Cherries ripe for sleep
FORGET counting sheep if you want to nod off in bed – have a glass of cherry juice instead.
A new study suggests the fruit drink significantly increases levels of melatonin, the hormone which regulates sleep, leading to longer and better quality rest.
Volunteers drank either 30ml of Montmorency cherry juice concentrate or a placebo sample twice a day for seven days.
Tests showed that even after just a week, melatonin in the cherry juice drinkers was 15-16 per cent higher than in the placebo group. And on average these participants slept for 25 minutes longer, with a 5-6 per cent increase in their “sleep quality”. Also, the cherry juice drinkers reported less daytime napping time compared to their normal sleeping habits.
Yhe cherry juice drinkers reported less daytime napping time compared to their normal sleeping habits.
Dr Glyn Howatson, who led the study at Northumbria University, said: “This shows tart cherry juice can be used to facilitate sleep in healthy adults.
“And, excitingly, it has the potential to be applied as a natural intervention for insomnia and general disturbed sleep from shift work or jet lag.”