The tradition of the Christmas roast means that a lot of people eat a lot of different fruits and vegetables they would not ordinarily, but one of the most common side dishes of a traditional Christmas dinner is also a fruit often provided by superfood suppliers.
Many Christmas dinners include cranberry sauce, with its rich sharpness contrasting exceptionally well with a range of other sweet and savoury ingredients.
However, whilst they taste very good, they also are believed to provide a lot of benefits as well to the point that some people consider them to be a superfood, a designation given to foods with a high level of nutrients, antioxidants and other compounds considered good for people’s health.
They are rich in vitamin C as well as vitamin A, both sources of antioxidants and essential for protecting health.
As well as this, they also contain phylloquinone (vitamin K1), which is an essential compound to help with blood clotting.
In terms of minerals, cranberries are a good source of manganese and copper. Manganese is a useful compound for helping with the body’s metabolism, antioxidant regulation and growth, whilst copper is important for preserving a healthy heart.
As well as this, cranberries are rich in fibre, which is an essential part of gut health, although it must be noted that cranberry juices often lose this during the juicing and blending process.
It has been established that cranberries can help prevent urinary tract infections due to their abundance of proanthocyanidins, which help prevent the intestinal bacteria E. coli from attaching itself to the inner surface of the urinary tract.
This is especially found with cranberry extract capsules or cranberry powder, which concentrate the effects, whilst the juicing process can sometimes mean that its benefits are lost in store-bought cranberry juice.
All of these benefits and more make cranberry a superfruit alongside the blackberry.