Posted on 07/11/2009 9:24:53 PM PDT by doug from upland
EATING MELATONIN-RICH CHERRIES ARE ‘‘NATURAL” WAY TO RESET YOUR BODY CLOCK WHEN CROSSING TIME ZONES
Research Reveals that Cherries Boost Your Body’s Melatonin Levels to Help Prevent Jet Lag After Long International Flights
It takes mere seconds to reset our watch to a different time zone, but our body’s internal time clocks often take longer to sync up in our new locale.
Experienced travelers often stash a bottle of melatonin supplements in their carryon bag to help adjust, but experts say there may be a more natural and tasty way to get melatonin: cherries.
Recent studies have revealed that cherries are one of the richest known sources of natural melatonin that can help raise melatonin levels in your blood.
Tart cherries are sold year-round as dried, frozen, juice and juice concentrate.
Dubbed the “all-natural nightcap,” melatonin has been found to hasten sleep and ease jet lag. “Even a slight increase in the melatonin level in the body can improve the body’s circadian rhythm or sleep patterns,” said Russel J. Reiter, Ph.D., a nutrition researcher at the University of Texas Health Science Center and one of the world’s leading authorities on melatonin.
Reiter also is co-author of the book “Melatonin” (Bantam). “We’ve learned that melatonin from food enters the bloodstream and binds to sites in the brain where it helps restore the body’s natural levels of melatonin, which can help enhance the natural sleep process,” said Reiter.
Several studies indicate that melatonin can be effective as a remedy to aid sleep and alleviate jet lag – helping to restore normal sleeping patterns in weary travelers. The research suggests melatonin works best when consumed one hour prior to your desired sleep time on the plane and for three or more consecutive evenings after your arrival, depending on the number of time zones crossed.
Dried cherries are a convenient and portable way to get a melatonin boost on the plane. Research conducted by Reiter and colleagues at the University of Texas Health Science Center found that a serving of cherries contains more melatonin than what is normally found in the blood during the day. One serving is ½ cup dried cherries, 1 cup frozen or juice or 2 tablespoons cherry juice concentrate.
Cherries are believed to be one of the most concentrated sources of melatonin. Bananas, corn and oats supply melatonin but in considerably smaller amounts.
Beyond the benefits of helping to reset the body’s internal time clock to treat jet lag, melatonin also may be helpful for late-shift workers trying to adjust to a new schedule. Increasing melatonin also has been shown to help with sleep-onset insomnia in older adults with a melatonin deficiency.
“During adulthood, blood levels of melatonin begin to decline and by age 60, levels can be significantly lower, which may account for the sleep disturbances that often occur with aging,” Reiter said. “If eaten regularly, tart cherries may help regulate the body’s natural sleep cycle and increase sleep efficiency, including decreasing the time it takes to fall asleep.”
Increasing melatonin may do more than promote a restful sleep. Melatonin is a potent antioxidant that has been extensively studied in recent years for its role in reducing inflammation and fighting free radicals in the body, which is linked to increased cancer risk.
A new study published in the journal Free Radical Research that was conducted by Reiter and colleagues at the University of Granada in Spain found that melatonin neutralizes the oxidative and inflammation process caused by aging, thereby suggesting that melatonin may play a role in delaying the effects of aging. Based on the findings of this study, the authors suggest that daily melatonin intake in humans from the age of 30 or 40 could potentially help delay illnesses related to aging.
funny cuz Bill Clinton thought popping cherries helped him survive all his traveling to foreign counties.
And here’s the perfect place to get all your cherry supplies: http://www.cherryrepublic.com/ The ballentines are the best, especially with a little chocolate! (Whoopeee, the Cherry Festival is over, all the fudgies can go home now! But the fireworks were awesome!)
Cherries are darned expensive. Much cheaper just buying melatonin pills.
Yep you can buy Melatonin in pill form (OTC) works just as well.
Interesting. So I wonder how many cherries would equal, say, a 1 mg tablet dose.
Know what they call the Parade of Vestal Virgins? Cherries Jubilee.
Messsenger to the Aztec King: Sire, we cannot have the parade of vestal virgins. King: Why not? Messenger: One is sick and the other refuses to march alone.
They are definitely pricey.
I’m (should say was) a very restless sleeper but I don’t really suffer from classic insomnia. I’ve been taking melatonin pills for about nine months and they are wonderful.
But where's the nutrition of the cherries? The fun of chewing them? the fun of spitting the pits? Cherries are MUCH more fun than pills!
Next week I’m planting two Montmorency cherry trees. These are the full size trees that reach 25-35 feet. Production begins in 3-5 years. I will stay awake until then . . .
I need to remember this. Thanks.
Of all the natural remedies I’ve tried, meletonin is one of the few that actually work.
Thanks Doug. So happens that I have Bing Cherries on my shopping list.
I’ve never understood this jet lag thing but i’ve only been from coast to coast and it never affected me in any way.
I would never do that to my fellow passengers.
your so right about the price, but I broke down and bought some this week. I could not sleep last night, got up read some more FR and ate a bowl of cherries. Slept like a baby, lol. Strange this is the subject tonight.
Ambien works just as well, however, Ambien is a prescription drug and is addictive. How do I know … I was addicted to Ambien for years. My doctor started me on OTC melatonin and with the exception of the Ambien buzz, it works just as well and is not addictive.
There is one little freezer bag full of pitted cherries from the new trees which fruited earlier this summer their first year for me. Now I'm fighting to keep the damage down from Japanese Beetles who love them. Luckily they fruited before the beetles reared their ugly nasty obnoxious selves this season.
So I sprayed with Sevin but we've been having a lot of rain, and it washes it off rendering it ineffective. So now I'm going to use something else that continues to work after a rain. When they get bigger, I'll have to cover them with netting. I had no problems with my North Stars, no Jap beetles yet in our area, and never ever sprayed; no matter how hard the winter, they produced well. I never worried about the birds getting some as there were always plenty left and some to share.
I tasted one of the Montmorency cherries and it was less tart than North Star and a little larger, but I wasn't that impressed with the flavor. North Star is really tart, and I dilute the juice some with water before thickening for pies, have to use plenty of sugar but I did with the frozen ones I'd buy as well. My those are expensive.
Turkey isn’t pricey and it makes your body produce more melatonin. Of course, PETA would prefer you eat the cherries.
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