If you want to enhance your health by consuming nutritious foods, one of your best options is apples. There are many reasons why opting for apples can be right you. First, they are easy to consume and require very little preparation beforehand. You can have the fruit no matter where you are: at the gym, in a cab or at home. Second, the fruit is versatile as it allows you to eat it in different forms – as a fruit, juice or extract. You can even include it in salads, pies and tarts. Third, the fruit is high in nutritional content and offers various health benefits. Here are some of them:
1. Reduces the Risk of Cancer
Studies indicate that apples can reduce the risk of a few cancers, like those of the epithelium and lung. This can be an effect of the high flavonoid content in apples. As the skin of the fruit is rich in flavonoids, it is important to consume this too. The skin has a high amount of anti-oxidants too, which plays a crucial role in fighting cancer. As a result of this, the cancer cells are unable to grow, spread or survive in the body. Apples can have a curing effect even on prostate and breast cancer.
2. Reduces the Risk of Heart Disease
Drinking a glass of apple juice a day can help delay the processes that can cause heart disease. This is enabled by a compound in apples called phytonutrients, which serves to slow the breakdown of low-density lipoproteins (LDL), also known as bad cholesterol. During oxidation, LDL can form plaques that thicken on the arterial walls, causing atherosclerosis. If you consume apple juice consistently for a few days, you can see positive results in a short period.
3. Cleanses the Body
If you are still wondering why certain people constantly get skin problems or pimples, it because their body is not clean on the inside. This problem, however, can be resolved by adding apple juice to your diet. Apple juice can cleanse the body.
4. Facilitates Weight Loss
Apples can also play a vital role in facilitating weight loss. This is especially true if they are consumed a few minutes before a meal. As apples have a high fibre and water content, they make you feel full before having your meal. This indicates that the amount of food you consume will be less than what it would have been had you need eaten an apple beforehand. When you reduce your meal size, you also reduce your calorie intake, thereby facilitating weight loss. Research indicates that when you eat three apples a day and reduce your calorie intake, the resultant weight loss can be up to 3 pounds over 12 weeks.
5. Prevents Alzheimer’s Disease
You can prevent Alzheimer’s by integrating apples into your daily food intake. Apples contain antioxidants that can protect your neurones from damage that can cause the age-related disease. Studies indicate that consuming two glasses of apple juice a day reduces the production of beta-amyloid, which creates plaques that can result in a loss of cognitive functions and memory – signs commonly associated with Alzheimer’s disease.
