Cranberry
Vaccinium Macrocarpon
 The
Wampanoag Indians of the Plymouth Rock area called them
ibimi or bitter fruit at the time Pilgrims arrived.
The Pilgrims renamed them crane berries because the long
vines and pink blossoms resembled cranes. One of three
fruits native to America (concord grapes and blueberries
are the others) fifty percent of the national crop is
still grown in the Plymouth area. For years, the early
colonists harvested the fruit from wild-growing vines.
Then Henry Hall from Cape Cod discovered that the
berries grew especially large and juicy in the acid-peat
soil found near sand dunes at the beach.
There
are only two fruits that are acidic, cranberries and
prunes, all other fruit are alkaline. Because
cranberry juice is sour tasting and acidic, it is best
to mix small amounts of it with apple or other fresh
fruit juices.
Cranberries are rich in vitamins A and C, B complex and
folic acid. They also contain the minerals calcium,
iron, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and sulfur. Fresh
cranberry juice is also loaded with live enzymes.
Use
caution when you buy cranberry juice commercially, it
has been processed so all the enzymes have been
destroyed and the vitamins and minerals have been
altered to a point where they are difficult for your
body to use. They also add corn syrup and refined
sugar you might as well drink battery acid for all the
good it will do you. This is the same stuff that
hospitals serve to their patients, what could they be
thinking.
Cranberry juice has the ability to open blood vessels in
your bronchial tubes there buy making it easier for you
to breath. This is because cranberry juice has
substances called vasodilators that open blood vessels.
For this reason , cranberry juice can help provide
temporary relief of lung congestion.
Cranberries acidify the urine and prevent bacteria from
adhering to bladder cells. They are also very good for
the kidneys, bladder, and skin. Those who suffer
incontinence often develop the characteristic ammonia
odor as E. coli bacteria proliferate in excreted
urine. Acid urine acts to inhibit E. coli growth and
thus the resulting odor.
The
first relatively large placebo-controlled studies12,
13 assessing efficacy were conducted in elderly
women living in long-term care facilities. The findings
of these studies12, 13
showed that cranberry significantly reduced the
frequency of bacteriuria and pyuria, but these were not
intention-to-treat analyses.
Conditions relieved:
Asthma, Bladder disorders, Diarrhea, Fever, Fluid
Retention, Indigestion, Kidney Disorders, Lung
Disorders, Skin Disorders, Urinary Tract Infection,
Weight Loss
Sources:
Cranberry for Prevention of Urinary Tract Infections,
www.aafp.org/afp
The Juicing Book by Stephen Blauer, Avery Publishing Group Inc., NY, 1989
Juice Fasting and Detoxification, Steve Meyerowitz, Dist. Book Pub. Co. 2002
Avorn J, Monane M, Gurwitz JH, Glynn RJ, Choodnovskiy
I, Lipsitz LA. Reduction of bacteriuria and pyuria after
ingestion of cranberry juice. JAMA 1994;271:751-4
Haverkorn MJ, Mandigers J. Reduction of bacteriuria and
pyuria using cranberry juice. JAMA 1994;272:590.
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