Paraná, Brazil--A study conducted on the effects of cranberry juicein women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) provides evidence that cranberry juice can be beneficial for decreasing the disease activity in patients with RA.

The study, titled "Cranberry juice decreases disease activity in women with rheumatoid arthritis" by Nataly Simões Bandiera Thimóteo et al. and published in Nutrition, was done with the intent to analyze the anti-inflammatory effects of cranberry juice in women with RA. Out of the 41 women who participated, 18 in the control group maintained their regular diet, while the remaining 23 women drank 500ml of low-calorie cranberry juice a day. The disease activity was measured by an anticyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP), the Disease Activity Score 28 (DAS28), and many inflammatory and biochemical biomarkers.

According to the study, the results after 90 days of treatment showed that the values of DAS28 (p=0.048) and anti-CCP (p=0.034) decreased in the cranberry group, while there were no inflammatory biomarker changes found. The study states that larger and long-term studies are needed to further test the effects of cranberry juice on women with RA and analyze the mechanisms therein.