We have been spending a good deal of time lately on sleep issues and the key reason is this: summer is in full swing and for a lot of us, especially in the US, that means late nights at the ball park or watching fireworks.

It means days spent exerting muscles with yard chores and swimming, along with the added lactic acid buildup that comes from water skiing and hiking, among other sports and summer fun activities.

Add to that the other muscle issues that might be keeping you up at night as well and you’ve got a perfect storm brewing for sleep-wrecking muscle pain, twitching, and other nuisances.

Halting, or at least reducing, the ache that comes with exercise or general nighttime leg cramps doesn’t have to mean eating 5 bananas before bed. You can still absolutely do that if you want, but you might want to also consider one other little fruit.

The black cherry is another amazing food that does double-and sometimes triple-duty in regarding its arsenal of health efforts.

For such a small fruit, they have a very high concentration of two compounds: phenolics and flavinoids. This anti-oxidant one-two punch boosts nerve function and metabolism like you wouldn’t believe.

Researchers from Kyung Hee University in Korea found phenolics to be extremely effective at protecting nerve tissue from free radicals that would normally have severely disrupted nerve function.

When we don’t sleep, we are already stressing out nerves and nerve endings all over the body. Add to that the cramp-inducing assault that dehydration plays, and it’s little wonder that so many people suffer from this frustrating and painful dilemma.

People who are diabetic are more than twice as likely to suffer from nighttime leg cramping than people who don’t have diabetes, and given that sour black cherries have fewer calories than their sweet cherry counterparts, they are a good choice for diabetics anyway.

But consider this also…

Researchers from Michigan State University found that rats who were given a high fat diet and showing signs of insulin resistance were given purified anthocyanin extracts and found to have reversed their insulin resistance completely by the 8th week of the study.

The benefits just keep on rolling for this wonder-fruit.

Cherries are also a natural source of melatonin, the sleepy compound that helps the body feel drowsy and eases a person into sleep.

Not convinced? If you’ve been told you need more calcium, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C, beta-carotene, or fiber, this is definitely your fruit.

Black cherries can be really sour and have a bit of a biting aftertaste. But that comes in pretty handy when cooking, and I have had some great soups, desserts, and main dinner courses that feature black cherries as a key ingredient.

Or, you can try them dried and mixed in with granola mix, salads, and cereal.

However, if you’re not the cherry-chomping kind of person, then you can actually find black cherry capsules at your local health food store.

Generally, you will want to take the caps at night since not only do they have the melatonin benefit, but they also will work during sleep in tandem with your body’s own restoration process to rid the muscles of the lactic acid buildup and anti-oxidants that serve to harm the muscles’ nerves.

In case you are having a difficult time with getting to sleep or staying to sleep, the Natural Insomnia program will be very helpful to you.

For more information on the Beat Diabetes program from Jodi Knapp, try the guide today.

Warm regards,

Christian Goodman

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