The Advantages Of Tart Cherry Juice

Tart cherry juice does not come from dark Bing cherries but rather from brilliantly red sour cherries that you might find stuffed into rich, flaky pastries and turnovers. Tart cherries are rich in antioxidants and have a superior nutritional profile, so health food companies are taking advantage of those qualities by selling bottled tart cherry concentrate.

Nutritional Profile

According to the USDA, 1 cup of pitted tart cherries has 78 calories, 1.5 g protein, 0.5 g fat, 19 g carbohydrates, 2.5 g fiber and 13 g natural sugar, with 15.5 mg of vitamin C. The cherry juice is slightly more calorie-dense. According to King Orchards of Michigan, 1 tbsp. of tart cherry juice concentrate contains 110 calories, no fat or cholesterol, 20 mg sodium, 280 mg potassium, 26 g carbohydrates, no fiber, 21 g sugar and 1 g protein.

Muscle Recovery

In a 2006 study published in the "British Journal of Sports Medicine," a team of researchers discovered that tart cherry juice can improve and minimize exercise-induced muscle damage. "Strength loss and pain were significantly less in the cherry juice trial versus placebo," wrote the researchers. Most notably, participants who drank the cherry juice lost only 4 percent of muscle strength over four days of exercise, but placebo participants lost 22 percent.

Gout Relief

Gout is a type of arthritis that typically affects women and men that are middle-aged or older. Pain relievers and prescription drugs can help treat gout, but tart cherry juice may also be beneficial. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, antioxidant-rich tart cherry juice and tart cherries "lower uric acid and prevent attacks." The center suggests drinking 6 to 12 oz. of juice per day.

Antioxidant Levels

According to the Wisconsin Cherry Growers, tart cherries and their juice may have nutritional and antioxidant properties that can help prevent heart disease. Tart cherry juice concentrate has an oxygen radical absorbance capacity, or ORAC, of approximately 12,800 units, while canned tart cherries have only 1,700 ORAC units. An ORAC unit measures the oxygen radicals that foods can absorb and deactivate; in other words, it's a measure of how effective a specific food can be in disease prevention.

Considerations

Tart cherry juice concentrate, while a natural product, is still classified as a dietary supplement. According to public health expert Dr. Monica Zangwill, that means it is not subject to the same health regulations as real foods, and not all of its product claims are necessarily substantiated by scientific research. Before you use cherry juice as a treatment method or make it a regular fixture in your diet, consult your doctor.