The surprising health benefits of drinking cherry juice

Recent studies and researches have discovered that consuming cherry juice on a regular basis can be extremely beneficial to health. Here's how...

Say goodbye to blood pressure: A recent study conducted by researchers at a UK university revealed the drinking cherry juice can significantly reduce blood pressure. They believe that a glass of cherry juice in their daily diet can eventually enable them to forgo pills or any other medication. The study's participants were patients who were displaying early hypertension with blood pressure readings of at least 130/90 mmHg.

Cherry juice may help fight gout: Drinking cherry juice concentrate may help patients beat gout, according to new research. Tart cherries have long been researched for their association with pain relief ranging from gout and arthritis joint pain to exercise-related muscle pain, researchers said. The study is the first to report consumption of Montmorency tart cherries caused changes in uric acid metabolism, which can have an impact on joint pain.

The study also detected increases in specific anthocyanin compounds in the bloodstream after consuming tart cherries. In the study, Montmorency tart cherry juice reduced blood levels of uric acid and C-reactive protein, a measure of inflammation, researchers said. High levels of uric acid are linked to gout, a form of arthritis that can cause severe attacks of intense pain and swelling (inflammation) in various joints, including the big toe and other joints in the legs and arms.

Tart cherry juice can help beat post-race sniffles: Drinking juice made from tart cherries reduces upper respiratory tract symptoms associated with marathon running, suggests a research. Post-race sniffles are a common problem among endurance athletes. Researchers made 20 recreational marathon runners consume two servings of either a placebo drink or a blend of Montmorency tart cherry juice combined with apple juice twice a day (morning and afternoon) for eight consecutive days -- five days leading up to a marathon, on the day of the race and two days afterwards.

Runners who consumed the tart cherry juice had lower markers for inflammation than a placebo group at 24 and 48 hours post-marathon and had no reported incidences of upper respiratory tract symptoms (URTS) up to 48 hours after the race.

Can't sleep? Drink sour cherry juice twice a day: Forget the sleeping pills, drinking a glass of tart or sour cherry juice in the morning and the evening can help older insomniacs sleep better and also stay safe, a study suggests. Drinking Montmorency tart cherry juice twice a day for two weeks helped increase sleep time by nearly 90 minutes among older adults with insomnia.

Montmorency tart cherries are a natural source of melatonin - a hormone that helps regulate the sleep-wake cycle. While previous studies have also suggested that tart cherry juice has sleep-enhancing benefits, the study set out to help explain why. They found that tart cherry juice helped to increase the availability of tryptophan, an essential amino acid and a precursor to serotonin that helps with sleep.