Cherry Orchard
May 8, 2012 | 
Author Article by Gary
What are Blueberries?
Blueberries are tasty and delicious little blue fruits that can grow wild or be cultivated. Blueberries are actually one of the few fruits that are native to North America. They have been used for many years by Native Americans either fresh or dried. Blueberries are a delicious summer time treat with many versatile uses. The sweet blue gems can be eaten raw or baked in pies, cakes or other desserts. Blueberries also taste great in pancakes, muffins and yogurt. When dried, blueberries taste wonderful in soups and stews. They can also be crushed into a powder to make a rub perfect for flavoring meats.
Facts About Blueberries
Blueberries are mostly grown in the United States and Canada. When ripe they are dark in color with a thin, smooth outer skin. They have tiny seed in side of the fruit, but these are perfectly safe to eat and do not need to be removed. There are many different varieties of blueberries and they all differ slightly in taste, size and texture.
Blueberries can grow on low bushes or in fields. They are harvested by picking the berries off of the bushes or by raking the fields. Wild blueberries can be found throughout much of the Eastern United States and Canada. The wild blueberries are much smaller and sweeter than their cultivated cousins.
The blueberry is the second most popular fruit in the United States and is the state fruit of New Jersey. Every year more than 200 million pounds of blueberries are grown in North America. That would cover a four lane stretch of highway all the way from New York to Chicago. Blueberries are very popular and more and more products are being introduced to the market each year that contain blueberries.
Blueberries are related to the flowers azaleas, camellias, heathers and rhododendron. Blueberries must be allowed to ripen on the bushes. Unlike other fruits, once blueberries are picked they will not continue to ripen.
When selecting blueberries look for fruits that are firm and completely blue. There should not be any red or white on the berries. Blueberries should be kept in an open container in the refrigerator. Blueberries are very perishable and should not be washed until they are ready to be eaten. If picked fresh and stored properly they should last about two weeks.
Blueberries freeze beautifully and easily retain their color and flavor. Blueberries can also be canned whole to preserve them or made into delicious jellies or jams.
Blueberry Health Benefits
Blueberries are very nutritious. One cup of the sweet fruit contains only eighty calories and has five grams of fiber. Blueberries are also high in Vitamin C and are full of disease fighting antioxidants.
The antioxidants that are found in blueberries are said to help reduce heart disease and cancer. They also may reduce the number of occurrences of urinary tract infections. The blueberry also contains high levels of anthocyanins which help to slow the aging process, protect the heart and prevent mental decline.
The best way to get the most nutritional value out of eating blueberries is to eat them whole and raw. This is because the concentration of the seeds inside the blueberry contains a number of polyphenols which have cancer preventative properties. Blueberries also contain salicylic acid which is used to make aspirin. For this reason blueberries can also prevent heart attacks and reduce the amount of swelling and inflammation in the blood vessels.
The Nutritional Benefits of Blueberrie
The nutritional benefits of blueberries does not end with helping to fight cancer. Blueberries also can help to lower cholesterol levels and help with abdominal problems. A diet high in fruits and vegetables is a sure way to shed unwanted pounds and maintain a healthy weight, so blueberries can also help to prevent unwanted weight gain. Blueberries are high in fiber which helps with digestive health and keeps people feeling fuller for longer which should reduce the amount of snacking and mindless eating.
Gary is a writer, Webmaster and fitness enthusiast.
For more information on men and women’s fitness, Weight Loss and training tips visit:24 Hr Fitness.co.uk
Posted in Cherry Orchard | 
Tags: antioxidants, Benefits, blueberries, Health, lower-cholesterol | 
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By: Diana
2 (3 ounce) pkg. cream cheese (softened)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 sliced bananas
1/2 cup diced cherries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 cups Cool Whip
Combine cream cheese, mayo, salt, sugar and lemon juice. Mix well.
Add in bananas, cherries and walnuts.
Gently, fold in Cool Whip.
Pour into a 8 inch pan. Freeze for 2 to 4 hours.
Soften for 3-4 minutes, cut into slices and serve.
This is great served with graham crackers.
Why Cherries?
Can cherries and drinking tart cherry juice benefit your health? There is so much information available on nutrition and healthy living these days, and such a myriad of supplements and health foods that you can buy, that it is no wonder that we sometimes get confused and wonder what are the best supplements and healthiest foods on which to spend our hard-earned cash. One food that is proving to be a super-food and certainly deserves to be included in your diet is the cherry. Cherries are widely grown throughout the world and are fleshy stone fruits produced by several of the plants of the genus Prunus. Cherries have been eaten in Europe since Antiquity, and are nowadays are a popular fruit and are also used to makes jams, purees, and in many different recipes. Cherries are also famous for their bright red colour, and it is the anthocyanins that give cherries this vivid red colouring that are also responsible for many of the health benefits offered by eating cherries and by drinking cherry juice.
Cherry Cross Section
So What Are Anthocyanins?
Anthocyanins are flavonoid pigments which give many fruits and vegetables, such as raspberries, blueberries, purple cabbage and beet, their colour. Anthocyanins are also powerful antioxidants, which play a strong protective role in maintaining the health of our bodies. What antioxidants do is target harmful molecules in the body called free radicals, and therefore can help prevent serious conditions such as cancer, strokes, heart disease, and ageing. Free radicals are atoms or groups of atoms that move around the body causing damage to healthy cells by taking one of their electrons. Antioxidants such as anthocyanins move around the body neutralising the dangerous free radicals and helping to prevent the cell damage that can lead to health problems and disease. Anthocyanins also act as powerful anti-inflammatories, which is why eating cherries can help to soothe the pain of arthritis
So What Cherries Offer the Best health Benefits?
Although sweet cherry varieties and black cherries contain anthocyanins and are also great sources of Vitamin C, iron, folate, fibre and magnesium, it is the Montmorency or tart cherry that offers the greatest health benefits if included in your diet. As they are known as tart cherries, they are generally not eaten as a fruit, by are often made into a potent cherry juice concentrate. This cherry juice concentrate can then be diluted with water and drunk or added to your fruit smoothies for a powerful health punch. Montmorency cherries provide a much higher level of anthocyanins than sweet or black cherries, so giving you much more protection against those dangerous free radicals in your bodies. Dr Robert Verkerk conducted a research project where he compared the levels of antioxidant in various foods, known as the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC), and found that diluted cherry juice concentrate level was 8,260, compared with around 1790 for a lot of other fruit and vegetables.
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Montmorency or tart cherries are also one of the few natural food sources that provide the hormone Melatonin. Melatonin is produced in the pineal gland in the brain and is responsible for maintaining our sleeping and waking cycles. Having regular good quality sleep is vital to our recovery processes, and is also very important for maintaining our immune systems and regulating our blood sugar levels. Tart cherries also contain phenolic compounds which are important as they help to protect our bodies against neurodegeneration, which is the progressive loss of nerve cells and neurological function.
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Conditions Improved by Drinking Cherry Juice
Gout: gout is a very painful and debilitating condition and is caused by a build up of uric acid in your joints. Drinking cherry juice can help with maintaining healthy uric acid levels in your body and thus helping to prevent you from suffering from gout.
Arthritis: drinking cherry juice can also help to relieve the intense pain that can be caused in people’s joints by arthritis, as the anthocyanins found in cherries act as powerful anti-inflammatories.
Recovery After Sport: including cherries in your diet helps to promote health joints and helps to reduce muscle soreness after playing sport or exercising. Drinking cherry juice just before and immediately after strenuous exercise helps to assuage the pain of sore muscles
Insomnia: Montmorency cherries are a natural source of melatonin which is a hormone that helps to regulate our patterns of sleep.
Heart Disease – the antioxidants in cherry juice help to eliminate the free radicals that can cause oxidative damage to your heart cells, so helping to protect your heart and arteries from damage
Weakened Immune System - having a healthy immune system is vital as it protects us from being infected by bacteria, viruses, and parasites. The cells of our immune systems can be easily be damaged by free radicals in the body, which eventually lowers the immune system response, leaving you much more vulnerable to disease and infections. The high levels of antioxidants found in tart cherry juice concentrate aid in minimising damage from free radicals and therefore help keep our immune systems strong and resilient.
How Much Cherry Juice Do You Need to Drink?
So how many cherries do you need to eat or how much cherry juice do you need to drink to obtain the maximum health benefits? If you choose to drink cherry juice concentrate, ideally you would want to drink two tablespoons a day of tart cherry juice concentrate, either diluted with water or added to your fruit smoothie. If you want to eat sweet or black cherries, one portion of fresh or dried cherries will provide you with a good level of nutrients and antioxidants. If you would like to gain the health benefits of cherries but do not like the taste, you can also buy cherry fruit extract supplements from health food shops or online.
Eating cherries, whether fresh or dried, or drinking diluted cherry juice concentrate are not known to have any adverse side effects when consumed in reasonable amounts. However, if you are taking any prescribed medication, are pregnant or nursing, or are concerned in any way, you should consult your medical professional before starting to drink cherry juice or taking cherry fruit extract tablets
For more information about health and fitness, body fitness guide, health tips, baby care tips, parenting tips, health exercises, workouts, men’s health, women’s health and teen health, please visit www.pkdoctor.com
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