Apple, a tree of the family Rosaceae, is one of the most widely cultivated fruit trees in the world.
Every 100 g apple provides 80 kcal energy and contains 4 g dietary fiber. In addition to this, apple also consists of minerals such as calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.
Fruits and vegetables are rich in many nutrients such as dietary fiber, vitamin C, carotenoids, flavonoid, phytoestrogens etc. Because of this reason people are telling more attention to consume fruits and vegetables which play an important part in the human diet system.
Besides other nutritional values apple contains a significant amount of polyphenols. For example, it has been reported that apple contains about 20 antioxidants (polyphenols and phytochemicals).
Apple is a rich source of flavonoids which are known to play an important role in human health by inhibiting free radical oxidation process, reducing the risk of coronary heart diseases and cancer.
A previous study has shown that consumption of apple is associated with a decrease in the risk of lung cancer and esophageal cancer.
However, other studies showed that apple consumption is not necessarily related to an increased or decreased risk of colon cancer.
Recently scientists have investigated the association between fruit intake (including apple) and the risk of breast cancer in women.
The results showed that there is no association between acute consumption of fruit (including apple), and the risk of breast cancer in women. However, they concluded that the long-term intake of fruits (especially apples) significantly reduces the risk of estrogen positive tumors.
In addition to the health benefits of apple, it has also been shown that consumption of apple (about 250 to 500 ml daily) improves insulin resistance.
Apple is a nutritious fruit and in addition to this it also play an important role in human health. Therefore people should consume apples on a regular basis.
