THEIR BENEFITS ARE SKIN DEEP
Lower the risk of heart disease
Prevent constipation
Improve lung function
Lower the risk of lung cancer
John Chapman, a Massachusetts resident who liked to travel, isn’t remembered for his groundbreaking efforts to prevent heart disease and cancer and improve Americans’ overall health. But he certainly did his part. As he wandered around the eastern states and the Midwest for the first half of the 1800s, he planted apple seeds, transplanted seedlings, and established apple orchards to help supply pioneers with the tasty fruit.
He’s now remembered as Johnny Appleseed, and nowadays, chemists, doctors, and other researchers are expanding his legacy as they discover new reasons why apples are so good to have around.
Apples are more than just a wholesome snack. Studies suggest that eating apples can help reduce the risk of heart disease, and they may also help protect you from lung cancer. In addition, they may lower your risk of asthma and improve your overall lung function. Indeed, it appears that having an apple or two a day really can help keep the doctor away.
Some of the most powerful disease-fighting components in apples are phenolics, and they’ve been getting a lot of research attention lately. Phenolics are a type of phytochemical that can act as powerful antioxidants, neutralizing free radicals before they have the chance to harm your DNA and other important components within your body.
Research conducted by scientists at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and Seoul University in South Korea found that these phenolics, rather than the vitamin C in the fruit, may provide the bulk of apples’ antioxidant power.
Other research from Cornell set out to rank the total phenolic content in many popular fruits. Apples came in second place, behind the cranberry, and beat out other favorites such as the red grape, strawberry, pineapple, banana, peach, lemon, orange, pear, and grapefruit.
This study also found that apples had the second highest total antioxidant activity of these fruits (again, the cranberry beat it). Finally, the study also measured the ability of extracts of these fruits to inhibit liver-cancer cells in the lab. Apples came in third place, behind cranberries and lemons.
If you factor in their tastiness, easy preparation time, and versatility, apples are hard to beat as an easy way to get a quick dose of antioxidants—after all, have you ever grabbed a handful of cranberries or a lemon and eaten them?
Put away the peeler, and eat your apples with the peel intact. “The peel contains three-quarters of the fiber and most of the antioxidants in the apple,” says Wendy Davis, RD, director of communications and consumer health for the US Apple Association. Cornell University food scientists who tested four varieties of apples found that the peels better inhibited the growth of cancer cells than the rest of the apple. As a result, apple peels “may impart health benefits when consumed and should be regarded as a valuable source of antioxidants,” the researchers wrote.
The phytochemicals lurking in apples may make them useful tools in warding off heart disease. A study that followed almost 40,000 women for about 7 years associated apples with a 13 to 22 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease.
Research from Finland has found that intake of flavonoids—a type of phenolic found in apples—was inversely associated with death from heart disease in women. Data gathered from the same group of people also found that those who ate the most apples had a lower risk of a type of stroke than the people who ate the fewest apples.
Another study, involving more than 30,000 older Iowa women, found that consuming catechin and epicatechin—both flavonoids found in apples—was associated with a lower risk of death from coronary heart disease.
Even though many people favor the flesh, much of an apple’s healing power resides in the skin, which contains large amounts—about 4 milligrams—of an antioxidant compound called quercetin. Like vitamin C and beta-carotene, quercetin can help prevent harmful oxygen molecules from damaging individual cells.
Even in the healing world of antioxidants, quercetin is thought to be exceptional. Another Finnish study, this one following more than 10,000 men and women, found that the people who ate the most quercetin had a 20 percent lower risk of dying from coronary heart disease than those who ate the least.
“So eating an apple a day is not a bad idea,” says Lawrence H. Kushi, ScD, associate director for etiology and prevention research at Kaiser Permanente’s division of research in Oakland, California.
Apples may also be helpful in warding off the dreaded disease of lung cancer. A study involving more than 120,000 men and women found that women who ate at least one serving of apples or pears daily had a lower risk of this form of cancer.
A Hawaiian study looking at the diet history of 582 people who had lung cancer and 582 without the disease found that the people who ate the most apples, onions, and white grapefruit had roughly half the risk of lung cancer than those who ate the least amounts of these foods. Apples and onions are both high in quercetin. In another study, Finnish researchers found that men who consumed more quercetin were 60 percent less likely to have lung cancer than men with lower quercetin intakes.
“When you subject cells to a carcinogen and then put in the quercetin, you prevent mutation from occurring—you prevent the carcinogen from acting,” says Dr. Kushi.
Apples may also help reduce your risk of asthma and improve your lung health. An Australian study involving 1,600 adults associated apple and pear consumption with a lower risk of asthma. Finnish researchers—who seem to be pretty busy when it comes to studying apples—found fewer cases of asthma among people with high levels of quercetin in their diets.
And a study of more than 13,000 adults in the Netherlands found that those who ate more apples and pears had better lung function and less chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Recent discoveries aside, apples are also excellent sources of fiber. They contain both soluble and insoluble fiber, including pectin. A 5-ounce apple with the skin has about 3 grams of fiber. “They’re a good source,” says Chang Lee, PhD, professor of food science and technology at the Cornell University–New York State Agricultural Experimental Station in Geneva.
Insoluble fiber, found mostly in the skin, is the kind that we used to call roughage, which has long been recommended for relieving constipation. More is at stake, though, than just comfort. Studies show that a smoothly operating digestive tract can help prevent diverticulosis, a condition in which small pouches form in the large intestine, and also cancer of the colon. Plus, insoluble fiber is filling, which is why apples are such an excellent weight-control food for people who want to lose weight without feeling hungry.
The soluble fiber in apples, which is the same kind that is found in oat bran, acts differently from the insoluble kind. Rather than passing through the digestive tract more or less unchanged, soluble fiber forms a gel-like material in the digestive tract that helps lower cholesterol and, with it, the risk of heart disease and stroke.
It’s not just the soluble fiber that’s so helpful, but a particular type of soluble fiber called pectin. The same ingredient used to thicken jellies and jams, pectin appears to reduce the amount of cholesterol produced in the liver. An average-size apple contains 0.7 gram of pectin, more than the amount in strawberries and bananas.
Store them cold. If you’re buying more apples than you can eat quickly, store them in a plastic bag or a produce drawer in your refrigerator.
There are 2,500 kinds of apples in the United States alone. Even if you can’t sample all of the world’s apples, you can try some of the more notable varieties. Here are a few types to look for.
Braeburn. Ranging in color from greenish gold to almost solid red, Braeburn apples combine sweetness and tartness. A great eating apple.
Fuji. Available year-round, Fuji apples are crisp and sweet, with just a hint of spice. They are wonderful eating apples. The Fuji actually becomes more flavorful while you store it.
Gala. These apples have distinctive red stripes running down yellow-orange skin. Both crisp and sweet, they are used for munching and also for making applesauce.
Golden Delicious. The most commonly grown apple in many countries, it’s firm, sweet, and crisp. It’s a good choice for recipes that require baking or cooking, since it retains its shape.
Granny Smith. Probably best known for its bright green color, even when ripe, this apple is crisp and tart, and good for baking and sautéing.
Jonagold. Tangy and sweet, Jonagold apples are used both for eating and baking.
Liberty. A favorite of organic growers, Liberty apples are resistant to many diseases and don’t require large amounts of pesticides. They’re excellent for eating and cooking.
Northern Spy. Greenish yellow with red stripes, these apples have a tart taste that’s wonderful for cooking and baking.
Rome. These apples are firm and crisp, and they’re great for baking.
Winesap. Spicy and tart, these are often used for ciders and also for baking and adding to salads.
Protect their color. If you’re serving apple slices, dip them in a citrus juice—such as lemon or grapefruit juice—after you cut them to help preserve their bright color.
Don’t count on processed apples. Although apple juice contains a little iron and potassium, it’s no great shakes compared with the whole fruit. By the time apples wind up as juice, they’ve given up most of their fiber and quercetin. In addition, the antioxidant-rich peel is discarded when producers make applesauce and canned apples. If you have a choice, eat a whole fresh apple rather than the processed versions.
Of course, if you’re choosing between sugary soda and apple juice, by all means choose the juice. But don’t use juice as a substitute for the real thing.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 12-× 8-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
Cut the apples in half lengthwise. Remove the cores and stems and discard. Cut the apples into thin slices.
Place the apples and the applesauce in the prepared baking dish. Toss to coat the apples evenly with the applesauce, and spread the apples out evenly in the baking dish.
In a small bowl, mix the oats, wheat germ, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Drizzle with the oil. Add the butter. Mix with your fingers to work the oil and butter into the dry ingredients.
Sprinkle the oat mixture evenly over the apples. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the topping is golden and the apples are bubbling. Serve warm.
Makes 6 servings
Calories: 197
Total fat: 5.7 g
Saturated fat: 1.6 g
Cholesterol: 5 mg
Sodium: 3 mg
Dietary fiber: 4.7 g