At our house cranberry sauce is a staple during the holiday season. A relative shared the most delicious recipe a few years back and we have been making it ever since (the recipe is included below). We usually stock up on fresh cranberries and keep a few bags in the freezer to last year-round for use in smoothies and other recipes. 

Cranberries aren’t just for a beautiful sauce to brighten our holiday fare; they have excellent healing properties for year-round use.

The most well-known medicinal use for cranberries is to help with Urinary Tract Infections (UTI’s). Susun Weed recommends using cranberries for prevention. She cites a study of Finnish Women that reduced UTI’s 50 percent by drinking 2 ounces of cranberry juice daily. [1] According to Dr. James Duke, cranberry helps with candida and UTI’s due to arbutin, which is both an antibiotic and a diuretic, lowers E. Coli adhesion, and helps relieve excess water retention. He also mentions cranberries contain compounds that are helpful for fevers and asthma.[2] 

Cranberries are high in anthocyanins, flavanols, proanthocyanidins, phenolic acids, terpenes, and sterols. It has a high bioavailability, so works quickly to assist the body when needed. Historically they were carried on sea voyages to help prevent scurvy. Native Americans used cranberries medicinally to treat arrow wounds and for the dish pemmican, a combination of cranberries, dried deer meat and melted fat. [3]

Pick up some extra cranberries and experiment with them in your smoothies, juices, and salads. Dr. Duke suggests trying an orange-grapefruit-cranberry fruit salad with fennel as a perfect anti-asthma dish.[4] 

Dr. Christopher taught us to use food as medicine. I encourage you to cultivate a taste for these deliciously healthy foods by simply trying one new or lesser-known fruit or vegetable a week. Cultivating a diet rich in fresh, wholesome foods will bring us health and peace this season and for years to come. 

Tara Christopher Eyre is a Master Herbalist and Foot Zone therapist/practitioner. She loves helping people find and continue their path toward health.