Cranberry

• What other names is Cranberry known by?
• What is Cranberry?
• How does Cranberry work?
• Are there safety concerns?
• Are there any interactions with medications?
• Dosing considerations for Cranberry.

What other names is Cranberry known by?

Agrio, Airelle à Gros Fruits, Airelle Canneberge, Airelle Européenne, Airelle Rouge, American Cranberry, Arándano, Arándano Americano, Arándano Rojo, Arándano Trepador, Atoca, Atoka, Bearberry, Canneberge, Canneberge à Feuillage Persistant, Canneberge d'Amérique, Canneberge Européenne, Cocktail au Jus de Canneberge, Cranberry Extract, Cranberry Fruit, Cranberry Fruit Juice, Cranberry Juice, Cranberry Juice Cocktail, Cranberry Juice Concentrate, Cranberry Powder, Cranberry Powdered Extract, Craneberry, Da Guo Yue Jie, Da Guo Yue Ju, Da Guo Suan Guo Man Yue Ju, European Cranberry, Extrait de Canneberge, Große Moosbeere, Gros Atoca, Grosse Moosbeere, Jus de Canneberge, Jus de Canneberge à Base de Concentré, Jus de Canneberge Frais, Kliukva, Kliukva Obyknovennaia, Kranbeere, Large Cranberry, Man Yue Ju, Man Yue Mei, Moosebeere, Mossberry, Oomi No Tsuruko Kemomo, Oxycoccus hagerupii, Oxycoccus macrocarpos, Oxycoccus microcarpus, Oxycoccus palustris, Oxycoccus quadripetalus, Petite Cannberge, Pois de Fagne, Pomme des Prés, Ronce d'Amerique, Sirop de Canneberge, Small Cranberry, Trailing Swamp Cranberry, Tsuru-Kokemomo, Vaccinium hagerupii, Vaccinium macrocarpon, Vaccinium microcarpum, Vaccinium oxycoccos, Vaccinium palustre.

What is Cranberry?

Cranberry is a small, evergreen shrub grown throughout North America. Cranberry has a long history of use among native American Indian tribes, primarily for treating urinary conditions. Juice and extracts from the fruit (berry) are used as medicine.

Cranberry is most commonly used for prevention and treatment of urinary tract infections (UTIs). Cranberry JUICE seems to help prevent UTIs, but so far it doesn't seem to be effective in treating UTIs.

Cranberry is also used for neurogenic bladder (a bladder disease), as well as to deodorize urine in people with urinary incontinence (difficulty controlling urination). Some people use cranberry to increase urine flow, kill germs, speed skin healing, and reduce fever.

Some people use cranberry for type 2 diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), scurvy, inflammation of the lining around the lung (pleurisy), and cancer.

In foods, cranberry fruit is used in cranberry juice, cranberry juice cocktail, jelly, and sauce. Cranberry juice cocktail is approximately 26% to 33% pure cranberry juice, sweetened with fructose or artificial sweetener.

Possibly Effective for...

• Preventing urinary tract infections (UTIs). Most research shows that drinking cranberry juice or taking certain cranberry extracts can lower the risk of repeated UTIs in some people. Evidence suggests that taking cranberry products can reduce the occurrence of UTIs in women, most children, and people who are hospitalized. It is not clear if drinking cranberry juice or taking supplements of cranberry extract is more effective. Although most research shows that cranberry is beneficial for UTIs, there is some evidence that it might not benefit children with a history of UTIs. Also, there is no strong evidence that cranberry can treat an existing UTI.

Possibly Ineffective for...

• Diabetes. Research shows that taking cranberry supplements by mouth does not lower blood sugar in people with diabetes.

Insufficient Evidence to Rate Effectiveness for...

• Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Early research shows that taking dried cranberry capsules, three times daily for 6 months, might improve urinary symptoms and reduce levels of certain biomarkers associated with BPH.
• Clogged arteries (coronary artery disease). Early evidence suggests that drinking cranberry juice daily for 4 weeks does not improve blood flow in people with clogged arteries.
• Stomach ulcers caused by Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) infection. There is inconsistent evidence regarding the ability of cranberry juice to eliminate a certain bacteria (H. pylori) in the stomach that can cause stomach ulcers. Some research suggests that drinking cranberry juice daily for 90 days can help eliminate H. pylori more quickly. However, other early research shows that drinking cranberry juice while taking conventional medication used to treat H. pylori infection s does not improve healing time compared to taking the medication alone.
• Kidney stones (nephrolithiasis). There is inconsistent evidence on the use of cranberry to lower the risk of kidney stones. Some early evidence suggests that drinking cranberry juice might lower the risk of kidney stones forming. However, other early evidence suggests that drinking cranberry juice or taking cranberry extracts might actually increase the risk of kidney stones.Memory. Some early evidence suggests that drinking cranberry juice twice daily for 6 weeks does not improve memory.
• Metabolic syndrome. Early research suggests that drinking cranberry juice (Ocean Spray) twice daily does not appear to affect blood pressure, blood sugar, or cholesterol levels in people with metabolic syndrome.
• Urine odor. Early research shows that drinking cranberry juice might reduce the odor of urine.
• Skin healing.
• Pleurisy.
• Cancer.
• Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).
• Other conditions.

More evidence is needed to rate cranberry for these uses.

Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database rates effectiveness based on scientific evidence according to the following scale: Effective, Likely Effective, Possibly Effective, Possibly Ineffective, Likely Ineffective, and Insufficient Evidence to Rate (detailed description of each of the ratings).