Topic summary contributed by volunteer(s): Miranda

Cranberries are a great source of antioxidants. Though even the highly diluted and sweetened “cranberry-cocktail” juice provides significant amounts of antioxidants, consuming the whole berries provides more antioxidant bang for your buck (and for your calories). Whole berries may be consumed frozen, fresh, dried (if left unsweetened) or in a full-berry smoothie from which no fiber or fruit solids have been removed. Consuming the whole fruit may be particularly important for obtaining health benefits from cranberries, as whole extracts have been shown capable of decreasing prostate cancer cell growth rate and decreasing the ability of E. Coli to colonize urinary tracts and cause bladder infections, but individual fractions and phytonutrients extracted from cranberries have not.

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