Pucker Up
Tart cherries may be good for more than just making pie, according to new data from an animal study conducted by University of Michigan Health System researchers and presented recently at a major scientific meeting.
Tart cherries may be good for more than just making pie, according to new data from an animal study conducted by University of Michigan Health System researchers and presented recently at a major scientific meeting. (Credit: Photo by Brian Prechtel; Courtesy of USDA/Agricultural Research Service)
In a study involving rats, the researchers report that animals that received powdered tart cherries in their diet had lower total cholesterol, lower blood sugar, less fat storage in the liver, lower oxidative stress and increased production of a molecule that helps the body handle fat and sugar, compared with rats that didn’t receive cherries as part of an otherwise similar diet. All of the rats had a predisposition toward high cholesterol and pre-diabetes, but not obesity.
I have been getting some very tart freeze-dried cherries for my megamuffins recently. Wonder if they work?