Arthritis hurts. But fresh cherries may help. Results of a preliminary study by ARS (Agriculture Research Service a division of USDA) scientists and their university colleagues suggest that some natural compounds in plump, juicy Bing cherries may reduce painful arthritic inflammation. Eating cherries may also help lessen the severity of other inflammatory conditions, such as cardiovascular disease or cancer.
Cherries already have a reputation for fighting inflammation. So what's new about the ARS study?
"Our test is among the first to track anti-inflammatory effects of fresh Bing cherries in a controlled experiment with healthy volunteers," says chemist Robert A. Jacob, who led the investigation. Jacob is now retired from the ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Center in Davis, California.
In previous studies at other laboratories, scientists analyzed extracts from sweet or tart cherries in vitro to learn more about the fruit's potential health-promoting properties. In contrast to these test-tube experiments, the California study is apparently the first to test key inflammatory disease indicators, or markers, in blood samples from healthy volunteers who were fed precise amounts of fresh Bing cherries. Reported in a 2003 issue of the Journal of Nutrition, the California investigation paved the way for a recent followup study at the Davis center.
For more information on the benefits of cherries click HERE
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