Optima Montmorency Cherry Juice Super Concentrate 500ml.

Next up on the ‘lets make the Jackson household as healthy as it can be’, is Optima Montmorency Cherry Juice. Oh my! This stuff is just fabulous. Made from Montmorency cherries (which are associated with the term Super Food), this has so many benefits and no really downside, apart from maybe the taste is a little sour, however once mixed with yogurt, milk, or in a smoothie, this disappears (Bobby will just take it from the syringe). With Daisy’s recent illness (see this post for my Vitamin D recommendation), I wasn’t sleeping so great and would wake up at the crack of dawn and not be able to get myself back to sleep again as I would be over analysing everything. Bobby is an early riser and makes enough noise to make sure that we are all awake. I was shattered and so the research began. When I read cherry juice has the ability to promote sleep, I was in. Check out this video.

It can be used from 6 months and you just adjust the dosage according to age. We (Bobby and I) took 15ml twice in the evening (appropriate for 12 months plus). It’s not harmful, as at the end of the day it’s just a fruit juice.

Here are some facts:

• Tart cherries are naturally rich in melatonin, a hormone responsible for sleepiness. (Meaning your kids may sleep longer if they are given cherry juice). A definite winner.
• Cherry juice contains carbohydrates, B vitamins, calcium, iron, magnesium, omega-3 and omega-6 fats, in addition to antioxidants and other beneficial plant compounds. Compared to sweet cherry varieties, tart cherries contain 20 times more vitamin A, and their antioxidant levels are up to five times higher.
• Cherry juice can reduce muscle breakdown, muscle soreness and speed up recovery in sporting individuals, drinking it leading up to and immediately following intense physical exercise may reduce muscle strength loss and soreness. It may also speed up recovery.
• Research shows that the antioxidants in tart cherry juice can reduce pain and inflammation from osteoarthritis, which is the most common type of arthritis. See here.
• Cherries like all fruits and vegetables, are full of antioxidants. Flavonoids, a type of antioxidant in cherry juice, are made by plants to fight infection and offer a boost to your immune system.

I really hope this helps you and I would love to hear your thoughts.

Shelley x

P.S; Remember I’m not a doctor, these are just my own (crazy, sleep deprived lady) findings.

P.P.S; this post is also amazing for sleep for us and our little ones