Cherry Juice Remedies

Cherry juice has long been touted as a folk remedy for gout. Now research is finding that the antioxidants in cherries, known as anthocyanins, can help relieve arthritis pain and muscle weakness and reduce the oxidative stress that contributes to chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.



Cherries contain higher levels of antioxidants than do acai, cranberry, or pomagranate juice, according to Elena Conis of the "L.A. Times." These antioxidants can help reduce the inflammation associated with many diseases and conditions.

Cherry Juice Remedies for Arthritis and Gout

• Cherry juice can help prevent gout.

  Arthritis medications target enzymes COX-1 and COX-2. The anthocyanins in cherries also inhibit these enzymes, according to a 2001 "Phytomedicine" study, reports pharmacologist Joe Graedon and his nutritionist wife, Teresa, of "The People's Pharmacy." This can reduce pain and inflammation associated with arthritis. Several studies in rats, including a 2004 study published in "Behavioural Brain Research," found that cherry extract reduced paw swelling and arthritis pain.

  Scientists from the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School measured the effects of cherry juice remedies on gout. They found that when patients ingested 2 tbsp. of cherry juice concentrate daily for 4 months, gout attacks decreased more than 50 percent in all 24 participants. One-third of the subjects had no gout attacks at all for 4 to 6 months. Dr. Naomi Schlesinger said that it wasn't a matter of changes in uric acid (the acid that leads to crystal formation in the joints), so the researchers believe that the cherry juice reduced inflammation. A companion study by the same researchers found that cherry juice inhibits a chemical that leads to crystal formation.

Cherry Juice May Prevent Chronic Diseases

• Cherry juice could help prevent chronic disease development in the elderly.

  Animal studies have found that the anothocyanins in cherries can reduce inflammation and slow the growth of tumors, reports Conis.

  A 2009 study published in "The Journal of Nutrition" found that cherry juice helps older adults better defend themselves against oxidative damage. Oxidative damage contributes to dysfunction and death in older adults because their bodies are less able to respond to infections and trauma, making them more likely to contract chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis, Alzheimer disease, cancer, and diabetes, reports the researchers.

  Aging adults often have ischemia-reperfusion injury. Ischemia is the term for decreased blood flow or nutrition to cells. Reperfusion refers to the procedures and surgeries used to restore proper blood flow; these procedures often temporarily worsen the damage.

  The researchers subjected elderly participants to acute ischemic-reperfusion stress and found that those who drank cherry juice were better able to defend against oxidative damage than were those who didn't.

Cherry Juice for Muscle Pain and Weakness

• Cherry juice can reduce muscle pain and weakness.

  University of Vermont researchers found that a cherry juice remedy helped reduce post-workout pain. Men who drank 24 ounces of a tart cherry juice blend had less pain than the men who didn't, and the pain they had peaked at 24 hours. The men who received a placebo had increasing muscle pain for 2 more days. The cherry juice drinkers also had improved muscle strength, experiencing about 20 percent less muscle weakness after exercise versus those drinking the placebo.

  A 2006 British study tried the same cherry juice remedy on marathon runners. The runners who drank tart cherry juice recovered muscle strength after the race 10 percent sooner than did those receiving a placebo, and their blood contained 30 to 50 percent lower levels of inflammation markers.

  Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) researchers tested a tart cherry juice blend on relay race runners. Runners who drank 10.5 ounces of the cherry juice remedy for a week before the event and twice a day during it experienced pain levels 63 percent lower than those in the placebo drinkers.

  Dr. Kerry Kuehl of OHSU reports that "there are an estimated 100,000 hospitalizations and 16,500 deaths per year due to internal bleeding caused by non-steroidal anti-inflammatories." About 60 million people take anti-inflammatory medications every day, and regular use of these drugs can lead to heart and stomach problems or kidney failure. With more research, cherry juice could prove to more safely guard against pain and inflammation of all types. Dr. Kuehl is also trying to determine whether cherry juice compounds help rebuild muscle, as well as prevent muscle injury.

  St. Mary University's Glyn Howatson theorizes that tart cherry juice could one day be used to reduce the amount of painkillers required after surgery.

Cherry Juice Remedy for Insomnia

• Cherry juice may help you sleep better.

  University of Rochester scientists found that drinking two glasses of unsweetened cherry juice every day can help people sleep better. Dr. Wilfred Pigeon theorizes that the high melatonin content in cherries may help regulate the sleep-wake cycle and act as an insomnia remedy. During the study, volunteers who drank cherry juice and then another fruit juice daily got an average of 17 more minutes of sleep when they drank the cherry juice.