An apple a day keeps the doctor away

  The proverb "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" may just be true as found by research findings.

  Apple peels contain many nutrients. For example, they contain ursolic acid which increases skeletal muscle and brown fat and decreases white fat, obesity, glucose intolerance and fatty liver disease.

 Apple peels are a source of various phytochemicals and possible antioxidant activity in vitro. The predominant phenolic phytochemicals in apples are quercetin, epicatechin, and procyanidin B2.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, a typical apple serving weighs 242 grams and contains 126 calories with significant dietary fiber and vitamin C content.

And preliminary research suggests that apples may reduce the risk of colon cancer, prostate cancer, lung and other cancers.For example, researchers at Cornell University have identified several compounds—triterpenoids—in apple peel that have potent anti-growth activities against cancer cells in the liver, colon and breast. Meanwhile, the National Cancer Institute in the U.S. has recommended a high fibre intake to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer while the American Association for Cancer Research found that the consumption of flavonol-rich apples could help reduce the risk of developing pancreatic cancer by up to 23 per cent. 

In addition, in a study by Briggs ADM, Mizdrak A, Scarborough P. published in BMJ, a medical journal, to compare the estimated effects of statin drug treatment on vascular disease (in the United Kingdom, the only drug class recommended for primary prevention at a population level is the hydroxymethyl glutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitors, or statins, for cardiovascular disease prevention at the population level ) with those of an apple per day in people over age 50, it was found that, assuming a 70% compliance rate, prescribing statins to 22.8 million people in the UK over age 50 would result in an estimated 9,400 fewer vascular deaths annually, compared with 8,500 fewer annual vascular deaths for an apple per day.

Why eating apples is so effective in preventing cardiovascular disease is due to the phenolic compound found in apple peels, which can prevent the cholesterol that gets into our system from solidifying on the artery walls. When plaque builds inside the arteries, it reduces blood flow to our heart, leading to cardiovascular disease.

The estimated side-effects arising from such widespread statin use include 1,200 excess cases of myopathy, 200 cases of rhabdomyolysis and 12,300 cases of diabetes.

Thus the study authors concluded that, both nutritional and pharmaceutical approaches to the prevention of vascular disease may have the potential to reduce UK mortality significantly. With similar reductions in mortality, a 150 year old health promotion message is able to match modern medicine and is likely to have fewer side effects.