Apples are a popular and inexpensive fruit choice, and due to their fiber and water content they can help fill you up on relatively few calories, making them a healthy snack. Although there are hundreds of different types of apples to choose from, the nutritional content among the many varieties is very similar.
Nutritional Facts
A medium apple contains 80 calories and 4 g of fiber. It is fat-, cholesterol- and sodium-free, and provides you with 149 mg of potassium, 15 percent of the daily value for vitamin C, 4 percent of the DV for vitamin B-6, 2 percent of the DV for thiamine and magnesium and small amounts of calcium, iron, vitamin A and folate. Apples also contain high levels of a type of antioxidant called flavonoids.
Potential Health Benefits
Consuming apples may lower your risk for Alzheimer's disease, according to a study published in August 2006 in the "Journal of Alzheimer's Disease," which found that mice consuming the equivalent of 2 to 3 apples per day had lower levels of this disease than mice in the control group. Apples may also lower your risk for high cholesterol, heart disease, obesity, lung cancer and breast cancer due to their high fiber and antioxidant content.
Type
Consume apples with the skin on for the most benefits, because there are five times as many polyphenols, a type of antioxidant, in the skin than in the flesh of apples, according to a report published in the "Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry" in June 2005. The skin contains a lot of the vitamin C and fiber in apples as well. The report also notes that Red Delicious, Ida Red and Northern Spy apples have more antioxidants than Cortland, Empire, Golden Delicious, McIntosh and Mutsu apples.
Considerations
Apples keep their antioxidant content for up to 5 or 6 months of storage, but processing apples into applesauce or apple juice lowers their antioxidant content, so it is best to consume whole apples. Keep in mind that while apples provide a number of nutrition and health benefits, it is best to consume a variety of fruits and vegetables rather than eating large amounts of any one fruit or vegetable. This maximizes your overall nutrient intake since different types of produce contain different nutrients.
References
- Nutrient Facts: Apple, Raw, with Skin
- University of Illinois Extension: Apples
- Science Daily; Research Shows Benefits Of Apple Juice On Neurotransmitter Affecting Memory; August 2006
- MSNBC; Apples Pack a Big Antioxidant Punch; Karen Collins, R.D.; January 2007
- EurekAlert!; Red Delicious, Northern Spy Apples Have the Most Antioxidants, Chemists Find; Michael Bernstein; May 2005
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