Did you know - that the popular saying "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" came from the old English saying "To eat an apple before going to bed will make the doctor beg his bread"?
Apples are members of the rose family. There are over 7,500 varieties grown throughout the world. About a hundred different varieties are grown commercially in the United States. Some of the most common types are Red and Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Gala, Fiji, Mclntosh and Rome.
Apples
Apples originally came from an area between the Caspian and Black Seas around 6500 B.C. Apples were a favorite food of ancient Greeks and Romans. The Romans brought the apple to England and the English introduced it to North America. Today Americans consume, on average, about twenty pounds of apples per year per person.
Where Are Apples Grown?
China is the world's largest producer. The United States, Turkey, Poland and Italy follow respectively. Apples are commercially grown in thirty-five of the fifty United States, with Washington and New York leading in production.
Why Should I Eat Apples?
If you are going to eat an apple, you should eat every part of it but the core. Almost half of the vitamin C content is just underneath the skin. Apples are rich in fiber, a source of both soluble and insoluble fiber. Over two-thirds of the fiber and almost all of the antioxidants are found in the peel. Apples are a rich source of phytochemicals such as phenoylics (chlorogenic acid and catechin), carotenoids such as beta-carotene, and flavonoids including phloridzin and quercetin (which may play a role in fighting cancer and heart disease).
Apples are believed to help with stomach aches and are eaten to relieve constipation. Apple cider vinegar is used to help treat heartburn. As the story goes, if you rub a piece of an apple on a wart and bury the piece in the ground, the wart will disappear as the apple rots. Apples have been given to unmarried couples, teachers and friends as good luck charms to drive away bad spirits and bad luck.
Health Benefits Of Apples
Heart Health: Two apples a day may help keep heart disease at bay! Researchers found that for every ten grams of fiber added to the diet, there is a 14 per cent reduction in heart disease. A medium apple contains five grams of fiber. Another group of researchers followed men at risk for heart disease for five years. They found that the flavonoids and antioxidants in the apple skin peel may contribute to a decreased risk of developing heart disease.
Cancer: A rat study showed that the more apples they ate, the less mammary tumor growth there was. In one human cell study, apples appeared to protect cells by halting signals that cause the cancerous cells to form. In another study of human colon cancer cells, flavonoids, associated with apples, inhibited the growth and spread of the cancerous cells.
Weight Loss: A study conducted by researchers from the State University of Rio de Janeiro found that overweight women who added three apples a day to their low-fat diet lost more weight than those women who did not add in apples.
Brain Health: A 2005 animal study found that eating apple products may help protect against cellular damage attributed to memory loss. In another animal study, this time with mice, researchers added apple juice concentrate to their diet. The results showed that the juice concentrate prevented an increase in oxidative damage to brain tissue and decline in cognitive performance.
Diabetes: Diabetics who consumed apples had smaller spikes in glucose after eating, perhaps due to their soluble fiber content.
Tips on Using Apples
- Choose apples with firm, undented, shiny skin.
- Keep apples in the refrigerator after purchasing because apples ripen six to eight times faster at room temperature.
- Bruised or rotten apples give off a gas that promotes ripening of fruits, which may cause spoilage of other foods.
If you are not going to use cut apples right away, squeeze some time, lemon or orange juice on them to prevent browning.
- Raw apples are great for a snack and in salads.
- Apples can be baked in pies and tarts or pureed into apple sauce.
- Golden Delicious, Granny Smith and Rome are best for baking. The best salad apples are Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Fiji.
- Golden Delicious apples are an all-purpose apple and may be used for many cooking methods.
Michelle has been a nutritional consultant for 11 years and has been writing articles to help people protect and enhance their health for nearly 4 years now. Michelle has also discovered that nutrition is vital as part of a detox diet if you are looking at how to detox your body.