Consuming cranberries may prevent tumors or keep existing tumors from growing rapidly.
• Extracts of compounds found in cranberries prevent breast cancer cells from multiplying in a test tube

Obviously, if you want to stay healthy you might want to consider boosting your cranberry intake. There are several foods, beverages, and supplements that contain cranberries or extracts of the fruit. Just be sure to always choose no-sugar or low-sugar versions!

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This Holiday Season, Add Eat Cranberries To Your To Do List

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From the Cranberry Institute:

Leading Scientists Review Latest Research on Cranberry’s Ability to Help Maintain Health

Researchers studying the health benefits of cranberries gathered at the Cranberry Health Research Conference, convened by the Cranberry Institute, to discuss a wide spectrum of emerging work. Prominent scientists from across North America met in Charleston, SC, to share current findings and new research into the cranberry’s role in helping maintain health and prevent a number of diseases and infections. The Institute assembled researchers in the fields of cardiovascular health, cancer prevention, urinary tract health, oral health, neuroscience, aging, immunology and food safety.

“As a nutrition scientist interested in the health benefits of colorful fruits and vegetables, it is gratifying to see research emerging on scientific studies regarding the beneficial effects of cranberries,” stated David Heber, MD, PhD, FACP, FACN, who serves as a Scientific Advisory Board member to the Cranberry Institute, is the founding Chief of the Division of Clinical Nutrition in the Department of Medicine and the Founding Director of the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition, as well as a Professor of Medicine and Public Health at UCLA.

Researchers studying the compositional issues of the cranberry as they relate to health benefits shared work being conducted at all levels, from basic chemistry to clinical studies, in order to better evaluate this unique berry. Studies reviewed at the conference included:

* Inhibition of E. coli - University of Maine research into the antimicrobial effect of cranberry concentrate found the concentrate significantly inhibits the growth of E. coli O157:H7as well as other types of bacteria found in food and in the body. This preliminary research may be of interest regarding food safety given the growing concern and need to control foodborne pathogens, particularly through natural antimicrobial compounds and natural preservatives.

* Boosting effect of flu vaccine - A pilot clinical study to be conducted by the University of California, Davis, starting this month will investigate the immune system-boosting potential of cranberry juice by evaluating how elderly subjects respond to influenza vaccine. Data on the amount of antioxidants found in different fruits clearly indicate that cranberries have the highest content per serving of polyphenols, making them the best candidate to potentially counteract aging of the immune system. Scientists hypothesize that a specific nutritional supplement, potentially cranberry, for the elderly may produce a stronger immune system.

* National Institutes of Health (NIH) - Updates on several of the 12 studies being funded by the NIH, including nine from the Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine’s (NCCAM) landmark multi-million dollar research initiative. The body of research being conducted is primarily to examine the unique activity of cranberry in preventing adhesion of certain disease-causing bacteria to cells and tissues in the body. Once completed, the data will include the largest clinical trial of Cranberry Juice Cocktail (CJC) on preventing urinary tract infection (UTI) in otherwise healthy women.

* Anti-aging properties - The latest research into the anti-aging properties of cranberry, including a cross-species study supported by the Intramural Research Program of the NIH, National Institute on Aging and the Cranberry Institute.

* Inhibiting gum disease - A study examining the periodontal health benefits of cranberry to further bolster existing research which supports that cranberry components offer promising applications for the development of novel adjunctive treatment for periodontal disease – the single largest cause of tooth loss in older Americans.

* Heart health and cancer inhibition - On-going research including mechanisms of action of cranberry phytochemicals on several cancers and cardiovascular disease, cranberry polyphenols as effective anti-inflammatory compounds, the effects of cranberry consumption on cholesterol levels and the cranberry juice effect on reducing the symptoms of acute UTI as well as their prevention.

Martin Starr, PhD, Science Advisor to the Cranberry Institute, commented, “We convened the Third Biennial Health Research Conference so that scientists exploring cranberry’s potential effect in many parts of the body could share their latest work, from clinical studies to preliminary exploratory research. These findings continue to grow more rich and dense as researchers go both deeper and broader in examining cranberry’s amazing structural complexity and its unique bacterial anti-adhesion and antioxidant benefits,” he concluded.