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From the viral “sleepy girl mocktail” to excitement about workout recovery, tart cherry juice has been grabbing people’s attention over the last couple of years. But what can it actually do for you, and does the science support the hype?

The 3 Core Evidence-Based Tart Cherry Juice Benefits

Tart cherry juice comes from Montmorency cherries, popularly grown across the U.S., with the cherries often made into jams and pie fillings. The fruit is rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, which together account for most of its health benefits. It is best known for three specific claimed effects.

1. Does Tart Cherry Juice Improve Sleep?

Tart cherries contain high levels of melatonin, which is a key regulator of the human sleep-wake cycle. They also contain significant amounts of serotonin and tryptophan, which also boost sleep. Multiple studies have shown that consuming tart cherry juice can lessen insomnia and improve sleep duration. 

However, it’s important to note that humans may struggle with sleep for numerous reasons, not all of which are related to melatonin. If your sleep is interrupted by stress or sleep apnea, for example, those have different causes. 

“A lot of us who suffer from sleep deprivation don’t suffer from [it] because of underproduction of melatonin,” explains sleep expert Azizi Seixas from the University of Miami. “It’s primarily because of all these different lifestyle barriers like stress [and] poor eating.”  

So, tart cherry juice can help promote sleep if your body needs more melatonin — but if it doesn’t, a sleepy girl mocktail is unlikely to help. You won’t know until you try it, however, so if you are not getting the zzzs you need, you might want to explore this option. 

2. Does Tart Cherry Juice Speed Up Muscle Recovery?

Another one of the major tart cherry juice benefits is that it can reduce muscle soreness and pain, especially after exercise. The fruit is rich in anthocyanins, which are antioxidants known to help reduce oxidative stress and inflammation. 

Multiple older studies showed a strong link between tart cherry juice and muscle recovery. However, as research has continued, the picture is more nuanced. It appears to be more a case of “precovery” than recovery — a more recent study found that the effect occurs only when the juice is consumed over several days before exercise, not when it is consumed on the day of exercise or afterward. 

Furthermore, it seems to depend on the level of exercise-induced damage (EID) that has occurred. In 2023, in contrast to previous similar studies, researchers found no difference in muscle recovery or soreness between women taking tart cherry supplements versus a placebo. They believed this may be because the exercise regimen in this study did not induce enough EID for the tart cherry supplement to have an effect. 

In other words, the most significant tart cherry juice benefits occur in response to highly intense or prolonged exercise — think marathon training, heavy multi-set resistance lifting or tournament-level sports. For mild soreness from a regular workout, the juice’s anti-inflammatory effects may be marginal and less impactful.

3. Does Tart Cherry Juice Combat Inflammation and Joint Pain? 

The third of the big three tart cherry juice benefits is its apparent role in helping to manage chronic joint pain, especially arthritis or gout. Here, it’s the anti-inflammatory properties of anthocyanin again. A 2019 study reported that people felt pain relief and improved mobility when drinking tart cherry juice daily. 

More recent studies have not contradicted this, so it appears to hold up. There have also been significant developments in the study of tart cherry as a potential treatment for gout. 

Good For You, But Not a Miracle

Overall, the often-cited tart cherry juice benefits do exist, but not as miracle cures for sleep or muscle soreness. 

For some people managing arthritis, those lacking melatonin, or those undertaking prolonged, intense exercise, the evidence supports tart cherry’s powerful properties. 

For others, this refreshing sour juice certainly delivers a healthful punch of antioxidants, polyphenols and other compounds, but does not necessarily translate to better sleep or less muscle fatigue. All those antioxidants can, however, contribute to healthy skin and hair and an overall wellness diet. 

How to Add Tart Cherry Juice to Your Routine

If you want to try tart cherry juice benefits for yourself, you might be curious about how to best incorporate it into your daily life. Here are some pointers.

• Find the right product: Look for 100% juice, not concentrate. Check for no added sugar or fillers, and ideally, choose organic juice.
• Dosage: A good daily amount would be one ounce of concentrate or eight ounces of juice.
• Timing: If you want to see sleep improvement, try drinking tart cherry juice one hour before bed. For those interested in muscle recovery, research suggests that drinking it consistently each day is best, rather than only after exercise.

Tart cherry juice tastes sour or tart as the name suggests, but it does have an underlying natural sweetness too. Think of it like a dry red wine taste. If that is not your thing, you may prefer to mix it with water or apple juice. Alternatively, blend it into a smoothie. 

Are Tart Cherry Juice Benefits Right for You?

This popular drink is a nutrient-dense beverage with proven benefits for sleep, inflammation and muscle recovery in some circumstances. It is not a miracle cure for anything, but it can be a valuable and delicious addition to a balanced wellness lifestyle.