5 Health Benefits of Cranberries

Cranberries beat blueberries and blackberries for antioxidant potency

Cranberries are rich with antioxidants, scoring even higher than blueberries and blackberries on the ORAC scale.

Cranberries are very popular this time of year, whether fresh, frozen, dried or as a sauce.

Packed with antioxidants, cranberries have one of the highest scores on the oxygen radical absorbance capacity scale, scoring even higher than blueberries and blackberries.

The Cranberry Institute provides information about ongoing research on the various properties of the tart-tasting berry.

Here are five of the most important health benefits that have been identified:

1. Cranberry Juice Helps Prevent UTIs

A Japanese study found that women aged 50 and over who drank 4 ounces of cranberry juice daily for six months suffered fewer urinary tract infections (UTI) than women drinking a placebo beverage. Another study showed that children who drank cranberry juice daily had a 65 percent lower incidence of UTIs than children in the placebo group.

2. Cardiovascular Benefits for Postmenopausal Women

Researchers at the University of Hong Kong found that cranberry juice improved vascular function and cholesterol profiles in an animal study. They concluded that the beverage may be beneficial for postmenopausal women, helping to combat potential risk factors for cardiovascular disease by protecting LDL-cholesterol (“bad” cholesterol) from being oxidized.

3. Powerful Antioxidants

Cranberries contain the flavonoid proanthocyanidins. Their unusual structure offers bacterial anti-adhesive properties that may help prevent the adhesion of certain harmful bacteria.

4. Fewer Dental Cavities

Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition reported in 2002 that saliva samples from subjects using a mouthwash containing properties extracted from cranberry showed a reduction in Streptococcus mutans colony forming units compared with the placebo group. A large percentage of dental cavities can be attributed to Streptococcus mutans.

4. Ulcer Prevention

A constituent of cranberry juice has been shown to inhibit the adhesion of Helicobacter pylori to human gastric mucus in vitro, suggesting that cranberries may be beneficial in the prevention of peptic ulcers.

5. Cancer Prevention

Cranberries may help to prevent cancers of the breast, prostate, colon, and lungs. The mechanisms that help explain the anti-cancer properties include blocked expression of matrix metalloproteinases; inhibition of ornithine decarboxylase enzymes; stimulation of quinone reductase enzymes; inhibition of Phase I detoxification enzymes; and triggering of cell death in tumor cells.

Food or Supplement, and How Much?

Most of the research on cranberries indicates that the most powerful effects result from ingesting the whole food rather than from taking extracts or supplements. The health benefits listed above can be attained from these amounts:

• 1/4 cup fresh cranberries
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries (sweetened)
• 1/4 cup cranberry sauce
• 2 oz. 100 percent cranberry juice
• 8 oz. 27 percent cranberry juice cocktail.

Whether they’re used in your baking (biscotti, anyone?), cooking, stuffing, or as a snack, cranberries are good for you.

Continue to enjoy the health benefits of cranberries even after the holidays with these great suggestions:

• Add a handful to your morning bowl of oatmeal
• Add a cup to muffin recipes
• Include them in a trail mix
• Sprinkle them over a salad
• Mix some cranberries into a rice or quinoa dish
• Toss some into a casserole dish with cubed sweet potatoes or butternut squash.

Lisa Tsakos is a nutritionist and educator specializing in weight management. This article was first published on NaturallySavvy.com