Cranberry extracts may boost intestinal microbiota and help avert chronic diseases

A recent study by Université Laval and the Institute of Nutrition and Functional Foods (INAF) suggests that cranberry extracts may improve intestinal microbiota and help prevent chronic diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular diseases in just four days of use. Cranberries, rich in polyphenols like tannins and oligosaccharides, offer various health benefits.

Researchers found that cranberry extract enhances Bifidobacterium, linked to lower diabetes and cardiometabolic disease risks, and stimulates Akkermansia muciniphila, aiding in reducing inflammation and strengthening the intestinal barrier, particularly vital in countering the adverse effects of a Western diet.

Approximately forty participants consumed cranberry supplements twice daily for four days. The study, part of the NSERC-Symrise Industrial Research Chair on the prebiotic effect of fruit and vegetable polyphenols (PhenoBio+), resulted in the development of Symrise's Prebiocran, approved in Europe. Future research will explore long-term effects and identify specific microbiota signatures that respond best to cranberry extracts.