Health Benefits of Apples

You might have heard an idiom "An apple a day keeps the doctor away". But how? Why not banana, orange or grapes? Well, there are reasons for the same. Apples posses the properties that other fruits do not have. The merits of apples over other fruits have been proved many times. Apples have such a combination of nutritions that no other fruits have. Apples are filled with antioxidants which prevents diseases. 
Health Benefits of Apples

Low Calories: Apples are low in calories. 100 grams of fresh cut slides of apples provide only 50 calories. A regular size apple has approximately 70-100 calories.


Presence of Vitamin C: Apples provide Vitamin C which boosts our immune system. 
Vitamin C helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents. Lack of Vitamin C results in poor healing and bleeding Gums. 

Healthy Heart: Apples prevent both coronary and cardiovascular heart disease as apples are rich in Flavanoid which have antioxidant effects. Good heart means good flow of blood in the body which means appropriate oxygen being provided to each part of body and ultimately results in healthy mind and healthy body. 


Aligns Metabolism: Apples are good source of B-complex vitamins such as riboflavin, thiamin, and pyridoxine. These vitamins help as co-factors for enzymes in metabolism as well as in various synthetic functions inside the body.


Helps in Cancer: Apples are having properties which helps in colon cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer and breast cancer in woman.


Dietary Fiber: Apples contain Fibre. British National Health Service says that a diet high in fiber can help prevent the development of certain diseases and may help prevent the amount of bad cholesterol in your blood from rising. Apples contain phenols which reduces bad cholesterol and increases good cholesterol. 


Whitening Tooth:  The juice of the apples has properties that can kill up to 80% of bacteria. So you can say, an apple a day also keeps the dentist away!


Healthy Lungs: Research of University of Nottingham Research suggests that people who eat 5 apples or more per week has lower respiratory problems, including asthma.


Improves Brain : Apple has phytonutrients, and these phytonutrients prevents neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinsonism.




Serving Tips

  • Eat apple fruit as they are, along with their peel for maximum health-benefits.
  • Sliced apple turns brown on exposure to air due to conversion (in iron form) from ferrous oxide to ferric oxide. If you have to serve them sliced, rinse slices in water added with few drops of fresh lemon or you can apply little salt on knife and then slice apples.
  • Apples can be used in preparation of desserts and healthy drink.
  • Apple is also used in the preparation of fruit jam, pie, and fruit salad.
Interesting Facts about Apples
  • There are more than 7,500 varieties of apples. 
  • About 69 million tonnes of apples were grown worldwide in 2010.
  • Apple trees can live to be 100 years old!
  • The apple tree is a member of rose family.
  • The original proverb about eating an apple a day, which came about in 1866, was: "Eat an apple on going to bed, and you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread."
  • When you eat an apple you are consuming a lot of air; 25 percent of their volume is air!
  • The 14pxst apple weighed three pounds.
  • Apples have 5 percent protein.
  • It takes the energy from 50 leaves to produce one apple.
Apple Cautions
  • Apple seeds are toxic. So, its heavy dose should be avoided by pregnant or breastfeeding women and children .
  • Apple juice concentrate can be full of arsenic when it is not organic according a research.
  • A research by scientists at the University of Copenhagen showed that whole apples, and cloudy apple juice were all able to reduce bad cholesterol but clear apple juice actually increased levels of bad cholesterol. So, even apple juice should be made along with its peel.
  • Eat apples with its peel as most of the fiber and antioxidants are in the peel. Dr. Hyson says "Despite public misperceptions, laboratories have consistently found very low levels of pesticide residues (if any) on the skin of apples. 
Nutrition Facts

Nutritional facts of apple is provided below. The nutritional information provided is for apples with skin (edible parts)
    
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy218 kJ (52 kcal)
Carbohydrates13.81 g
- Sugars10.39
- Dietary fiber2.4 g
Fat0.17 g
Protein0.26 g
Water85.56 g
Vitamin A equiv.3 μg (0%)
- beta-carotene27 μg (0%)
- lutein and zeaxanthin29 μg
Thiamine (vit. B1)0.017 mg (1%)
Riboflavin (vit. B2)0.026 mg (2%)
Niacin (vit. B3)0.091 mg (1%)
Pantothenic acid (B5)0.061 mg (1%)
Vitamin B60.041 mg (3%)
Folate (vit. B9)3 μg (1%)
Vitamin C4.6 mg (6%)
Vitamin E0.18 mg (1%)
Vitamin K2.2 μg (2%)
Calcium6 mg (1%)
Iron0.12 mg (1%)
Magnesium5 mg (1%)
Manganese0.035 mg (2%)
Phosphorus11 mg (2%)
Potassium107 mg (2%)
Sodium1 mg (0%)
Zinc0.04 mg (0%)
Fluoride3.3 µg
Link to USDA Database entry
Percentages are roughly approximated
using US recommendations for adults.
Source: USDA Nutrient Database

You can enjoy red, green and other types of apples.

"Any fool can count the seeds in an apple. Only God can count all the apples in one seed." –Robert Schuller