When it comes to a good night's sleep people are willing to try anything, so it's always nice to find out that nice things like reading a book or taking a warm bath can help you get a great night of rest. Add another great thing to that list: drinking cherry juice.
Tart cherries are the new super fruit, following the trends of Acai Berries and Pomegranates. Tart cherries have some of the highest levels of antioxidants in fruits as well as vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, folate, iron and fiber. They pack 19 times more beta carotene than blueberries or strawberries. Not only can tart cherries help ease the pain of arthritis and gout but they also reduce the risk factors of diabetes, heart disease and even certain cancers.
And how does the super fruit help you sleep better at night? Cherries contain melatonin, one of the naturally occurring brain chemicals that helps regulate sleep patterns. Drink a glass of unsweetened cherry juice before bed to get a boost in those sleep inducing chemicals.
A study done by the University of Pennsylvania, University of Rochester (NY) and VA Center of Canadaigua gave 15 adults two glasses of juice daily for one month. The first two weeks of the study participants were given a glass of tart cherry juice first thing in the morning and right before bed. The second two weeks they were given alternative types of juice.
The results? Those given cherry juice slept for a whole seventeen minutes longer than the participants who had other fruit juices. Though seventeen minutes is not a drastic change, it is believed that cherries, cherry juices and even cherry supplements could help restless worriers get the sleep they need before a big test, interview, or presentation at work.
