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Awaiting clinical review. This entry is sourced but has not yet been signed off by a pharmacist or clinician.

Prunus cerasus (Montmorency fruit)

Tart Cherry

Tart cherry has some support for helping muscle strength recover after hard exercise, but the trials disagree and the evidence is low to moderate at best. For sleep and gout the human evidence is small and mixed, and it is not a proven treatment for either. No serious safety problems turned up in the trials we read, but it should not replace prescribed gout treatment.

Updated
29 September 2026
Fresh sour cherries in a bowl
At a glance
Last reviewed 29 September 2026
Evidence
Limited
Best for
Strength recovery after exercise
Typical form & use
Juice or concentrate; 500 mg powder
Onset
About a week
Safety
Not a substitute for gout treatment. No interactions in our data.
Check with your medications →

What it's used for

Evidence is rated per use. The same ingredient can be strong for one thing and traditional for another.

UseEvidenceWhat the research shows
Recovery after hard exerciseLimitedA 2026 meta-analysis of 19 trials in trained athletes found tart cherry juice improved recovery of maximal voluntary contraction strength (effect sizes 0.63 straight after exercise, rising to 1.12 at 24 hours) and lowered C-reactive protein. It found no significant pooled effect on muscle soreness, creatine kinase, IL-6 or range of motion. Results varied a great deal between trials, some were sensitive to single studies, and the authors rated certainty as very low to moderate. The trials tested the juice, not capsules.1
SleepLimitedA 2025 systematic review of seven trials found three reported better sleep duration, efficiency or onset, with large differences in dose, length and participants. In a 2012 crossover trial of 20 healthy adults, a week of concentrate raised urinary melatonin and improved time in bed, total sleep time and efficiency. In 15 older adults with insomnia, a 2010 pilot cut time awake after sleep onset but did not change sleep latency, total sleep time or efficiency compared with placebo. A 2024 crossover trial in 34 people with overweight or obesity found no effect of 500 mg powder at bedtime for 14 days on any sleep or inflammation measure.2,3,4,8
Gout flares and uric acidLimitedAn online case-crossover study of 633 people with gout linked eating cherries over two days with a 35% lower risk of an attack (odds ratio 0.65, 95% CI 0.50 to 0.85); this design cannot prove cherries were the cause. A 2026 meta-analysis of four randomised trials (392 people) found a small fall in serum uric acid (standardised mean difference -0.22, 95% CI -0.43 to -0.01) with a lot of heterogeneity. A 28-day randomised trial of 50 people with gout found no effect of tart cherry concentrate on serum urate, at any dose, or on flare frequency.5,6,7

How much

Ranges below are what studies used and what supplements commonly contain. They are not a recommendation for you. Start at the low end.

Concentrate in gout trial
7.5–30 ml twice daily7
The range tested for 28 days in people with gout; no dose lowered serum urate more than placebo. This was a dose-finding trial, not a recommendation.
Powder in sleep trial
500 mg, one hour before bed4
Taken for 14 days in people with overweight or obesity, with no benefit on sleep. The authors suggested higher doses may be needed in this group.
Duration studied
5 days to 4 weeks3,4,7
Sleep trials ran from about a week to two weeks per treatment period, and the gout dose trial 28 days. We did not find long-term trials.
Timing · The sleep trials we read gave the product in the evening or before bed, but no source we read compares timings. For exercise, trials differed in when they started dosing, so we cannot give a reliable schedule.With food? · No source we read gave food guidance.How long to trial · The sleep trials that found a benefit ran for one to two weeks, so two weeks is a fair test. If you notice no change by then, the evidence gives no reason to expect more from continuing.

How people take it

Juice concentrate7.5–30 ml, twice daily (gout trial)The form used in the sleep and gout trials and diluted in water; products vary in strength, so labels are not interchangeable.
Capsule (powder)500 mg (one sleep trial)Tested once in our reading, with no effect on sleep or inflammation in that trial.
Ready-made juiceFollow the product labelUsed in most of the exercise recovery trials in the 2026 meta-analysis.

Safety

Who should avoid
  • Gout — do not use in place of prescribed treatment; ask your doctor about flares
  • Pregnancy and breastfeeding — no safety data found in the sources we read
Known interactions
No interactions in our data. Absence of a flag is not clearance.

Questions people ask

Does tart cherry juice help you sleep?

Possibly a little, but the evidence is mixed. A 2025 systematic review found only three of seven trials reported better sleep, and a 2024 trial in people with overweight or obesity found no effect. Effects seen in small trials, such as less time awake in the night in older adults with insomnia, need larger studies to confirm.

Does tart cherry help with gout?

The evidence is inconsistent. An observational study linked eating cherries with fewer attacks, and a meta-analysis found a small fall in uric acid, but a 28-day randomised trial found no effect on serum urate or flares. Tart cherry is not shown to replace medicine your doctor has prescribed.

Does tart cherry reduce muscle soreness after exercise?

Not clearly. A 2026 meta-analysis found no significant pooled effect on muscle soreness, although it did find faster recovery of muscle strength and lower C-reactive protein. The evidence was heterogeneous and rated very low to moderate certainty.

Are there side effects?

In the 50-person gout trial there were 24 adverse events across all groups, and only one, high blood sugar, was thought possibly related to cherry concentrate. We did not find a source that reviews tart cherry safety in depth.

Sources

  1. Meta-analysis Daab W, Bouzid MA, Nassis GP, et al. Effects of Tart Cherry Juice Supplementation on Recovery from Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage in Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Med Open. 2026.
  2. Systematic review Barforoush F, Ebrahimi S, Abdar MK, Khademi S, Morshedzadeh N. The Effect of Tart Cherry on Sleep Quality and Sleep Disorders: A Systematic Review. Food Sci Nutr. 2025.
  3. Randomised trial Howatson G, Bell PG, Tallent J, et al. Effect of tart cherry juice (Prunus cerasus) on melatonin levels and enhanced sleep quality. Eur J Nutr. 2012.
  4. Randomised trial Tucker RM, Kim N, Gurzell E, et al. Commonly Used Dose of Montmorency Tart Cherry Powder Does Not Improve Sleep or Inflammation Outcomes in Individuals with Overweight or Obesity. Nutrients. 2024.
  5. Observational study Zhang Y, Neogi T, Chen C, et al. Cherry consumption and decreased risk of recurrent gout attacks. Arthritis Rheum. 2012.
  6. Meta-analysis Zhang Z, Feng Z, Yan W, et al. Tart cherry intake and serum uric acid: Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and evidence from network pharmacology. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2026.
  7. Randomised trial Stamp LK, Chapman P, Frampton C, et al. Lack of effect of tart cherry concentrate dose on serum urate in people with gout. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2020.
  8. Randomised trial Pigeon WR, Carr M, Gorman C, Perlis ML. Effects of a tart cherry juice beverage on the sleep of older adults with insomnia: a pilot study. J Med Food. 2010.

Last reviewed 29 September 2026 · Next review March 2027 · How we rate evidence