Apples - Health Benefits
Apples: a selection of facts
by: News Canada
This article is based on a number of brief publications from News Canada,
ranging from 1 to a few paragraphs each. I have combined them
to make it easier to read the entire series.
Apples: Canadians 86, Americans 65
We all know the old adage "an apple a day keeps the doctor away." And
while Canadians eat 32 per cent more apples each year than Americans -
Canadians eat 86 apples per person each year while Americans eat 65 - we're
still falling short.
Apples are a delicious source of fibre. One medium apple contains, on
average, five grams of fibre, more than most cereals. While some people
remove the peel, it's important to note that this is where one-third of
the fibre, as well as many disease-fighting antioxidants, are found.
Apples are also a source of Vitamin C (providing 15% of the recommended daily
intake) and contain no fat, sodium or cholesterol.
Reaching your goal of "an apple a day" is easier than you think. Just
rinse and eat out of hand or for a fresh change add an apple to
your favourite dish. It's that simple. For more information on health
benefits of apples, visit
here or
to find delicious recipes using Washington apples, visit
here.
Know your apples
Ontario fruit fans - the wait is over. Washington State apples are
back and as fresh, crisp and loaded with character as ever. But which will
be the apple of your eye this season? The super-sweet Fuji, the
versatile Granny Smith, the brazen Braeburn, the endearing Cameo or the sassy
Pink Lady? Each is just as tempting as the next.
Ontario consumers are reaching for apples in record numbers - 7.12 kg
per person in 2003, an increase of more than six per cent from the
previous year.
"Canadians love apples," says Rebecca Baerveldt, Deputy Export Director,
Washington Apple Commission. "Try some of the different Washington
apple varieties available to find the one that satisfies your palete.
By experiencing the flavours and understanding best usage, you can
pick the apple that's just right for you."
With nine varieties of Washington apples available in Ontario stores,
the chart below will help you navigate the apple aisle.
Are you a Fuji or a Cameo or maybe a Pink Lady? Try them all
and find your perfect apple.
APPLE VARIETY / TASTE PROFILE
- Braeburn / Sweet, spicy and crisp
- Cameo / Sweet, zingy and crisp
- Fuji / Super sweet and crisp
- Gala / Sweet, fragrant and crisp
- Golden Delicious / Sweet mellow and crisp
- Granny Smith / Tart, hard and crisp
- Jonagold / Tangy-sweet crisp
- Pink Lady / Tangy-tart and crisp
- Red Delicious / Sweet and crisp
Apples and colon cancer
French researchers reported at the American Association for
Cancer Research that eating apples may help reduce the risk of
developing colon cancer by reducing the growth of precancerous lesions
in the colon. Procyanidins (commonly known as "condensed tannins") are
plant-generated compounds found in high concentration in apples
and apple foods. It was these which reduced the number of
pre-cancerous lesions in laboratory studies by nearly 50 percent.
Researchers hope that with further testing and study they will find a
way to use procyanidins to help cure existing cases of colon cancer.
(Abstract of researcher presentation can be viewed online at
www.aacr.org/2004prevention.asp)
Apples - food for thought
A recent study from Cornell University suggest that apples may provide
food for thought - literally, by protecting the brain from oxidative
damage that causes neuro-degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's (AD) and
Parkinson's. Eating an apple a day "may reduce risk of chronic diseases
including AD", researchers concluded in their report following their
laboratory study. The protective effect seems to be attributable to the
apple phytonutrient quercetin. Quercetin is found most abundantly in
apples and may provide a range of health benefits.
Apples are also rich in pectin, a form of soluble fibre that is
known to help reduce the levels of blood cholesterol and aid in
digestion. Flavonoids found in apples, such as quercetin, help
reduce the symptoms of arthritis, rheumatism and gout.
(Source: Journal of Food Science, 2004; vol.69, no.9 and Journal
of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2004, vol. 52, no. 24)
Apple Facts
Apples are considered "Nature's Toothbrush". When you bite into
an apple, not only does the flesh clean your teeth, but it
exercises your gums too. Apples increase saliva and reduce
cavity-causing bacteria.
News Canada
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