The effect of Montmorency tart cherry consumption on athletic performance and post-exercise recovery in healthy adults: a scoping review

Background Various clinical studies have examined the effect of Montmorency tart cherry consumption on athletic performance and post-exercise recovery; however, there is a lack of a comprehensive review to assess the totality of evidence in the published literature. Methods A scoping review was conducted to identify and summarize relevant clinical studies that examined the effect of Montmorency tart cherry consumption on athletic performance, post-exercise recovery of muscle strength, and delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) in healthy adults. Results A total of 28 published clinical trials met the eligibility criteria for the scoping review. Across these trials, heterogeneity was found in study design; however, the majority of studies had a small sample size with a short duration of intervention. Four out of 10 studies reported that Montmorency tart cherry consumption improved athletic performance with significantly shorter time to complete the exercise or longer time to exhaustion. Seven out of 14 studies reported a significant effect on post-exercise muscle strength recovery. Six out of 22 studies reported a significantly reduced DOMS with Montmorency tart cherry consumption. Conclusions Overall, the evidence provides preliminary support for a potential beneficial effect of Montmorency tart cherry consumption on post-exercise recovery of muscle strength. Findings for athletic performance and DOMS are mixed, highlighting the need for further high-quality randomized controlled trials or systematic review with meta-analysis.