Cranberries as Medicinal Food

Paper Summary:

This paper takes a look at cranberries and how the small berries and leaves of the cranberry plant have been used in traditional medicine by the Native Americans for centuries. The author discusses research and articles that point to cranberries being able to inhibit bacterial adherence, a sign of their potential for use as prevention for urinary tract infections. Other advantages of cranberries as a medicinal food are also examined such as being anti-carcinogenic, antiviral, antifungal and antibacterial.

From the Paper:

"Most studies on the effects of cranberries on bacterial adherence use cranberry juice cocktails, and not pure extracted cranberries. Future research should use pure cranberries or a standardized extract to ensure valid results and also to minimize the effect of contaminating variables especially the higher sugar content in cranberry juice cocktails than in plain juice or a standardized extract. Isolating which types of bacteria cranberries inhibit adhesion of in addition to E. Coli would also boost research validity. Researchers may also want to discover whether cranberries are more effective for anti-bacterial adhesion under specific conditions and whether those effects extend beyond their application to the urinary tract."

Sample of Sources Used:

• The Cranberry Institute. Emerging research. Retrieved April 5, 2008 from http://www.cranberryinstitute.org/emerging.htm
• Duthie, S.J., Jenkinson, A.M., Crozier, A., Mullen, W., Pirie, L., Kyle, J., Yap, L.S., Christen, P., Duthie, G.G. (2006). The effects of cranberry juice consumption on antioxidant status and biomarkers relating to heart disease and cancer in healthy human volunteers. Eur J Nutr. 2006 Mar;45(2):113-22. Epub 2005 Jul 20. Retrieved April 5, 2008 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16032375?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA
• Greenberg, J., Newmann, S.J. & Howell, A.B. (2005). Consumption of sweetened dried cranberries versus unsweetened raisins for inhibition of uropathogenic Escherichia coli adhesion in human urine: a pilot study. J Altern Complement Med. 2005 Oct;11(5):875-8. Retrieved April 5, 2008 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16296921?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA
• Liu, Y., Black, M.A., Caron, L. & Camesano, T.A. (2006). Role of cranberry juice on molecular-scale surface characteristics and adhesion behavior of Escherichia coli. Biotechnol Bioeng. 2006 Feb 5;93(2):297-305.
• Liu, Y., Gallardo-Moreno, A.M., Pinzon-Arango, P.A., Reynolds, Y., Rodriguez, G., Camesano, T.A. (2008). Cranberry changes the physicochemical surface properties of E. coli and adhesion with uroepithelial cells. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces. 2008 Feb 26 [Epub ahead of print]. Retrieved April 5, 2008 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18378432?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

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