5 Important Health Benefits of Apples

Apples are so commonplace that you do not even worry about whether are 5 Important Health Benefits of Apples. “One apple a day keeps the doctor away" suggests. At the same time, apples are grossly underestimated. Superfoods from all over the world seem to be better and more beneficial than the apple. But that is not the case. A fresh apple from local orchards, possibly even an old apple variety, has amazing healing effects on the organism. And if you do not like eating whole apples, then make yourself an apple juice!

Apples Reduce the Risk of Disease

Many scientific studies repeatedly confirm that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables can significantly reduce the risk of chronic illness. The reason for this preventive effect of fruits and vegetables lies in the high content of so-called phytochemicals (phytochemicals).

These include, for example, the polyphenols, flavonoids, and carotenoids. In the apple, it is from these groups’ z. Quercetin, catching, kaempferol, hesperidin, myricetin, and phloridzin, all of which are powerful antioxidants with anti-inflammatory properties.

No wonder epidemiological studies always show associations between apple consumption and a reduced risk of cancer, asthma, diabetes and cardiovascular disorders. Yes, the latter substance - phloridzin - seems to protect against bone density loss, as initial studies have shown and can thus make an important contribution to the prevention of osteoporosis.

However, the composition of the active substances varies greatly depending on the type of apple (see also below "Which apple variety is the best"). Also, the composition changes during the ripening process, so that unripe apples provide plant compounds other than mature ones. Storage also has an impact on phytochemical content, albeit less than processing into compote, applesauce or cooked juices. Therefore you should never cook apples.

Apples and their benefits for your health

Apples should be on the menu every day, especially during the autumn harvest season: they help you lose weight, prevent asthma, protect against cancer, cleanse the liver, restore the intestinal flora and are good for the brain - just a small selection of all too present positive apple effects.

 5 Important Health Benefits of Apples

1. Apples Help with Weight Loss

When it comes to weight loss, you should definitely give all the apple preference. They help you lose weight better than apple juice. Eat a medium apple as an appetizer about 15 minutes before the main meal. The effect is not huge, but it definitely contributes to your customer success. You save - so you found out - at least 60 kcal.

In the corresponding study, the test persons ate 15% less of the main meal after the apple appetizer. Because the meals in this study contained about 1240 kcal, it was 186 kcal, which was consumed less. Of these, one now deducts the calories from the apple (in the present study had 120 kcal), so that the mentioned 60 kcal remain.

Processed apple forms (muss and juice) did not produce comparable results in this study.

In a Brazilian study described in the March 2003 issue of Nutrition, it was also found that eating apples (and pears too) results in weight loss in overweight people. 400 women were divided into three groups. One group ate a serving of oatmeal cookies three times a day in addition to the normal meals (one would expect an effect due to the oat fiber in it), the second three times a day an apple and the third one pear three times a day for 12 weeks each.

The apple and pear groups lost 1.2 kilograms each, the oat biscuit group did not decrease. The two fruit groups also had a healthier blood sugar level after the 12 weeks than the oat biscuit group.

2. Apples and Apple Juice Prevent Lung Disease

A person who regularly eats apples or drinks apple juice is less likely to suffer from asthma, according to a Finnish study of 10,000 men and women in 2002. The high flavonoid content in the apple strengthens lung function and thus reduces susceptibility to asthma and many other lungs - and also heart disease.

The study thus showed that the more quercetin (one of the flavonoids in the apple) consumed a person, the lower the mortality from heart disease. Quercetin also reduced the risk of developing lung cancer and Type 2 diabetes, while reducing the risk of stroke when the food contained plenty of kaempferol, naringenin, and hesperidin - all flavonoids, which are also known to be in the apple.

Something similar was found in an Australian study of 1,600 adults. Those who ate many apples and pears did not suffer as often from asthma and had stronger bronchi.

3. Apples and Apple Juice Protect the Liver

Apples and naturally cloudy apple juice are a kind of protective elixir for the liver. According to a March 2015 study, it is presumably polyphenols in the apple (the oligomeric procyanidins) that have a strong chemopreventive effect and can, therefore, protect against hepatotoxic chemicals.

Other studies showed that the polyphenols of the apple can protect against oxidative stress and thus the mitochondria (the power plants of our cells) from damage. The apple polyphenols also do this when, for example, painkillers are taken that would normally damage the liver and intestinal cells. Indomethacin is one such painkiller. Apples can protect the liver and bowel from this drug, depending on the dose of the drug and the number of apples.

At the same time, apples help the intestinal flora to maintain a healthy balance, which in turn relieves the liver. In the case of a diseased intestine, on the other hand, the digestive process is sluggish and numerous toxic substances develop in the intestine, which now reaches the liver via the blood for detoxification. The rehabilitation of the intestine is therefore always one of the first steps if you want to do the liver something good - and apples or apple juice apparently help.

4. Apples and Apple Juice are good for the Intestine

The described influence of apples on the gut is, according to some scientists, one of the main reasons why apples have such good health effects. They, therefore, believe that apples have a positive effect on their health because they help to restore the intestinal flora. Because the intestinal flora is known to be the place where most of the immune system is localized. When the immune system is strong and the intestines are healthy, then hardly any disease can develop.

What makes the apple so intestine-friendly is probably the combination of flavonoids, polyphenols, and fiber (pectin)? Studies show that eating an apple increased the amount of short-chain fatty acids in the intestine, indicating that the intestinal bacteria turned the fiber of the apple into just those fatty acids.

On the one hand, apples provide food for the intestinal flora and on the other hand, they ensure a good regeneration and care of the intestinal mucosa, because the resulting short-chain fatty acids are used by the intestinal mucosal cells as energy suppliers.

5. Apples and Apple Juice Keep the Brain Healthy

If you like to drink naturally cloudy apple juice (daily), you can also reduce your Alzheimer's risk. Because the apple juice is to inhibit - so researchers in the year 2009 in the Journal of Alzheimer's disease - the education of the beta-Amyloid in the brain. Beta-amyloids are those deposits that are also called "senile plaque" and associated with dementia.

And even if Alzheimer's is already diagnosed, apples and apple juice should be part of the diet. In that case, regular apple consumption can improve the behavior of patients - according to a study from June 2010.

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, USA, found that consuming one-quarter of an apple cider a day (divided into two portions and drunk for four weeks) in people with moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease improve their behavior and mental health by almost 30 percent. Especially fears, nervousness, and delusions improved.