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Cranberry Juice Benefits
Cranberry juice is not only a deliciously tasting drink, it also provides us with important health benefits.
If we believe everything we read it would appear that cranberry juice benefits can cure 50% of all known health problems. Unfortunately this is not the case, but cranberry juice does receive a good press and it is important to understand why.
Fruit and vegetables are an important addition to our diets, ensuring we receive the right balance of vitamins and minerals, proven to help lower the risk of chronic disease. It is no secret that drinking pure, unsweetened fruit juice like orange, apple and pineapple provides our bodies with important nutrients like vitamin c and antioxidants.
But what about cranberry juice? How can this less popular juice be of any benefit to our health and should we be substituting our traditional orange and pineapple, with cranberry juice?
Cranberries are grown as shrubs in the wild, or on vines when cultivated. They are bright red in color and have a rich tart and slightly bitty taste to them. In the US they are predominantly grown in the northern states and southern Canada and are a larger variety than wild cranberries or those found in Europe.
One cup of cranberries measures roughly about 50 calories. It has high levels of antioxidants which benefit the body in a number of ways. It is also an excellent source of vitamin C, a very good source of dietary fiber, and a good source of manganese and vitamin K. Cranberries contains zero cholesterol and the total fat composition is only 0.1 gram, which makes it a very low fat, healthy drink.
Apart from other healthy nutrients they produce, the most notable benefit of cranberry juice, and what sets it apart from other fruit juices, is its ability to treat and prevent urinary tract infections.
Cranberries contain an antibacterial agent called hippuric acid which acidifies the urine. Combined with other compounds it reduces the ability of E-coli bacteria to stick to the walls of the bladder. It simply mixes with the urine and is washed away. Since E-coli are responsible for up to 90% of urinary tract infections, the protection provided by cranberry juice is quite significant. Drinking one glass of cranberry juice every day can reduce the risk of infections and prevents cystitis.
But more research has lead to other important health benefits of cranberry juice including:
* Help reduce high cholesterol levels - Drinking cranberry juice daily may help to increase levels of HDL, (good cholesterol) and reduce levels of LDL, (bad cholesterol). The knock on effect is less of the bad cholesterol clogging the walls of your arteries which puts less strain on the heart.
* Prevention of Kidney Stone Formation - Some medical studies have shown that quinic acid, abundantly found in cranberries, may help to prevent the development of kidney stones.
* Cranberries Combat Herpes Virus – Scientists have found that a substance extracted from the cranberries suppressed the genital herpes virus. Tests showed that the compound, proanthocyanidin, made it harder for the virus to penetrate cells.
* Protection Against Macular Degeneration- (An affliction of the eyes that affect many people as they age).
* Reduction of Dental Plaque – Studies have shown that cranberry juice can reduce the growth of bacteria that causes plaque to stick to the teeth, preventing decay and gum disease.
* Prevents Stomach Related Problems - A daily glass of cranberry juice can help destroy H.pylori bacteria which cause stomach ulcers and cancer.
The research into cranberry juice benefits is ongoing, but it is now widely accepted for its powerful antioxidants and the health benefits these bring. It is a combination of the different compounds that make up cranberries rather than any 1 individual mineral that provides these various health benefits.
I personally now drink a glass every morning instead of my usual grapefruit juice. I find I can get the benefits of other juices in a variety of foods, whereas cranberry juice seems to be quite unique and effective in what it does. Apart from that, it is a really refreshing drink that perks you up for the day.
It does have quite a sharp taste to it and I dilute mine with a quarter glass of water, which makes it last even longer!
The pure, nothing added variety of cranberry juice is the obvious choice as there’s already enough benefits without adding any more. If you can’t find a suitable brand in your local store, Amazon.com can post you some in a day or 2 and I love their natural cranberry concentrate version.
I hope you enjoyed this article and found it beneficial. If you have any question, comments or any experiences you’d like to share, please drop them here.
Warmest regards,
Sarah
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I have tried cranberry juice for sometime now, may I ask if it has any effect on my INR since I am taking in Coumadin because of my metal valve? also will it help expel gas in the stomach because my sotmach is most often full of air that I feel bloated
Hi,
Very nice site, very informative, lots of good learning here. You did a very good job on your site, I wish you top rankings my friend.
Cranberry juice does indeed help with bladder and urinary tracts infections, and I have used it for kidney problems. For example when I was in my 20′s, I drank lots of soda and very little water. Well, as you know that leads to kidney stones and I was starting to have problems. So it was recommended to me to drink cranberry juice and more water also. Well, cranberry juice works great.
It is nice to learn what elements contained in this juice works for our benefits.
Kevin
I love cranberry juice and drink it regularly, it is very good for you!! Delicious too
Glad it is so healthy as I drink it everyday!!
Happy to know that “a daily glass of cranberry juice can help destroy H.pylori bacteria which cause stomach ulcers and cancer”.
Just another great recipe to get rid of it.
I have a blog on how to heal yourself with reflexology and I found your website while searching for the benefits of cranberry juice for a post I’m writing on UTI’s. I found your website to be really helpful, and I added your link right away. Thanks!
One website claimed cranberry juice increased acidity, resulting in a stronger smell of the urine.
Is this true, or the reverse?
Yes it probably does Bill, but only if you let yourself become dehydrated. Otherwise it will just dilute naturally in your system.
I have never really thought about Cranberry Juice as being beneficial, other than the widely known benefit for urinary infections. I certainly had no idea that it could be helpful in lowering cholesterol levels and the other things you mention.
Think I will include this in my regular shop from now on. Quite like the taste anyway, so this will not be a hardship!
I had a condition of urethritis for years(mostly after sex)! A lot of girls suffering from this horrible condition. Every time i was getting sick i was trying to reserch how i can cure this. One day i read that cranberry juice will help and i started drinking it every day. Now I am a new me – no problems for already a year! This is after 10 years of suffering. I am so greatfull for this juice – never thought simple juice can make it!
By the way, not every type of urethrisis can be cured like that. Urethrisis that people getting from STDs abviously can’t be cured just with a juice. But probably can help with the cure.
Very informative -thank you! I also wanted to find out if anyone knows how much of the juice could be drunk daily?
cranberry juice is like the best thing on earth! every morning, i always drink 2 glasses of this awesome juice in the hotel buffet! it is really healthy, and it tastes so good! GO CRANBERRIES!!!!!!!!
Thank you for the informative site! My question is, should I be drinking cranberry juice if I am dehydrated? I have been drinking about a half a cup to a cup in water daily.
Hi Teresa,
You should really be drinking cranberry juice in addition to your daily water intake of around 8 glasses per day.
Sarah
Hi.. very nice post, just have a couple of questions:
1/ Cranberry juice seems to sour for me, and I was wanting to take the capsule form instead. The lowest size pill here is 1000mg. With respect to 1 cup of Cranberry juice, what would be the conversion? I.e. how many cups is this equivalent to.
2/ Is there anything wrong about having too much?
3/ Is there any difference (i.e. advantage/disadvantage) between the capsule and fresh juice?
Thanks.. very much!
I love cranberry juice I drink it everyday all day. I have never contracted a UTI,OR any other medical problems. All thanks to cranberry juice. Give the other flavors a try also its wonderful
Hello larry,
If Cranberry juice is to sour for you, you should try maybe putting a half a cup of cold water in the juice to dilute a little if that doesnt work for you try a flavor like cran-apple or cran grape etc. Pills are just fine but I prefer the fresh glass cranberry juice because its very refreshing and good for flushing your body and bladder, which is an immediate flushing. There’s no such thing as too much cranberry juice but you should always drink water, Cranberry juice is not a substitue.
@Larry:
Unsweetened cranberry juice is too sour for me! So, I have been drinking the cranberry juice mixed with other juices variety – which is less sweet than the sugar loaded cranberry cocktail. BUT! I also add as much unsweetened juice to that mix as I can tolerate. I’ve been doing this for a month, and my (very slight – after having had two bouts of cystitis last winter) urinary incontinence has completely cleared up. Yippee!!
Real Good read!!! However, does anyone have any idea whether cranberries heat the body? Bcos, i have seem to have longer period dates this month. Am suspecting its due to hving cranberry juice daily. Any idea on this?
Please let me know if the acid in cranberry juice would make arthritis more painful. I have arthirtis, I like cranberry juice but don’t know if it affects my arthritis.
My friend loves to drink cranberry juice but it has made her body becoming too skinny as if the cranberry juice is drying her up…