Cherries, a great tasting fruit with health benefits

Back in January I wrote about the health benefits of Brazilian Acai berries. These so called ‘superfoods’ are rich in antioxidant bioflavonoids (biologically active plant chemicals) which may help protect the body against many diseases. However, these berries are very expensive and have to be shipped in from many miles away. I was interested to find out if there were any ‘home-grown’ foods that were just as tasty but cheaper to buy and more available.

Cherries seem to come up trumps! These fruits are delicious and UK grown varieties are readily available to buy from supermarkets and local markets. Cherry season will soon be starting. Supermarkets are starting to stock cherries now but most of these will be from other parts of the world. In June and July UK grown cherries become available, these are cheaper to buy. Both sweet and sour varieties are available. For recipe ideas I suggest you check out the BBC food in season website.

A recent (1) study looking into cherries and their ability to boost antioxidant levels in the body was presented in New Orleans, America just a few days ago at the Experimental Biology 2009 conference. The study (1) was small involving only 12 adults aged 18-25. They were given weighed amounts of cherries to eat, specifically sour/tart charries of the Montmorency variety, their blood and urine was then analysed to check for antioxidant activity. The researchers found that eating even a small amount of cherries (about a cup full) significantly boosted the antioxidant activity in the body for up to 12 hours. The study documents that the antioxidants found in cherries do in fact make it into the human bloodstream. More research is certainly needed but the antioxidant flavonoids found in cherries could have many benefits for our health. For example, bioflavonoids have been found to be protective against heart disease, stroke and inflammation. For more information on please read my previous blog post on flavonoids.

Another recently published study (2) found that both sweet and sour cherry varieties contain many active antioxidant bioflavonoids. The group of antioxidants flavonoids found in cherries are known as anthocyanins, these give cherries their red colour. Many laboratory studies have found that bioactive anthocyanins seem to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antidiabetic and antiobese properties – these studies need to be confirmed in larger human trials before any definite conclusions can be drawn but evidence is growing for their importance to health.

Many different flavonoids are found abundantly in fruits and vegetables, which are so important for our health. Vegetables and fruit should form the core of a healthy diet and getting a good variety daily will give the body many of the nutrients that are needed for optimal health. Flavonoid supplements are now available to buy (including cherry anthocyanin supplements), though the evidence for their use is still in the early stages. If you feel your diet is consistently lacking in vegetables and fruits you may want to consider a supplement to cover the shortfall, but remember supplements can never be considered as a replacement for a healthy diet.

For more information on the science supporting the unique health benefits of cherries please visit the ‘choose cherries‘ website.

(1)Uhley VE et al. 2009. Pharmacokinetic study of the absorption and metabolism of Montmorency tart cherry anthocyanins in human subjects. 2009 Experimental Biology meeting abstracts, Abstract #565.4; Accessed April 19, 2009
(2)Mulabagal V et al. 2009. Anthocyanin content, lipid peroxidation and cyclooxygenase enzyme inhibitory activities of sweet and sour cherries. J Agric Food Chem. 57:1239-1246

Written by Ani Kowal