In addition to being tasty, sweet cherries can bring numerous health benefits. Today, we tell you some of the reasons why you should include this fruit in your diet.
From helping to prevent premature skin aging to reducing the risk of dementia, these little fruits have numerous properties that help our bodies stay healthy.
Nutrition specialists, consulted by Women’s Health, explain what are some of the main benefits of sweet cherries.
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Delay the appearance of wrinkles
Cherries may help keep your skin looking youthful longer. This is because these fruits have high levels of vitamin C and other powerful natural antioxidants, which help control inflammation and oxidative stress. The latter plays an important role in the aging process and can even cause fine wrinkles.
Reduce the risk of cancer
This tasty fruit is unlikely to completely eliminate a person’s risk of cancer, but consuming it regularly – along with a healthy lifestyle – could help reduce it, studies suggest. This fruit contains polyphenols, a chemical found in certain plant-based foods and believed to have anticancer properties.
Control blood pressure
Keeping your blood pressure under control is extremely important to lower your chances of serious health problems, such as a heart attack or stroke. Cherries can help here too. Again, it is due to the polyphenolic compounds they contain, which help maintain healthy blood pressure levels.
Lower your risk of dementia
The anthocyanins are pigments that give color to dark red cherries, but that’s not all! They have antioxidant properties and their intake, according to numerous investigations, is related to an improvement in brain function and memory. It is believed that regular consumption of this fruit may lower the risk of future brain disease.
Fight type 2 diabetes
Although milder than type 1, type 2 diabetes can cause serious health problems and seriously affect the function of the kidneys, nerves, and eyes. In addition, it increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, so it is important to fight it in every possible way. The polyphenols present in sweet cherries help improve insulin sensitivity, thereby helping to fight type 2 diabetes.
Sleep better
Sweet cherries contain melatonin, a hormone that helps control the daily sleep cycle. Adding foods rich in this substance to the diet is a proven way to promote better nights of sleep.
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In addition, research suggests that people with insomnia have higher levels of oxidative stress, so it is possible that the antioxidants found in this fruit help counteract this damage and sleep better.
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