Does an apple a day really keep the doctor away?

ISLAMABAD: We’ve all heard that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but how true is that?

Apples are not high in vitamin A, nor are they beneficial for vision like carrots. They are not a great source of vitamin C and therefore don’t fight off colds as oranges do.

However, apples contain various bioactive substances – natural chemicals that occur in small amounts in foods and that have biological effects in the body. These chemicals are not classified as nutrients like vitamins. Because apples contain many health-promoting bioactive substances, the fruit is considered a “functional” food.

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Functional foods are not the same as superfoods. “Superfood” is a buzzword marketers use to promote foods like kale, spinach and blueberries.

Superfood advertisements claim that eating the food will improve some aspect of health. The problem is that most of those claims are not based on scientific research, like the criteria for functional foods are.

An apple’s natural dietary fibers are one of the bioactive components that lead to its being classified as a functional food. The fiber pectin is found mainly in an apple’s pulp.

Pectin functions to reduce the amount of sugar and fat that is absorbed into the body. This helps reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease.

In addition, apples contain high amounts of natural chemicals known as polyphenols that have vital roles in promoting health and reducing chronic disease. So if apples are functional foods that promote health, do they really help keep the doctor away?

Researchers have tried to figure this out. One U.S. team analyzed the apple-eating patterns and number of doctor visits among more than 8,000 adults. Of those, about 9% ate one apple daily. Once adjusted for demographic and health-related factors, the researchers found that the daily apple eaters used marginally fewer prescription medications than the non-apple eaters. But the number of doctor’s visits was about the same between the two groups.

If one apple a day is not enough to make us healthy, what about eating two or three?

A group of European researchers found that eating two apples a day improved heart health in 40 adults. And Brazilian investigators found that eating three apples daily improved weight loss and blood glucose levels in 40 overweight women.

While eating an apple a day won’t necessarily cut down substantially on prescription medications or doctors visits, it could be one step in the direction of making the transition to eating more healthful, fiber-filled, whole foods.