A Cherry on Top: the Surprising Emergence of Cherries

Cherries don’t get much attention as a health food. We seldom mention them except for a tradition and a single study for treating gout. But yesterday, when we wrote about cherry juice as an immune support for prolonged exercise, we realized that it was the fifth cherry study we’d written about recently. . . .

In addition to boosting immunity during exercise, recent research has validated cherry’s traditional claim to being a superb supplement for gout. Two recent studies tested the traditional treatment of giving cherry juice to people with gout. The studies gave a cherry juice concentrate (1tbsp=45-60 cherries) to gout sufferers while they continued to take their medication.

In the first study, more than 50% of the cherry group were attack free at sixty days and could cut back on their meds. In the second, attacks were reduced by 50% in half the people taking cherry juice for four months or longer (Arthritis Rheum 2013;65:1135-6). The second study found that eating cherries reduced the risk of attack by 35% and that a cherry extract reduced it by 45% (Arthritis Rheum 2012;64:4004-11).

In addition to cherry’s traditional role in treating gout, a novel role for cherries has emerged. Cherries are emerging as an exciting new treatment for insomnia. Compared to a placebo, a cherry product improved sleep efficiency, time taken to fall asleep, number of awakenings and total sleep time in one study. And a second double-blind study found out why. Tart cherry juice given for seven days significantly increases melatonin. Compared to a placebo, the cherry group significantly increased the time spent in bed, had a significant 34 minutes more sleep per night and a significant 5-6% increase in the time in bed spent sleeping (Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging 2013;17:553-60; Eur J Nutr 2012;51:909-16).

So watch for the rise of cherries as a new health food.