When its berry season I love to go out and pick my favorite berries. With blackberries being amongst my favorite. Cranberries are also another great berry that doesn’t receive much attention. Cranberries are naturally tart and hold very little natural sugar which is why sugar is often added to cranberry products.
These ruby red berries are full of antioxidants and phytonutrients and are full of health benefits. During processing cranberries loose many of their nutrients so for maximum nutrition try blending them. These powerful antioxidants increase the antioxidant capacity of our bloodstream within hours of conception and therefore have been found to suppress liver cancer. They have also have similar effects against breast, colon, brain tumor, oral, and ovarian cancer cells.
Cranberries do contain nutrients that may help control a UTI however there is no set guideline on how much cranberry juice in needed to treat a UTI and more studies are needed. In fact it is unlikely that a person would consume enough cranberry juice to make it effective for most juices and supplements do not contain enough of the active ingredient to be beneficial.
The health given properties were originally recognized by Native American Indians, and early New England Sailors who used them for everything from cooking to dyes for textiles and medicines. There are many ways to add cranberries in to your diet. Fresh or frozen cranberries can be added to smoothies or yogurt. Dried cranberried can be added to homemade trail mix, oatmeal, or whole grain cereals. They can also be used for baking in granola bars, muffins, cakes, cookies, or pie. I enjoy adding cranberries to my breakfast granola bars for they pair great with coffee!