Did you know that the crisp, juicy apple is one of the world’s oldest and most common plants? In fact, apples have been around for at least 8,000 years. They’re found in every culture, and they’re considered to be one of the world’s most important natural food preservatives. Apples are rich in fiber, vitamins, and especially pectin. Pectin is a soluble fiber that’s found in a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. It’s what helps them retain their shape and makes them so juicy. The soluble fiber in pectin binds to other substances in the digestive tract, which helps you rid your body of toxins.
Eating a few apples a day can help you keep your waistline in check and lower your risk of certain diseases. Here’s everything you need to know about the apples and their health benefits.
Table of Contents
Heart Health
There’s a reason why apples are used for heart health. They contain two types of polyphenols, which have been proven to protect the arteries from blockages. Other than keeping your heart healthy, apples are also a good source of other nutrients that can help prevent conditions like cancer and neurological issues.
Apple polyphenols
These compounds are responsible for the apples’ heart-protective properties. They’re called antioxidants and can help prevent diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s. They can also protect your skin and your eyes from sunshine damage and reduce your risk of macular degeneration.
What’s great about antioxidants is that they’re not toxic to your cells. In other words, they don’t cause damage. But they are essential to help protect your cells from oxidative damage. What this means is that they can slow down the aging process and prevent diseases related to aging.
Vision Health
The benefits of eating apples don’t stop at heart health. They also help increase your eye health. The antioxidants in apples can reduce the risk of macular degeneration, cataracts, and glaucoma. They’re also an excellent source of vitamin A, which helps prevent diseases like night blindness and blurry vision.
How can dietary intake help you prevent vision issues? Vitamin A is what’s responsible for building up the retina in your eyes. As you age, your eye cells can’t build up the retina as fast as they used to. This is why you start developing vision problems.
Skin Care
Apples can also benefit your skin. For one, they’re rich in pectin, which makes them a great ingredient for exfoliating your skin. They can also help increase your body’s immunity system, which can keep your skin healthy and prevent acne and other skin issues.
Apples can also be used as a natural scrub. Simply mash a few apples with some sugar and apply them to your skin before showering. You can also blend apples and honey and make a natural scrub.
If you don’t like the idea of applying apples directly onto your skin, you can simply make a smoothie out of them. Blend them with milk and yogurt, and you can get all their skin benefits without any side effects.
Liver Health
The liver is the body’s largest organ responsible for generating bile, which is responsible for digestion. It also stores excess sugar, fat, and calories that your body has eaten. The liver can only process about a third of what we eat. The rest will just stay in your body, leading to a higher risk of many diseases.
Apples are rich in fiber and pectin, which can help you keep your digestive tract healthy. They’re also a good source of vitamin A, which is responsible for increasing your liver’s ability to break down your food.
When the liver is overloaded with toxins like excess fat and sugar, it can get damaged. This is why you need to keep your liver healthy.
Immunity-Boosting
The term “immune system” usually brings to mind images of soldiers protecting you from infections and diseases. But there’s actually a lot of science behind “immunity” and the benefits of a strong immune system.
The build-up of toxic chemicals that are produced naturally in your body is also called “interference” in the immune system. This build-up “traps” the immune cells, which are responsible for protecting your body from infections.
Now for the good news. Apples are rich in vitamin A, which is responsible for increasing the immune system’s ability to remove toxic chemicals from the body.
If you want to reap the most benefits from eating apples, make sure you’re getting enough vitamin A from other sources. Eating too many apples or taking supplements can be harmful and unnecessary.
Nourishment For The Skin, Hair, And Nails
There’s no doubt that an apple a day will keep the doctor away. They’re also a great source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber that have nourishing effects on your skin, hair, and nails.
For your skin: Apples contain pectin, which is what makes them juicy and keeps them firm. Pectin helps your skin cells to produce the collagen that keeps your skin firm and young. It can also keep your skin cells from breaking down, which leaves your skin looking young.
For your hair: Apples are rich in sugar called fructose. Fructose is good for your hair because it’s a natural sugar that your body uses for energy. It’s also easy to digest, which is why it’s so nourishing for your hair.
For your nails: Apples contain manganese, which is essential for growing strong, healthy nails. Manganese is what makes your nails hard and prevents them from becoming brittle.
Conclusion
The health benefits of apples don’t stop at heart health, vision, and skin. They’re also a good source of other nutrients that can help you keep your digestive tract, immunity, skin, hair, nails, and more healthy. The benefits of apples don’t stop at heart health, vision, and skin. They’re also a good source of other nutrients that can help you keep your digestive tract, immunity, skin, hair, nails, and more healthy.