Tart Cherry Juice Side Effects
Tart cherry juice either made fresh from home or via concentrate form such as this popular one, has been touted as an effective treatment for gout but does this natural beverage have side effects? Read on and find out the skinny on tart cherry juice.
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Most people will choose natural treatments for pain and illnesses over pharmaceutical drugs because of the adverse side effects that some of these medications reportedly cause. Take the case of tart cherry juice which research has shown to mediate inflammation associated with exercise and arthritis naturally because of its antioxidant content.
Most commonly-used medications in the U.S. are OTC (over-the-counter) pain relievers with more than 111 million medicine prescriptions that account for about 60% of pharmaceutical sales nationwide. The search for natural treatments doesn’t seem to waver, however, because some of these medications have life-threatening side effects such as gastric bleeding and kidney failure.
In fact, according to the Oregon Health and Science University, the regular use of medications with anti-inflammatory properties may cause heart burn, gastrointestinal problems and kidney damage.
3 Main Tart Cherry Juice Side Effects
Although the compounds that can be found in tart cherries help modulate the numerous pathways to protect the body against other conditions associated with inflammation, they are not exempted from having potential side effects.
The strong, sour flavor of tart cherry juice may cause troublesome digestive issues such as:
- A Stomach Ache
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal Discomfort
According to Baylor College of Medicine, this is due to the relatively high sorbitol content of tart cherry juice. Sorbitol may aggravate irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and exacerbate bacterial overgrowth.
The potential tart cherry juice side effects can also usually occur if the juice is consumed in large quantities. As a result it’s highly recommended that you don’t over do it.
How much tart cherry juice should I drink you might ask? One glass per serving is the most you should be drinking. And no more than 1-2 glasses a day. This will also help maintain your insulin levels lower, which can otherwise spike (causing your body to put on weight) if your body takes in too much sugar (yes fruits have natural sugar!).
SEE HOW TART CHERRY JUICE CAN HELP WITH GOUT ISSUES
This overgrowth may actually be present in your small intestine for years without causing or manifesting any obvious symptoms. Although associated with chronic problems of the digestive system such as bloating, diarrhea, constipation, and gas, bacterial overgrowth has not been recognized by conventional medicine and has been mistaken for or confused with IBS.
Tart cherry juice has 140 calories per single cup serving which may considerably induce weight gain if taken in excess.
Tart cherry juice blends contain 45 to 50 pieces of cherries equivalent to three servings of fruit that may result in additional poundage or cause upset stomach in some individuals.
However fear not..
Despite these side effects, the efficacy of tart cherry juice is undeniable in providing protection for the body against injuries caused by inflammation. Because tart cherry juice contains flavanols, anthocyanins, and phenols that are delivered to the muscles, it follows that this particular juice is able to ward off a good number of pathologies that are associated with inflammation.
Check out one of the most popular tart cherry juice concentrate on the market, including customer testimonials by clicking here for more info.
Tart cherry juice does not have an analgesic effect in the absence of inflammation, albeit when inflammation is present, the potency of its abthocyanin content decreases. Simply put, tart cherry juice helps decrease the body’s inflammation but has no tendency to manifest harmful effects in the other parts of the body.
A question that regularly gets asked is; does cherry juice interfere with medications? And to be honest, there is no exact answer to that at this stage as there just isn’t enough research out there, however there certainly hasn’t been alarming cases of tart cherry juice dosage and specific reactions when used with other medication, however it is ALWAYS best advised to speak to your doctor or health practitioner if you are currently on specific medication.
Where can I get tart cherry juice from?
There are a number of ways you can grab a dosage of tart cherry juice goodness. Here are four main options:
1) Make the juice yourself from home. This will require you to own a juicer of course.
2) If juicing is not for you, you can always buy cherry juice concentrate, which is usually very reasonably priced and will last you in most cases more than 10-15 servings. You can find cherry juice concentrate at Amazon. Tart cherry pills are another alternative if you wish to gain the benefits of tart cherries.
3) If juicing fresh from home or in concentrated form is not for you, you can always buy cherry juice from your local store, however in most cases bottled juices usually contain high levels of sugar which is certainly not ideal (as already explained above).
4) There is also another relative cost effective juicing alternative, which is to use green juice powder which can be found here, and then mixing the powder with tart cherry juice concentrate dosage outlined in the second point above.
It is, of course, always better to consume nutritious and healthy foods and drinks in their raw forms. Consuming tart cherry juice in its natural form, however, may prove to be too sour for comfort as far as some people are concerned.
SEE ALSO: How To Make Homemade Cherry Juice
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