Fresh evidence for cranberries and health

Further evidence to support the health benefits of cranberries and cranberry juice beyond maintaining a healthy urinary tract was revealed recently at the Experimental Biology 2001 conference in Orlando, Florida. According to a study presented at the conference titled "Effects of Cranberry Juice Consumption on Platelet Aggregation"​ from Ted Wilson, Ph.D., at theUniversity of Wisconsin-La Crosse​, drinking cranberry juice may have heart health benefits. "This study suggests that cranberry juice consumption may inhibit blood clotting in vivo and that cranberry juice may provide the body with compounds that are beneficial for reducing coronary heart disease risk,"​Wilson wrote. In a further preliminary study presented titled "Cranberry: A Fruit with an Unusually Rich Source of Antioxidants"​ by Joe Vinson, Ph.D., from the University of Scranton​, cranberries, compared to other fruits, appear to have a high level of antioxidants. According to the methodology used by Vinson, cranberry had the highest polyphenols and free phenols on a fresh weight basis compared to 20 other fruits. The Cranberry Institute​and the Wisconsin Cranberry Board​ funded the Vinson study. The Wisconsin Cranberry Board funded the Wilson study.