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Remember when cranberries appeared on our plates once a year at Thanksgiving? Those days are over as cranberries become increasingly more popular and more visible in our society today. The once lowly cranberry has come a long way and is enjoying a wonderful rejuvenation. Just take a look at the colorful history of this little red berry.

Defined as a slender, trailing North American shrub, Vaccinium macrocarpon grows in damp ground and bears tart red berries. According to The Cranberry Institute, the North American cranberry industry has a long and distinguished history. Native peoples used cranberries as food, in ceremonies and medicinally. Revolutionary War veteran Henry Hall planted the first commercial cranberry beds in Dennis, Massachusetts in 1816. Today cranberries are farmed on approximately 40,000 acres across the northern United States and Canada.

Cranberries are a low-growing, vining, woody perennial plant with small, alternate, ovate leaves. Each fruiting upright may contain as many as seven flowers. Pollination is primarily via domestic honey bees. The majority of cranberries are harvested between September and October. The fruit is loaded into bins and shipped to receiving stations where it is cleaned and packaged as fresh fruit. The U.S. Department of Agriculture proclaims October as "National Cranberry Month".

Scientific research is revealing how healthful cranberries can be. Packed with nutrients like antioxidants and other natural compounds, cranberries are a great choice for the health conscious consumer. Cranberries are also available in a wide variety of forms including fresh fruit, juice, sauce, and dried. Juices are available year-round at your favorite store. Fresh fruit is usually available from September to December.

According to Royal Ruby Cranberries, cranberries are an excellent source of Vitamin C and antioxidants, which may protect against cancer and heart diseases. Cranberries are a nutrition powerhouse, packed with many vitamins, minerals, and are extremely high in antioxidants.

Cranberries:

-May help prevent stomach ulcers.

-May help prevent the formation of kidney stones.

-Can help aid in the recovery of a stroke.

-Help promote healthy teeth and gums.

-Lower cholesterol. Cranberries lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and raise HDL (good) cholesterol.

-Have compounds that are toxic to numerous varieties of cancer tumor cell lines, including cervical, lung, prostate, breast and leukemia cancer cells.

-Are shown to promote urinary tract health and have the ability to both treat and prevent urinary tract infections.

-May help promote a healthy heart.

As a child growing up, Ocean Spray cranberries graced our Thanksgiving dinner table every year. I wish mom would have served cranberries more than once a year and I'm not quite sure why she didn't except maybe her mother did the same thing. Times certainly have changed.

According to the Ocean Spray Fact Sheet:

-Only three major fruits are native to North America; the cranberry, blueberry and Concord grape.

-The hearty cranberry vine thrives in conditions that would not support most other crops: acid soil, few nutrients and low temperatures, even in summer.

-Contrary to popular belief, cranberries do not grow in water. They are grown on sandy bogs. Because cranberries float, some bogs are flooded when the fruit is ready for harvesting.

-American recipes containing cranberries date from the early l8th century.

Why not include cranberries once a week instead of once a year at Thanksgiving? If I can break the vicious cycle of yearly cranberries, you can too. From salads to sangria, the incredible little cranberry can make both you and your body 'berry' happy and healthy.

Learn more about this author, Maureen Totterer.
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