Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsFor Sexual HealthFor Digestive HealthFor Heart HealthFor Immune HealthFor Infection PreventionFor UTI PreventionFor Skin HealthDaily TotalsSide EffectsRecipeBest Source
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
For Sexual Health
For Digestive Health
For Heart Health
For Immune Health
For Infection Prevention
For UTI Prevention
For Skin Health
Daily Totals
Side Effects
Recipe
Best Source
Cranberry juice is a rich source ofvitamin C, an antioxidant that plays a vital role in immune health. One cup of unsweetened cranberry juice provides 23.5 milligrams or 26% of the daily value (DV) for vitamin C.
Although commonly known for its ability to preventurinary tract infections(UTIs), regular cranberry juice consumption may also offer benefits for sexual, digestive, and heart health.
This article discusses the benefits of cranberry juice, including the best type to consume, recommended daily intake, and possible side effects.
Stefania Pelfini, La Waziya Photography / Getty Images
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Sexual Health
While some suggest that concentrated cranberry juice can improvevaginal odorand taste, no scientific evidence supports this claim.
However, a study found that cranberry juice may improve the health of the vaginal microbiome in women withdysbiosis(imbalances in microbial communities). Vaginal dysbiosis can lead to conditions such asbacterial vaginosis(BV), a common vaginal infection that can cause odor.
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Digestive Health
Cranberries contain antioxidant compounds calledpolyphenolsthat have been shown to have potential benefits for digestive health.
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Heart Health
A systematic review and meta-analysis found that cranberry supplementation may improve body weight and blood pressure levels. Cranberries may also help improve high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol—considered “good"cholesterol—in younger adults. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Immune Health
Cranberry juice is a good source of vitamin C, which is important for immune system function. Research suggests that inadequate vitamin C consumption can lead to impaired immunity and a higher risk of infections.
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Infection Prevention
One study noted that components of cranberry, particularlyproanthocyanidins, can promote oral health. That’s because they possess antibacterial activity and can prevent bacteria from binding together, reducingperiodontitis(gum disease) and the formation ofdental plaque.
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Prevention of UTIs
Cranberry is the best-studiedhome treatment for UTIs. It is believed that the chemical compounds known as proanthocyanidins in cranberries can help prevent certain bacteria from sticking to the lining of the urinary tract, thus reducing the risk of UTIs.
In 2020, the Food and Drug Association (FDA) announced it would allow cranberry juice manufacturers to make qualified health claims about UTI prevention.
Can Cranberry Juice Treat an Existing UTI?No evidence suggests that cranberries or cranberry juice can effectively treat an existing UTI.
Can Cranberry Juice Treat an Existing UTI?
No evidence suggests that cranberries or cranberry juice can effectively treat an existing UTI.
Cranberry Juice Benefits: Skin Health
Thevitamin Cin cranberry juice is also needed for collagen production.Collagenis a type of protein that provides strength, elasticity, and structural support to the skin, helping to keep it firm and smooth.
Cranberry Juice Nutrition FactsOne cup of unsweetened cranberry juice provides:Calories: 116Protein: 1 gramFat: 0.5 gramsCarbohydrates: 30 gramsFiber: 0.3 gramsSugar: 30 gramsVitamin C: 26% of the DVVitamin E: 20% of the DV
Cranberry Juice Nutrition Facts
One cup of unsweetened cranberry juice provides:Calories: 116Protein: 1 gramFat: 0.5 gramsCarbohydrates: 30 gramsFiber: 0.3 gramsSugar: 30 gramsVitamin C: 26% of the DVVitamin E: 20% of the DV
One cup of unsweetened cranberry juice provides:
Daily Amount of Cranberry Juice
There is no official recommendation on the timing or the optimal amount of cranberry juice a person should consume for health benefits. However, most studies examining the potential benefits of cranberry juice have used amounts ranging from 8 to 16 ounces, or about 1 to 2 cups per day.
Side Effects From Too Much Cranberry Juice
Cranberry juice is generally considered safe for most healthy individuals. However, consuming excessive amounts of it and other cranberry products can cause gastrointestinal symptoms such as upset stomach anddiarrhea. These symptoms are more likely to occur in young children.
Cranberry juice with large amounts of added sugar can contribute a significant amount of calories and sugar to your diet, leading to weight gain and other health concerns.
Cranberry juice may intensify the effects of Jantoven (warfarin), a blood-thinning medication. If you take blood thinners, speak with your healthcare provider about how much cranberry juice is safe for you.
Cranberry Juice Recipe for All the Benefits
Consider making your unsweetened cranberry juice to get the most health benefits. Here are the steps to make homemade cranberry juice:
Which Source of Cranberry Juice Is Best?
If you prefer the convenience of store-bought cranberry juice, it’s important to carefully read the product label and look for pure, 100% cranberry juice.
Avoid cranberry juice cocktails as these are often mixed with other juices, such as grape juice and apple juice, and contain added sugars that can take away from the benefits of pure cranberry juice.
If you find pure cranberry juice too tart, dilute it with water to make it more palatable.
Examples of common added sugars include:Brown sugar, cane sugar, raw sugarCane juiceCorn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, maple syrup, malt syrupDextrose, fructose, glucose, maltose, sucrose, lactoseFruit nectarsHoneyMolasses
Examples of common added sugars include:
Summary
Cranberry juice is a rich source of vitamin C and has a range of potential health benefits, including promoting sexual, digestive, heart, immune, and skin health. It may also help prevent urinary tract infections. To avoid excess consumption of added sugars and maximize the potential benefits of cranberry juice, it is best to choose pure, unsweetened cranberry juice.
While cranberry juice is safe for most people, consuming too much can lead to side effects, like upset stomach and diarrhea. Additionally, it can interact with certain medications, such as blood thinners.
16 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.USDA.Cranberry juice, unsweetened.Al Othaim A, Marasini D, Carbonero F.Impact of cranberry juice consumption on gut and vaginal microbiota in postmenopausal women.Food Frontiers. 2021;2(3):282-293. doi:10.1002/fft2.76Chicas MC, Talcott S, Talcott S, Sirven M.Effect of cranberry juice supplementation on the gut microbiome and inflammatory markers: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in overweight individuals.Curr Dev Nutr. 2022;6(Suppl 1):272. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzac053.013USDA.Cranberry juice can boost heart health.Pourmasoumi M, Hadi A, Najafgholizadeh A, Joukar F, Mansour-Ghanaei F.The effects of cranberry on cardiovascular metabolic risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical Nutrition. 2020;39(3):774-788. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2019.04.003Carr A, Maggini S.Vitamin C and immune function.Nutrients. 2017;9(11):1211. doi:10.3390/nu9111211Chen H, Wang W, Yu S, Wang H, Tian Z, Zhu S.Procyanidins and their therapeutic potential against oral diseases.Molecules. 2022;27(9):2932. doi:10.3390/molecules27092932Howell AB.Clinical evidence supporting cranberry as a complementary approach toHelicobacter pylorimanagement.Food Frontiers. 2020;1(3):329-331. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/fft2.47Das S.Natural therapeutics for urinary tract infections-a review.Futur J Pharm Sci. 2020;6(1):64. doi:10.1186/s43094-020-00086-2Xia J Yue, Yang C, Xu D Feng, Xia H, Yang L Gang, Sun G Ju.Consumption of cranberry as adjuvant therapy for urinary tract infections in susceptible populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis with trial sequential analysis.PLoS One. 2021;16(9):e0256992. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0256992U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA announces qualified health claim for certain cranberry products and urinary tract infections.National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.Cranberry.Pullar JM, Carr AC, Vissers MCM.The roles of vitamin C in skin health.Nutrients. 2017;9(8):866. doi:10.3390/nu9080866The Cranberry Institute.How much cranberry juice should I drink in a day?MedlinePlus.Taking warfarin (coumadin).Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Rethink your drink.
16 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.USDA.Cranberry juice, unsweetened.Al Othaim A, Marasini D, Carbonero F.Impact of cranberry juice consumption on gut and vaginal microbiota in postmenopausal women.Food Frontiers. 2021;2(3):282-293. doi:10.1002/fft2.76Chicas MC, Talcott S, Talcott S, Sirven M.Effect of cranberry juice supplementation on the gut microbiome and inflammatory markers: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in overweight individuals.Curr Dev Nutr. 2022;6(Suppl 1):272. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzac053.013USDA.Cranberry juice can boost heart health.Pourmasoumi M, Hadi A, Najafgholizadeh A, Joukar F, Mansour-Ghanaei F.The effects of cranberry on cardiovascular metabolic risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical Nutrition. 2020;39(3):774-788. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2019.04.003Carr A, Maggini S.Vitamin C and immune function.Nutrients. 2017;9(11):1211. doi:10.3390/nu9111211Chen H, Wang W, Yu S, Wang H, Tian Z, Zhu S.Procyanidins and their therapeutic potential against oral diseases.Molecules. 2022;27(9):2932. doi:10.3390/molecules27092932Howell AB.Clinical evidence supporting cranberry as a complementary approach toHelicobacter pylorimanagement.Food Frontiers. 2020;1(3):329-331. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/fft2.47Das S.Natural therapeutics for urinary tract infections-a review.Futur J Pharm Sci. 2020;6(1):64. doi:10.1186/s43094-020-00086-2Xia J Yue, Yang C, Xu D Feng, Xia H, Yang L Gang, Sun G Ju.Consumption of cranberry as adjuvant therapy for urinary tract infections in susceptible populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis with trial sequential analysis.PLoS One. 2021;16(9):e0256992. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0256992U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA announces qualified health claim for certain cranberry products and urinary tract infections.National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.Cranberry.Pullar JM, Carr AC, Vissers MCM.The roles of vitamin C in skin health.Nutrients. 2017;9(8):866. doi:10.3390/nu9080866The Cranberry Institute.How much cranberry juice should I drink in a day?MedlinePlus.Taking warfarin (coumadin).Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Rethink your drink.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
USDA.Cranberry juice, unsweetened.Al Othaim A, Marasini D, Carbonero F.Impact of cranberry juice consumption on gut and vaginal microbiota in postmenopausal women.Food Frontiers. 2021;2(3):282-293. doi:10.1002/fft2.76Chicas MC, Talcott S, Talcott S, Sirven M.Effect of cranberry juice supplementation on the gut microbiome and inflammatory markers: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in overweight individuals.Curr Dev Nutr. 2022;6(Suppl 1):272. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzac053.013USDA.Cranberry juice can boost heart health.Pourmasoumi M, Hadi A, Najafgholizadeh A, Joukar F, Mansour-Ghanaei F.The effects of cranberry on cardiovascular metabolic risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical Nutrition. 2020;39(3):774-788. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2019.04.003Carr A, Maggini S.Vitamin C and immune function.Nutrients. 2017;9(11):1211. doi:10.3390/nu9111211Chen H, Wang W, Yu S, Wang H, Tian Z, Zhu S.Procyanidins and their therapeutic potential against oral diseases.Molecules. 2022;27(9):2932. doi:10.3390/molecules27092932Howell AB.Clinical evidence supporting cranberry as a complementary approach toHelicobacter pylorimanagement.Food Frontiers. 2020;1(3):329-331. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/fft2.47Das S.Natural therapeutics for urinary tract infections-a review.Futur J Pharm Sci. 2020;6(1):64. doi:10.1186/s43094-020-00086-2Xia J Yue, Yang C, Xu D Feng, Xia H, Yang L Gang, Sun G Ju.Consumption of cranberry as adjuvant therapy for urinary tract infections in susceptible populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis with trial sequential analysis.PLoS One. 2021;16(9):e0256992. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0256992U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA announces qualified health claim for certain cranberry products and urinary tract infections.National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.Cranberry.Pullar JM, Carr AC, Vissers MCM.The roles of vitamin C in skin health.Nutrients. 2017;9(8):866. doi:10.3390/nu9080866The Cranberry Institute.How much cranberry juice should I drink in a day?MedlinePlus.Taking warfarin (coumadin).Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Rethink your drink.
USDA.Cranberry juice, unsweetened.
Al Othaim A, Marasini D, Carbonero F.Impact of cranberry juice consumption on gut and vaginal microbiota in postmenopausal women.Food Frontiers. 2021;2(3):282-293. doi:10.1002/fft2.76
Chicas MC, Talcott S, Talcott S, Sirven M.Effect of cranberry juice supplementation on the gut microbiome and inflammatory markers: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in overweight individuals.Curr Dev Nutr. 2022;6(Suppl 1):272. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzac053.013
USDA.Cranberry juice can boost heart health.
Pourmasoumi M, Hadi A, Najafgholizadeh A, Joukar F, Mansour-Ghanaei F.The effects of cranberry on cardiovascular metabolic risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical Nutrition. 2020;39(3):774-788. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2019.04.003
Carr A, Maggini S.Vitamin C and immune function.Nutrients. 2017;9(11):1211. doi:10.3390/nu9111211
Chen H, Wang W, Yu S, Wang H, Tian Z, Zhu S.Procyanidins and their therapeutic potential against oral diseases.Molecules. 2022;27(9):2932. doi:10.3390/molecules27092932
Howell AB.Clinical evidence supporting cranberry as a complementary approach toHelicobacter pylorimanagement.Food Frontiers. 2020;1(3):329-331. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/fft2.47
Das S.Natural therapeutics for urinary tract infections-a review.Futur J Pharm Sci. 2020;6(1):64. doi:10.1186/s43094-020-00086-2
Xia J Yue, Yang C, Xu D Feng, Xia H, Yang L Gang, Sun G Ju.Consumption of cranberry as adjuvant therapy for urinary tract infections in susceptible populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis with trial sequential analysis.PLoS One. 2021;16(9):e0256992. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0256992
U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA announces qualified health claim for certain cranberry products and urinary tract infections.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.Cranberry.
Pullar JM, Carr AC, Vissers MCM.The roles of vitamin C in skin health.Nutrients. 2017;9(8):866. doi:10.3390/nu9080866
The Cranberry Institute.How much cranberry juice should I drink in a day?
MedlinePlus.Taking warfarin (coumadin).
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Rethink your drink.
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