{"id":1939,"date":"2012-11-08T09:17:02","date_gmt":"2012-11-08T14:17:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/beyondgorgeous\/?p=1939"},"modified":"2012-11-08T09:17:02","modified_gmt":"2012-11-08T14:17:02","slug":"healthy-food-of-the-week-youth-berries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/beyondgorgeous\/2012\/11\/healthy-food-of-the-week-youth-berries.html","title":{"rendered":"Healthy Food of the Week — Youth Berries?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Cranberries — They show up at the holiday season, but we pretty much ignore them the rest of the year.\u00a0 Too bad, because they might be the \u201cfruit of youth\u201d to keep us healthy and vigorous longer.\u00a0 They fight a number of diseases that we dread and fear as we grow older — like cancer, dementia, and heart disease.<\/p>\n

One main reason these colorful berries are so good for us is their antioxidant value.\u00a0 The USDA rated them as tops among fruits in antioxidants.<\/p>\n

Now, we know that antioxidants are good, but it\u2019s a little tricky understanding why they work.\u00a0 It\u2019s all about free radicals.\u00a0 These pesky critters are molecules in your body that are missing an electron from their structure.\u00a0 Where did the electrons go? Toxins, stress, and even the natural effect of breathing in oxygen, damage the molecule and \u201csteal\u201d the electron.<\/p>\n

These deprived molecules now range around your body looking for an electron to make up their lack and swipe them from other cells.\u00a0 This is not good for the cells, and damage starts to happen.\u00a0 This electron burglary happens at a level far too small for you to see, but eventually you will feel the result.\u00a0 Oxidative stress, the condition that happens when you have been robbed too often, causes disease and signs of aging.\u00a0Antioxidants, which are found in abundant supply in the foods we SHOULD be eating, like lots of fruits and veggies, supply missing electrons.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere you go,\u201d they say. \u201cNo need to swipe electrons.\u00a0 Have some of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

So the crime wave is stopped, damage is reduced and you are healthier. You look and feel younger.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s one reason why cranberries are good for you.\u00a0 There are others.\u00a0 One is the anthocyanins they contain.\u00a0 (Don\u2019t you wish scientists would come up with names for stuff that we can pronounce?)\u00a0 These phytochemicals foil the free radicals, but they also work their way into our cells and direct them to stop inflammation. Inflammation is the main source of pain and makes a good environment for diseases like heart disease and cancer.\u00a0 If you have arthritis, an autoimmune disease, or any number of other diseases, you want to lower your inflammatory response.\u00a0 I have glaucoma and am working to lower the eye pressure naturally by eating to lower inflammation. More about that in a later post.<\/p>\n

And — there\u2019s your brain.\u00a0 What we undoubtedly fear most about growing older is losing the use of our minds.\u00a0 Scientists experimenting with rats found that cranberry-eating rats fared better on brain function tests than the control group. (That study isn\u2019t published yet. Found this unverified \u201cspoiler\u201d on a Web site about cranberries.)\u00a0 That makes sense, because free radicals cause the aging-effect damage to the brain — and cranberries, as we said, are rich in antioxidants.<\/p>\n

Do they help with urinary tract infections as we have heard for years?\u00a0 Yes, and ulcers, too.\u00a0 There is another unpronouncible compound in cranberries that prevent bacteria from sticking to the lining of the urinary tract so it can\u2019t take hold and start infections. The Helicobactor pylori<\/em>\u00a0 bacteria that causes stomach ulcers can be thwarted the same way.\u00a0 Or, that is the current theory, at least.\u00a0 Scientists are still testing.<\/p>\n

No one is saying that cranberries cure cancer, but there are studies being done that show that, in animals, breast cancer cells show a lower incidence of tumor development when the rats had a cranberry diet.\u00a0 Researchers have hope that these tart little berries will turn out to be a major cancer fighter.<\/p>\n

AND — they are good for your heart, your circulation, and may help prevent cavities.<\/p>\n

The downside?\u00a0 They don\u2019t taste so yummy, at least on their own.\u00a0 Sugar negates a lot of the good effects they have, as well as making them high glycemic instead of very low.\u00a0 Tune in tomorrow for some interesting recipe and cooking options.<\/p>\n

Eating to live and living for Christ,<\/p>\n

Susan Jordan Brown<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cranberries — They show up at the holiday season, but we pretty much ignore them the rest of the year.\u00a0 Too bad, because they might be the \u201cfruit of youth\u201d to keep us healthy and vigorous longer.\u00a0 They fight a number of diseases that we dread and fear as we grow older — like cancer,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":423,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[369,9],"tags":[601,600,602,547,598,510],"class_list":["post-1939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-clinical-studies","category-eating-plan","tag-anti-inflammatory","tag-autoimmune","tag-berry","tag-cancer","tag-cranberries","tag-fruit"],"yoast_head":"\nHealthy Food of the Week - Youth Berries? - Beyond Gorgeous<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/beyondgorgeous\/2012\/11\/healthy-food-of-the-week-youth-berries.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Healthy Food of the Week - Youth Berries? 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