National Cranberry Day, So What?!

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 Image by KamranAydinov on Freepik

The month of November brings upon us a special holiday- National Cranberry Day on November 21st. Unfortunately, these colorful nutrient dense fruits are often overlooked and underrated for their superfood abilities. Most of us probably only think about cranberries when the classic ocean spray harvest commercial comes on of the two men in a pond full of cranberries (or is that just me?). Did you know that you need about 10 ounces of cranberry juice cocktail daily to gain the bacteria blocking benefits that cranberries provide? These help fend off UTIs, gum disease, and ulcers. 
The same benefits can arise from: 

·      1 ½ cups of fresh or frozen cranberries

·      1 oz sweetened dried cranberries

·      ½ cup cranberry sauce

If that was not enough reasons to try to out cranberries, here is some more! Would you believe me if I told you that cranberries get their dark hue from the high number of antioxidants within them? Well, they do! These antioxidant components of the cranberries help to reduce inflammation (Cleveland Clinic 2024). A specific type of antioxidant that a cranberry contains is Proanthocyanidins (PACs). Think of them as a protective shield in life and representations of protective influences in our lives such as good habits or strong friendships. 

PACs can (Massachusetts Cranberries 2024):

·      Promote heart health

·      Protect the urinary tract

·      Support gut health

·      Lower the occurrence of certain infections

·      Decrease inflammation related to chronic disease and aging 

There are even more unknown benefits to these super fruits, so why not give them a shot in any form listed above? 


M.S. 



<a href="https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/front-view-fresh-red-cranberries-dark-background-berry-color-xmas-holiday-fruit_17177374.htm#query=cranberry&position=43&from_view=keyword&track=ais_hybrid&uuid=95fb820f-1ef7-466a-a4ac-c1a490626e17">Image by KamranAydinov</a> on Freepik 

Cleveland Clinic. (2024a, June 27). Are cranberries healthy? 6 surprising benefits. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/benefits-of-cranberries 

Health benefits. Health Benefits - Massachusetts Cranberries. (2024). https://www.cranberries.org/health-benefits 


Comments

  1. Lillian GroffNovember 13, 2024 at 9:36 AM

    I definitely agree that cranberries get overlooked each holiday season. I always knew they help to fight off UTIs, but I had no idea of the other benefits such as promoting heart health and decreasing inflammation due to their antioxidant property.

    ReplyDelete

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