Tart Cherry: Benefits & How to Take It

› What is it?

Sour cherry fruit contains substances that might reduce swelling and act as antioxidants. Cherry juice is rich in nutrients like potassium and iron. Sour cherry is used for muscle soreness after exercise, improving exercise performance, and other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support any use.

› Health benefits

Inflammation

According to research, antioxidants in tart cherry juice can reduce pain and inflammation from osteoarthritis. A 2012 study showed that drinking cherry juice twice a day for 21 days reduced the pain felt by people with osteoarthritis. Blood tests also showed that they experienced significantly less inflammation.

Athletic performance

Some research shows that taking sour cherry improves jumping, agility and some aspects of performance in trained athletes doing intense exercise. But not all research agrees.

Workout-related muscle soreness

A number of studies report beneficial effects of taking sour cherry before a workout or event, such as a running race, and reduced muscle soreness after the event. It also appears to reduce muscle soreness after weightlifting.

Airway infections caused by exercise

Research shows that drinking sour cherry and apple juice before and after running a marathon reduces cough, sore throat, congestion and sneezing after the race.

High blood pressure

Research shows that taking sour cherry might decrease blood pressure short-term. It is unknown if it decreases blood pressure in the long-term in people with high blood pressure.

Insomnia

Some research shows that sour cherry improves sleep time when used for 1 week. But it doesn’t seem to help reduce the time it takes to fall asleep.

Further studies are underway to test the efficacy of cherry supplements for fibromyalgia, gout, indigestion (dyspepsia), osteoarthritis and other conditions.

› How much do I need?

The appropriate dose of sour cherry depends on several factors such as the user’s age, health, and several other conditions. At this time there is not enough scientific information to determine an appropriate range of doses for sour cherry.

› In food

Tart cherry juice is a delicious option to fortify your intake.

› Dietary supplements

Tart cherry supplements are available in capsules and soft gels.

Sources: WebMD, Healthline

Please consult your health care provider before making changes to your vitamin/supplement regimen.