Apple is healthy to eat

7 Outstanding Health Benefits of Apples

Discover why nutrition-packed apples may indeed help keep the doctor away.

It’s that time of year again: apple-picking season. And there are a number of good reasons why you’ll want to fill up a basket.

Not only do apples taste delicious on their own or when added to dishes but they come loaded with health benefits. “Apples have been linked to numerous health benefits, including improved gut health and reduced risk of stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and some cancers,” says Jessica Levinson, RDN, a culinary nutrition expert in Westchester, New York.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a medium-sized apple is a good source of fiber: It contains 4.4 grams of fiber, covering 16 percent of the daily value (DV). Also, the same apple offers 8.4 milligrams of vitamin C, providing more than 9 percent of your DV, along with small amounts of other vitamins and minerals.

Sarah Gold Anzlovar, RDN, the Boston-based owner of Sarah Gold Nutrition, suggests adding them to salads or to a grilled cheese, making baked apples for a healthy dessert, or cooking up some pulled chicken with apples in the slow cooker for an easy lunch or dinner.

“All apples offer benefits, though the nutrition and antioxidant content will vary slightly from one apple to another — the best one to eat is the kind you enjoy,” says Anzlovar.

Here’s why else the phrase “an apple a day helps keep the doctor away” may have some truth to it.

7 Impressive Health Benefits Of Apples

1. Apples May Lower High Cholesterol and Blood Pressure

Savor a juicy apple and you may help keep your ticker healthy in the process. “Studies have linked apple consumption with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, which may be related to the cholesterol-lowering benefits of the soluble fiber found in apples,” says Anzlovar.

Soluble fiber dissolves in water to form a gellike material, according to the Mayo Clinic. According to the University of Illinois, soluble fiber helps prevent cholesterol buildup in the lining of blood vessel walls, therefore lowering the incidence of atherosclerosis (restricted blood flow in the arteries due to plaque buildup) and heart disease. It can also help lower blood pressure levels. A study found that a higher intake of soluble fiber was associated with a decreased cardiovascular disease risk.

Research shows that eating apples (or pears) regularly was associated with a 52 percent lower stroke risk. Furthermore, a study published in February 2020 in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that eating two apples a day helped study participants lower both their LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

RELATED: How to Eat Right for Heart Health

2. Eating Foods With Fiber, Including Apples, Can Aid Digestion

You’ve likely heard that fiber is good for digestion — and what you’ve heard is true! According to Harvard Health Publishing, both types of fiber (soluble and insoluble, which means it can’t be absorbed in water) are important for digestion. And you’re in luck — apples have both types, according to the University of Illinois.

Soluble fiber helps slow down digestion, allowing you to feel full, and also slows the digestion of glucose, which helps control your blood sugar. Meanwhile, insoluble fiber can help move food through your system and aid with constipation and regularity, per Harvard.

Just be sure to eat the apple skin, which contains much of the apple’s insoluble fiber, according to the University of Illinois.

3. Apples Can Support a Healthy Immune System

Who doesn’t want a stronger immune system going into autumn? Apples might be an important tool in your immune-supporting tool kit.

According to research in animals, a diet filled with soluble fiber helped convert immune cells that were pro-inflammatory into anti-inflammatory and immune-supporting ones. Another animal study, published in May 2018 in the journal Immunity, found that a diet high in dietary fiber protected mice against the flu. Whether those effects would be seen in humans is unclear until there are more studies.

Still, there’s reason to believe that apples may bolster immunity, in part because they contain immune-boosting vitamin C. A review published in November 2017 in the journal Nutrients found that vitamin C plays many roles in helping the immune system function, such as by strengthening the epithelial (a type of tissue) barrier against pathogens and guarding against environmental oxidative stress, such as pollution to radiation, according to research.

4. Apples Are a Diabetes-Friendly Fruit

If you have type 2 diabetes, consider adding apples to your diet. Sure, they’re a fruit, but it’s a common misconception that people with diabetes can’t eat fruit.

In this case, apples’ soluble fiber can help slow the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream and may improve blood sugar levels, the Mayo Clinic notes. Plus, per Mayo, a healthy diet that includes insoluble fiber can lower your odds of developing type 2 diabetes in the first place.

Furthermore, a study of people with type 2 diabetes published in August 2016 in Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine found that regularly consuming soluble fiber helped reduce insulin resistance and improved blood sugar and triglyceride levels.

5. The Antioxidants in Apples May Play a Role in Cancer Prevention

While there’s no one surefire way to prevent cancer, apples could help play a role. “Apples may reduce the risk of certain cancers, which researchers speculate is related to the antioxidants found in apples,” says Anzlovar. Research suggests that apples have a very high level of antioxidants, and in laboratory studies, these antioxidants have been shown to limit cancer cell growth.

A review published in October 2016 in Public Health Nutrition found that eating apples regularly is associated with a reduced risk of certain cancers, including colorectal, oral cavity, esophageal, and breast cancers.

The fiber in apples may provide cancer-preventing perks. A study published in March 2016 in the journal Pediatrics found that women who ate more high-fiber foods during adolescence and young adulthood (especially lots of fruits and vegetables) had a lower breast cancer risk later in life.

And another study, published in January 2019 in the journal The Lancet, found that a diet high in dietary fiber could protect against colorectal cancer and breast cancer, as well as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

6. Eating Apples Can Support Healthy Weight Loss

A diet rich in fruit (and vegetables) can help you maintain a healthy weight — or shed pounds — according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Because apples are filled with dietary fiber, they are high on this list. “Fiber slows digestion and the rise of blood sugar, keeping you satiated and less likely to overeat,” says Levinson.

According to that study in The Lancet, people who ate the most fiber had a significantly lower body weight. Research shows that overweight women who ate three apples a day lost 1.22 kg (2.7 pounds) after 12 weeks.

At only 95 calories for a medium-sized apple, this fruit is one you’ll want to keep on hand when sweet cravings strike.

7. Apples May Help Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease

Time to start eating more apples and other flavonoid-rich foods like berries and tea. Research published in August 2020 in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that adults age 50 and older who included only a small amount of flavonoid-rich foods like berries, apples, and tea in their diet were a whopping 2 to 4 times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and related types of dementia over 20 years compared with people who ate more flavonoid-rich foods.

On top of that, a review published in January 2020 in the journal Biomolecules found that quercetin, a flavonoid found in apples, protects neurons from oxidative damage and contains other anti-Alzheimer’s disease properties, too. But, the researchers say, more research needs to be done outside of a laboratory setting.

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What is the Healthiest Apple?

Most people know apples are good for you, but just how healthy are they and is there a healthiest apple in the world?

Actually there is. A recent scientific study, conducted at the University of Western Australia, found that the Pink Lady variety had the highest level of antioxidant flavonoids. Accordingly, they have a good claim to the title of the healthiest apple to eat.

While other factors, like the soil they are grown in which can affect mineral content, and whether or not they are organic would come into play, flavonoids are definitely a big part of what makes apples so good for you. Here’s why.

What Are Flavonoids?

Flavonoids are a broad term for several different classes of plant-based, water soluble nutritional compounds. They have been studied primarily for their ability to quench free radicals damage within your body that can lead to serious health problems such as heart disease and hasten the visible signs of aging like wrinkles.

Essentially, a diet high in antioxidant flavonoids is believed to help prevent and even repair cellular damage and inflammation within your body. This can lead to a lower chance of developing cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, dementia, certain cancers and many other health issues.

6 Important Flavonoids in Apples

1. Quercetin – This flavonoid is associated with reducing inflammation, particularly of the cardiovascular system and improving your immunity. Quercetin has also been used to help reduce allergies and in vitro studies show it slows the growth of some kinds of cancer cells.

2. Myricetin – This is another flavonoid found in apples with anti-cancer properties. Animal studies have demonstrated it has specific actions against colon, pancreatic and skin cancer. It is also thought to inhibit LDL cholesterol oxidization, which is a known risk factor for both strokes and heart attacks.

3. Kaempferol – The powerful antioxidant kaempferol is believed to reduce oxidative damage to our cells and their DNA. Like both quercetin and myricetin, kaempferol is particularly valuable for preventing cardiovascular disease. This flavonoid also has strong anti-inflammatory properties and has been associated with a reduced risk of both skin cancer and pancreatic cancer.

4. Epicatechin – Epicatechin is a polyphenol found in apples that is linked to lower rates of cancer, heart disease and diabetes as well as improved memory. Studies have shown a reduction in fatty deposits and degeneration of arteries with epicatechin supplementation.

5. Chlorogenic acid – As well as having strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, this phenolic acid can help with weight loss by improving glucose tolerance for less fat-storing excess insulin. Green coffee bean extract is the most potent source of chlorogenic acid, but a daily apple can certainly help.

6. Procyanidin B2 – Unusually, this flavonoid, of which apples are the highest source, appears to have a special effect on your hair and how fast it grows. Procyanidin B2 is said to stimulate hair growth by activating the anagen (growth) phase of the hair follicle and decreasing the time that follicles remain dormant.

Scientific studies on these individual antioxidants, while interesting (at least to some strange people like me), don’t really tell the whole story though. It’s almost certain that rather than one or two individual compounds being responsible for the health benefits of apples, it’s the sum total of all the nutrients they contain working together that make them such a potent disease preventing and anti-aging fruit.

There is however something many of us are doing to greatly reduce how much the nutritional value we get from our apples. I did it for years but now I’ve found a better way.

Why You Shouldn’t Peel Your Apples, or Should You?

The majority of the beneficial antioxidants listed above like quercetin, kaempferol and myricetin are found in or just below the skin in apples. Unfortunately many of us peel them, thus removing the most nutrient rich part of the fruit.

There’s good reason to do this though as conventionally grown apples are a heavily sprayed crop. They also have wax applied to their skin to shine them up for the supermarket. They might look good but who wants to be eating chemicals with names like thiabendazole, azinphos methyl or carbendazim and waxes often derived from beetle secretions.

Whenever you can, buy organic apples that have not been grown with chemical fertilizers and sprayed with toxic pesticides. They probably won’t look as shiny as regular supermarket apples but they’ll be so much better for you.

If you can only get conventionally grown apples and would like to try getting any pesticide residue and waxes off them then the following method is believed to greatly reduce chemicals on your produce.

To a bowl just big enough to fit your fruit in, add hot water and a good splash of vinegar and let your apples soak in it for at least 30 seconds, a minute or two would be better. Next scrub them thoroughly with a scrubbing brush in the water. Once this is done, rinse them under the tap and they’re good to go.

While it’s not guaranteed to remove all pesticides, some resources state that a solution of white vinegar and water will remove 98% of pesticides as well as kill any bacteria on the fruits or vegetables.

Here’s an interesting video about the history and nutrition of apples.

Conclusion

Apples are a very healthy fruit and it seems we are only just discovering how true the old apple a day saying is. And if you can find the high antioxidant Pink Lady variety grown organically, they may just be one of the most nutritious fruits you’ll eat for a long while.

How do you like to eat your apples? Skin on or peeled, washed or straight from the fruit bowl? I’d also be really interested to hear what’s your favorite type of apple. I’ve always gone for organic Red Delicious, but after researching this page, I’ll be looking out for those Pink Ladies at the real food stores.

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