It feels so good to be writing on cherries after decades of loving them so much. I remember vividly, that my first fight with my brother was over cherries. I could do anything for cherries back on the day. I still love it. But I won’t fight over it. Maybe I’d just fight whatever distracts you from reading this educative piece. You really should read this article, and see the wonders of cherries.
The cherry fruits are usually obtained from the cultivars of a small or limited number of species which are the sweet cherry (Prunus avim) and the bitter cherry (Prunus cerasus). Prunus avim is often referred to specifically by the name “Wild cherry” according to the British lsles. The name, cherry, sometimes, refers to the tree called cherry tree.
Health Benefits of Cherries
Cherries Have Anti-inflammatory Effects that Boost the Brain and the Body
Some cherries have long been overshadowed by their sweeter, and more popular cousins called tart cherries. Don’t misquote us: The regular sweet cherry is really nice, as each serving contains 3 grams of fiber and 10 milligrams of vitamin C, about 13 percent of your daily recommended levels. However, Prunus cerasus L., now known as the tart variety, is loved by many. Cherries are great for the brain and body because of their anti-inflammatory effects.
Tart Cherries Help Lower your Blood Pressure
Tart cherries are high in polyphenols, the type of antioxidant which may help lower the blood pressure levels. So you can relax, tart cherries will do the work.
Tart Cherries Deal with Arthritis
Oh, the advantages effect of cherries on gout, a painful form of arthritis! Sweet and tart cherries may reduce the number of arthritis flare-ups in people with the disease, possibly by reducing the levels of inflammation arising in the molecules of the body.
Tart Cherries can Help Comfort Post Work out Stress
Tart cherry juice is recommended for athletes, as it’s been proven to help reduce pains such as muscle pain, back pain, knee pain, and loads of others after exercise.
Tart Cherries Help you Fall Asleep Quickly
In a society where patients with high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes are ever increasing, then we do need to acknowledge the presence of tart cherries. You can have some tart cherry juice as a sleep aid. It’s high in melatonin, a hormone that plays a key role in our sleep-wake period and assists us to fall asleep.
Cherries Are Anti-aging
Cherries protect us from ailments associated with aging or the action of the heart and nervous system, and other problems such as hair loss, loss of vision, muscular degeneration, loss of libido, wrinkling of skin, prostate cancer, bacterial, viral, and fungal infections, problems of the urinary tract, intestines, excretory system, flu, and fevers.
What Else?
Cherries are Anti-cancer
They prevent the triggering of new cancerous growths.
Eye Care
The antioxidants in cherries play a super role. They help to protect the eyes against all damage done by free radicals and aging such as loss of vision, degeneration of the muscle, and dryness of the eyes. Cherries soothe the eyes, maintain proper and regular pressure, protect from infections and reduce inflammation.
Wait a Minute!
Did you know? The darker the cherry, the more healthy and beneficial it is to the health because of a richer antioxidant content. Look out for the color, always.
Sorry for the break in transmission, let’s go on, *smiles*
Reduce Heart Diseases
The nutrients in cherries such as vitamins, antioxidants (flavonoids and carotenoids) and minerals like phosphorus are perfectly good cardioprotectors. They help protect the heart from various kinds of damage done by the oxidants. They maintain perfect heart rate, prevent blood vessels from hardening, and reduce cholesterol and blood pressure, thereby reducing the risk of heart attacks. They strengthen the cardiac muscles too. Wow, cherries all the way, for the love of my heart.
Oral Health
They prevent oral infections and keep away bad breath. They also are effective in protecting you from seasonal infections like a cough, cold, pox, mumps, and measles. Interesting. Why wouldn’t anyone love cherries?
Your Brain isn’t Left out
Brain function improvement is ensured when you consume cherries. Carotenoids and flavonoids are so much effective in improving the efficiency of the brain and promoting brain health. And of course, cherries contain carotenoids and flavonoids. I’m loving cherries more right now!
Did you Know?
Cherries are also used to cook and preserve foods.
So there are various kinds of cherries, as you must have noticed in the article so far.
Sweet Cherries (Prunus avim)
They are usually eaten fresh, are heart-shaped and considerably larger than sour cherries. What else? They have a firm and juicy flesh. Sweet cherries have colors that range from golden-red to purple-black. Some of the most popular sweet cherry variants are Bing, Lambert, Royal Ann, and Rainer.
Bing is the most popular and named after Ah Bing, a horticulturist that cultivated the variety. They are known as round, plump and very sweet. Lambert cherries are smaller cherries, and they are usually more heart-shaped.
The variety, Rainer, has a more yellowish color and a milder taste when compared to Lambert and bing.
They are more expensive because of their limited yearly availability.
Royal anns have a more yellowish color and a milder taste when compared to Lambert bings. Royal ann cherries are usually preserved.
Sour Cherries (Prunus cerasus)
These are also known as tart cherries, and are smaller than sweet cherries and even contain more vitamin C and fewer calories. Oh, great. They are mostly used in cooking and baking. They can be subdivided into two groups: amerelles and morellos. Amerellos have a lower acid content, with colors ranging from pale yellow to bright-red, while morellos have high acid content and red to dark-red coloring.
The most popular sour cherry is the Montmorency, accounting for 95% of all sour cherries consumed in the U.S every year. They have a bright red to dark-red color and are commonly sold as dried fruits, preserved, or as cherry juice. Other popular varieties include Early Richmond and English Morello.
Final Words…
Yeah, so really, you can enjoy cherries fresh or freeze them to be consumed later. Cherries are great in marinades for meat and poultry dishes. Did I tell you I fought with my brother over cherries? I think I did. So I sent this article to him before publishing it, and he insisted that I include that after that fight, he bought an entire bag of cherries for me and that he remains the king of cherries, as he’s still so much into it.
So don’t tell him; in order to compensate him for my victory in the cherry fight, our mum bought him that bag of cherries, and out of love, he gave the entire bag to me. That touched me. It really did. I told you cherries are great for the heart, didn’t I? Well, that explains why my brother was so kind-hearted. He still is.
So come to join the Cherry Squad, and let’s have some fun eating cherries as we make our health better. You really don’t want to miss out on the greatness of cherries. I look forward to reading your comments on how cherries have been fantastic to you. Do remember to share the good news of cherries to as many as you can
