Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines, a small, rather hard, tart red berry, usually grown in colder climates in the US and Great Brittan, have been used to make the obligatory compliment to turkey for our holiday tables for years.
Recently, though, cranberries have gone through a sort of foodie Renaissance and their health benefits have shoved them front and center into the austere list of “super foods,” and for very good reason.
Medical News Today reports that many people consider cranberries to be a superfood due to their high nutrient and antioxidant content. In fact, cranberry research has linked the nutrients in cranberries to a lower risk of urinary tract infection (UTI), the prevention of certain types of cancer, improved immune function, and decreased blood pressure.
Low in calories and sugar content (which attributes to its tart taste) and high in dietary fiber, cranberries are often added to cooking with sugar or sweeteners added which often takes away from their nutritional value, but notwithstanding, here are just a few of the powerful health benefits of cranberries.
Cranberries are a rich source of antioxidants, vitamins C, E, K1, Copper and Manganese which is essential for growth, metabolism, and facilitating the body’s antioxidant system. They are an acidic-based fruit which make them a great cleanser for the kidneys and the juice of the cranberry is often used by clinicians to clean the urinary system of adults experiencing UTI’s.
Additionally, cranberries contain unique plant compounds known as A-type proanthocyanidins, which may cut the risk of stomach cancer by preventing H. pylori from attaching to the lining of the stomach and cranberry juice or extracts have proven beneficial for various heart disease risk factors by:
- increasing levels of HDL (good) cholesterol
- lowering levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol in people with diabetes
- protecting LDL (bad) cholesterol from oxidation
- decreasing stiffness in blood vessels among people with heart disease
- lowering blood pressure
- decreasing blood levels of homocysteine, thus cutting your risk of inflammation in blood vessels
*Credit: Healthline
Cranberries are also extremely versatile in baking and cooking and sales in recent years of dried and fresh cranberries have exploded, match by a 2019 bumper world-wide crop due to cooler temperatures overall.
The USDA reports U.S. cranberry production alone reached 904 million pounds (or 9.04 million barrels) in 2019, up 1 percent from 2018, making it the second-largest in recent years, following record output of 963 million pounds in 2016 with projections for 2020 for continued growth.
Cranberries add a sharp flavor to baking and their deep red color and long shelf life has made them the non-official fruit of the holiday season.
Cranberries can be used in most cooking to add a different flavor dimension to savory as well as sweet baking, and their fresh tang pairs nicely with heavy, fat laden foods and sauces because of the fruit’s high acidity content.
Enjoy all the flavors of the season’s bounty of cranberries in any form and reap the delicious health benefits.
