Fit Fare

As the fall and winter holidays approach, cranberries make frequent appearances on dinner menus. Cranberries themselves have a lot of nutritional benefits to offer: they are low in calories and can add potassium, some calcium, and vitamins A, B, and C to your diet. However, much like the humble turkey breast that goes from a smart choice to an indulgent one when covered with gravy, our typical experience with cranberries minimizes their benefits.

Most mass-marketed cranberry juices are really juice blends or cocktails, typically with enough sugar added that they would better qualify as party drinks than nutritional supplements. Canned cranberry sauces are just as bad; if they’re a favorite of yours, check out some recipes for homemade cranberry sauces, so you can reduce the sugar and additives for a healthier and fresher dish: Spicy Cranberry Chutney, Cranberry Ketchup, Apple Cranberry Relish.

Wisconsin is the largest producer of cranberries in the United States, and North America is the largest producer worldwide. Smaller amounts are cultivated in Chile, the Baltic States, and eastern Europe.

Cranberries may be harvested at two stages: first, when ripeness has been achieved but the fruit has not yet fully reddened, and second, after the fruit has reached its characteristic deep red color. White cranberry juice is made from the lighter-colored fruits, and other juices and cranberry products are made from the darker fruits. 95% of cranberry crop yields are used for products such as juice, jellies, and sauces; the remainder are sold fresh.

Medically speaking, cranberries are a bit controversial. Cranberry juice has been used for years as a natural remedy for urinary tract infections, often by people who have chronic medical conditions that require catheterization. Medical professionals do not all agree on whether this is effective or not, though proponents tout the fact that cranberry juice produces hippuric acid in the urine, which prevents bacteria from sticking to the walls of the bladder and may stave off infections. Note that cranberry juice cocktails are not recommended for this application; seek out 100% cranberry juice in health food stores, or use concentrated cranberry capsules with a generous amount of water.