“A apple a day keep the doctor out of your life.” On some occasions we have heard this sentence, or even that this fruit is capable of lengthening our lives. We have been told this from our grandmothers to the media, but what does the scientific evidence about?
Years ago, scientists set out to study the real benefits of eating an apple a day, specifically the University of Michigan School of Nursing and the White River Veterans Affairs Medical Center in the United States. For the research, they analyzed the nutritional data of nearly 8,400 men and women, among whom 753 ate an apple every day.
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The results, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, showed that “the evidence does not support that an apple a day keeps the doctor away; However, the small fraction of American adults who eat an apple a day seems use fewer prescription medications”.
So what are the real properties of apples? Dietitian Kathy McManus is director of the Department of Nutrition at Brigham and Women’s Hospital at Harvard University and assures that they do provide a series of health benefits. One of them is that this fruit contains around 85% water by weight, which promotes satiety without receiving too many calories.
However, they not only help control appetite, as this Harvard expert highlights that “the Soluble fiber of apples can help prevent cholesterol from building up on the walls of your arteries. Apples contain a good amount of potassiumwhich can be beneficial for those who control their blood pressure.”
The Spanish Nutrition Foundation (FEN) states that apples are a source of potassium, vitamin C (which stimulates the immune system) and in pectina good fiber that helps reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. In addition, they are rich in phytochemical substances and antioxidants, such as quercetin, which help prevent cardiovascular problems, inflammatory diseases, asthma and muscle contractures.
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Other benefits of apples include their ability to reduce cholesterol levels, strengthen the gums, reduce pain and the amount of uric acid in the body, and prevent its accumulation in the body. They also help prevent constipation thanks to their high fiber content, which promotes intestinal transit and helps the digestion of fats.
Following FEN, apples “also contain dihydroxychalcones (such as phloretin, which is present in its glycosidic form called phloridzin), a type of flavonoids found exclusively in apples and their derivatives. They are mainly located in the skin of these fruits although also in the pulp (the concentration of these substances depends on the variety of apple in question).”
