Partnering with leading health experts, the cherry industry launched a new consumer education campaign to communicate the health benefits of cherries and unveiled “The Cherry Nutrition Report,” the first compendium of peer-reviewed cherry-related studies. The report reviews the array of research that links cherry consumption to a variety of possible health benefits?from easing the pain of arthritis and gout to offering potential protection against heart disease and certain cancers.
“There's a significant body of evidence suggesting that cherries are one of the most nutritious fruits you can eat,” says Russel J. Reiter, Ph.D., a nutrition researcher at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, who has conducted many of the studies on tart cherries.
The report lists the antioxidant content (ORAC score per 100 grams) of many common cherry ingredients: cherry juice concentrate, with 12,800 ORAC units; dried cherries, with 6,800 ORAC units; frozen cherries, with 2,033 ORAC units; and canned cherries, with 1,700 ORAC units.
“Cherries not only contain significant levels of antioxidants, but they provide a unique combination of antioxidants that are not found in other fruits,” Reiter says. Those compounds appear to have anti-inflammatory benefits, which may provide benefits for aging baby boomers suffering from joint pain. Some arthritis sufferers believe that tart cherry juice concentrate helps to relieve pain. “The evidence was always anecdotal, but it was repeated so often and by so many people that it made us think there was something to it,” Reiter says. “That's why we've explored this connection from a scientific standpoint.”
Research conducted at Michigan State University (Seeram NP, Momin RA, Nair MG, Bourquin LD, “Cyclooygenase inhibitory and antioxidant cyanidin glycosides in cherries and berries,” Phytomedicine, 2001;8:362-369) found that cherries are the richest source of anthocyanins 1 and 2. These help block cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 (COX-1 and COX-2). Some pain medications, such as ibuprofen, work by inhibiting COX-1 and COX-2, which might explain a possible mechanism for cherries’ potential effects on the pain caused by arthritis and gout.
Additionally, cherries contain melatonin, an antioxidant that helps improve the body’s circadian rhythms and natural sleep patterns, according to studies conducted by Reiter. He and his colleagues in Texas theorize that eating just a handful of tart cherries may help increase melatonin levels in the blood and help promote a more restful sleep.
Other studies reviewed in the report suggest that compounds in tart cherries may help lower blood cholesterol and reduce the risk of insulin resistance syndrome, or prediabetes.
“The Cherry Nutrition Report” was released by The Cherry Marketing Institute, an organization funded by North American tart cherry growers and processors.
